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Emergent Ventures

Emergent Ventures

Invests in founders and thinkers whose ideas could create outsized technological progress and societal impact.

Between cyclesMercatus Center at George Mason UniversityUnited States
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About

Emergent Ventures is a low-overhead fellowship and grant program administered by the Mercatus Center at George Mason University, launched in 2018 under faculty director Tyler Cowen. The program supports entrepreneurs, researchers, students, and independent thinkers worldwide who have highly scalable, "zero to one" ideas for meaningfully improving society. Applications are accepted on a rolling bas…

What this grant funds

Scalable 'zero to one' ideas that meaningfully improve society, spanning entrepreneurship, research, and civic innovation; geographic sub-tracks available for India, Africa, the Caribbean, Ukraine, and AI.

Key facts
CycleiHow often this grant runs — e.g. annually, on a rolling basis, or a one-off call.Rolling
Next deadlineiThe next date applications are due. Rolling means you can apply any time.Rolling
Decision timeiTypical time from the deadline to the funder's decision.—
Project durationiHow long the funded work is expected to run.—
Award typeiThe form of funding — grant, equity, loan, tax credit, etc.Grant
Match fundingiThe share of project costs you must cover yourself. 0% = fully funded.0%
Funding pooliThe total budget available across all awards in this round.—
Funding analytics

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Industries

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Eligibility criteria

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Application process

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Timeline

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Last verified: 22 Jul 2026Source: www.mercatus.org