BE Fellows — Innovator Fellowship

Breakthrough Energy Fellows' Innovator Fellowship sits inside the Breakthrough Energy Foundation and its Discovery arm, where it backs early-stage climate technology founders with a year-long build phase rather than a simple cash award. The track is global, English-language, and aimed at for-profit teams working at TRL 1 to TRL 4 that still need technical support and operating runway before they can scale. Funding reaches up to $500,000 through a SAFE, and the package is broader than capital alone. Fellows receive lab or office space, equipment, supplies, technical consultants, curriculum, mentorship, and access to a global network, with the program run through a full application process that begins with a concept paper, moves to a full application, and ends in a deep-dive interview. Cohort 6 closed on November 10, 2025, and Cohort 7 is expected to open in fall 2026 with a September 2026 start. The eligibility bar is tight: nonprofits, universities, research organizations, and individuals are out, and applicants generally need to have raised less than $2 million in dilutive funding before program start. That makes the fellowship most useful for founders who have a strong technical thesis but still need the time, infrastructure, and expert attention to convert it into a company. The Southeast Asia channel with Enterprise Singapore and Temasek gives the same model a regional path without changing the core structure.

Each grant below is a distinct funding opportunity with its own eligibility, scope, and deliverables.