Desjardins Startup Prize — Early-Stage Prize
Awards University of Toronto-affiliated early-stage founders up to $15,000 CAD for a three-minute pitch, as part of an annual competition with over $100,000 in total prizes.
Desjardins Startup Prize — Early-Stage Prize is a University of Toronto Entrepreneurship (UTE) prize that awards University of Toronto-affiliated early-stage founders up to $15,000 CAD for a three-minute pitch, as part of an annual competition with over $100,000 in total prizes. Early-Stage applicants must have raised less than $50,000 in cumulative funding or investment and earned less than $25,0…
The Early-Stage track is open to startups with at least one founder who is a current full-time U of T student, post-doc, or a recent alum who graduated no earlier than June 2024, across all faculties and sectors -- affiliation with a U of T Accelerator is strongly encouraged but not required. It targets ventures still early in their funding journey, capping cumulative funding or investment (dilutive and non-dilutive combined) and cumulative revenue at low thresholds.
Sign up free to see the funding breakdown
Sign up free to see the industries in scope
Sign up free to see the full eligibility
Sign up free to see how to apply
Sign up free to see what you submit
Sign up free to see how they score you
Sign up free to see the timeline
Sign up free to see where teams trip up
Guides for this application
All guides →How to Write a Grant Proposal Reviewers Can Score
Learn how to write a grant proposal around reviewer criteria, evidence, work packages, budget logic, and commercialization for deeptech and R&D funding.
DocumentsGrant Work Plan Template: Work Packages, Gantt, Milestones, and Risks
Use this grant work plan template to structure work packages, tasks, owners, deliverables, Gantt timing, dependencies, and risk registers.
DocumentsGrant Pitch Deck Example: Slides, Storyline, and Video Script
See a grant pitch deck example with slide outline, EIC-style pitch logic, demo-video script, and grant-vs-investor deck differences.
More from UTE
All grants from this funder →Similar grants
Browse the directory →Outstanding Female Scientist Prize
🇪🇺EDCTP3 · European Union
Awards EUR 20,000 to a woman scientist recognised for global-health research and mentorship in sub-Saharan Africa.
Dunin-Deshpande Seed Funding Prize (Mayor's Innovation Challenge)
🇨🇦Kingston · Canada
Gives Kingston post-secondary students phased seed funding and a part-time venture-building program for projects that improve city life or municipal services.
Scientific Leadership Prize (Man, EU)
🇪🇺EDCTP3 · European Union
Awards EUR 15,000 to a male mid-career scientist based in the EU or an associated country for global-health leadership.
Scientific Leadership Prize (Woman, EU)
🇪🇺EDCTP3 · European Union
Awards EUR 15,000 to a woman mid-career scientist based in the EU or an associated country for global-health leadership.
European Prize for Women Innovators
🇪🇺EIT · European Union
Awards women founders and co-founders across three prize categories, from EUR 20,000 up to EUR 100,000, for leading breakthrough European innovations.
ERC Public Engagement with Research Award
🇪🇺ERC · European Union
Awards ERC grant holders up to EUR 10,000 for outstanding public engagement with their ERC-funded research.