Gilhuly Accelerator Fund

The Gilhuly Accelerator Fund is Duke Office for Translation & Commercialization's internal grant program for Duke inventors working on Duke-owned intellectual property. Its purpose is straightforward: move promising inventions toward commercial readiness without forcing teams straight into outside capital. Awards run from $10,000 to $100,000 and can be tranched against milestones. Eligible costs include salary or stipend support and external services such as CRO work, while indirect costs, tuition, and capital equipment are excluded. Faculty cannot apply directly. Each submission must be sponsored by the inventor's assigned OTC licensing manager after an invention disclosure is filed, and the program is limited to Duke faculty, staff, students, and DUHS employees with Duke-owned IP. The fund is reviewed on a rolling monthly basis by OTC leadership and external advisors. Recent activity in the source notes shows $1.2 million awarded across 16 projects in FY24 and more than $4 million in follow-on funding secured across the portfolio since FY22, so the program functions as a real in-house de-risking pool for translational IP rather than a symbolic seed line.

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