AIC will typically make grants through, and in collaboration with, its on-campus partners, leveraging their relationships and expertise.  So far, AIC has established partnerships with the Bakar Fellows Program, CITRIS and the Banatao Institute, and the College of Computing, Data Science and Society, all centered at the University of California at Berkeley.  Over time, AIC expects to extend its grant program to other R1s with strong research capabilities in Deep Tech – indeed, CITRIS already extends AIC’s reach across three additional campuses: UC Santa Cruz, UC Davis, and UC Merced.

To be considered for AIC grant funding and support, innovators should apply to the Bakar Fellows Program (winter/spring) or to the CITRIS/CDSS Innovation Fellowship and AIC Awards Program (fall/winter) during the normal application cycle. Grant amounts and uses most often parallel those offered through the partner program. For example, a Principal Investigator (PI) might apply for one to three years of funding to support a post-doc in their lab exploring the commercialization potential of a promising innovation. Successful AIC grantees will also participate in all aspects of the Bakar Fellows and CITRIS/CDSS Programs, including CITRIS Foundry.

In limited and compelling cases, AIC will consider direct grants to PIs outside of its partner program grant cycles.  Early-stage equity investments are made directly by AIC Ventures and do not follow a formal application process or cycle.  Inquiries may be made through the “Contact” portal.