About the HIT Fund

Who Should Apply


Expected Outcome
Acceleration of the transition of the Stanford technology from the lab to the marketplace through:
- Faculty, students, postdocs, or staff incorporating a new startup focused on the intellectual property (IP)
- An existing company licensing the technology to generate new products or solutions
- An industrial collaborator sponsoring further application focused research to address their needs

Guidance & Connections — Customized HIT Fund Team

The fund provides resources and hands-on support in navigating the opportunities and challenges that arise in preparing for commercialization, which may include:
- Industry-specific executives and domain experts as Advisor(s) through the award term.
- Connections to industry experts who can share actionable insights on key requirements, prototype building, industry standards, and manufacturing at scale.
- Introductions to potential partners, customers, suppliers, collaborators, investors, and advisory board members.
- MBA Interns to help with customer discovery , identifying go-to-market approaches, and analyzing the market opportunity and competitive landscape.
- Patent attorneys and technology licensing experts to help with patent strategy and white space mapping.
- Friendly VCs to offer feedback on go-to-market strategy and investment pitches.
- Business ideation sessions with Industry and domain experts to help identify promising market opportunities and go-to-market approaches.

Funding — Milestone-based, up to $250,000
The awards can be used to address the key technical or market risks. Funding can be used for activities necessary to attract collaborators and investors including:
- Building customer prototypes
- Conducting pilot studies
- Materials purchases and contract manufacturing for customer samples
- 3rd party reliability and performance validation
- Regulatory consultants
- Techno-economic analysis
- Market development activities and consultants
- Stipends and salaries for students and postdocs
- Other pre-approved activities.
Award Tracks: Application Options
Track 1 — Advisory Support Only (no funding request)
- Guidance, connections, and access to an MBA intern
Tip for applying: Indicate on your application which advisory resources you are requesting
Track 2 — Funding & Advisory Support
- Monetary funding plus advisory support
Tip for applying: Indicate on your application if you'd like to be considered for a Track 1 advisory-only award if your monetary request is not granted
The 2023 application submission period has closed. Applications are now being reviewed.
Reach out to the team: HITfund2023@stanford.edu