UNICEF Venture Fund for Frontier Tech Solutions

The UNICEF through the UNICEF Venture Fund for Frontier Tech Solutions is looking to make up to US$100K in equity-free investments to provide early-stage (seed) funding to for-profit start-ups developing frontier technology solutions that can positively impact the lives of the world’s most vulnerable children and youth. If your product is registered in one of UNICEF’s programme countries, is a working prototype, has demonstrated results, and is (or could be) open-source licensed, you can apply for the program. The application deadline is July 28, 2023.

Eligibility Requirements for UNICEF 2023 Venture Fund for Frontier Tech Solutions

Projects are assessed by UNICEF Innovation Fund team and recommended for funding to the internal board. Companies need to fulfill the following mandatory requirements to be considered for funding:

Registered as a private company
Registered in a UNICEF programme country (see list here)
Working on open source technology solutions (or willing to be open source) under the following licenses or their equivalent:
- for software, a BSD license,
- for hardware, a CERN license and
- a CC-BY license for design or content, a CC-BY license
An existing prototype of the open source solution with promising results from initial pilots
Solution has the potential to positively impact the lives of the most vulnerable children
Generating publicly exposed real-time data that is measurable

For additional information on the Request for Expression of Interest, click here.

What kind of ideas / companies will the Innovation Fund support?

UNICEF will support any project that meets the requirements below

developing new technology
expanding/improving existing technology/ platform (i.e. it will be in a place where the technology is being used but will involve new tech being built)
a new application/ piloting new use case for existing technology (i.e little or no new technology will be built and it will be used in the same place)

How will Expressions of Interest be assessed?

The following criteria will be used:

Relevance of solution for children and young people, problem-solution fit and potential for application at global scale
Novelty of project and alignment with Innovation Principles
Suitability of the team and key personnel to implement the project
Project budget and financing

How to submit your application

To submit your application, visit the program application webpage. Below is the application process.

Step I: Check Eligibility: Interested companies are required to check the eligibility of the Innovation Fund.
Step II: Submit Application: Interested companies are required to submit an online application through the Fund website. You should provide the information and supporting documents indicated in the form.
Step III: Submit Request for Proposal: The Innovation Fund reviews all applications and notifies companies of the decision. Shortlisted applicants are invited to submit a detailed proposal, this is called the Request for Proposal (RFP) step.
Step IV: Demo Interview: After a careful review, companies shortlisted at the RFP step are invested for an online demo interview. This is usually a 30 minutes interview the with Innovation Fund team and experts from the tech teams.
Step V: Final Result: Based on a complete assessment of the application, RFP and interview, the Innovation Fund makes the final investment decision and notifies all selected companies.

For more details about the program, ,visit the UNICEF website.

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