Pitch competitions
Prize money and investor attention for a few minutes on stage. Every listing shows the prize, the entry rules and the dates.
35 programmes. Of these, 5 say they take no equity, and 9 have applications open.
35 programmes
No programme matches those filters.
Picked from the data: the next deadline, the fullest published terms and a programme that takes no equity.
Closes soonest
The startup competition at 4YFN, alongside MWC Barcelona. Twenty shortlisted startups pitch in the semi-finals, five finalists pitch at the awards ceremony, and the winner takes EUR 20,000.
€20k prize · equity not published
Most terms published
TechCrunch's pitch competition at Disrupt in San Francisco. The Battlefield 200 exhibit free and finalists pitch on stage for a US$100,000 equity-free prize.
US$100k prize · equity-free
Takes no equity
A Swiss startup competition for early-stage founders, running for 30 years. It awards CHF 590,000 in non-dilutive funding each year, with jury feedback and mentoring, and takes no equity.
Funding not published · equity-free
Includes >>venture>> Startup Competition, 43North, 4YFN Awards and 19 more.
Includes Africa Prize for Engineering Innovation, Extreme Tech Challenge (XTC), Hello Tomorrow Global Challenge and 2 more.
Includes ClimateLaunchpad, MIT Climate & Energy Prize, MIT Solve Global Challenges and 1 more.
Includes EIT Health Catapult, EIT Jumpstarter, MIT Solve Global Challenges and 1 more.
Includes Cartier Women's Initiative, EF Hult Prize, MIT Solve Global Challenges and 1 more.
Includes EIT Jumpstarter, MIT Climate & Energy Prize and Zayed Sustainability Prize.
Includes 43North, EF Hult Prize, Extreme Tech Challenge (XTC) and 9 more.
35 programmes
A Swiss startup competition for early-stage founders, running for 30 years. It awards CHF 590,000 in non-dilutive funding each year, with jury feedback and mentoring, and takes no equity.
Funding not published · equity-free
An annual investment competition in Buffalo, New York. Five startups win US$1 million each for 5% equity, then relocate to Buffalo and join 43North's accelerator programme.
US$1m invested · 5% equity
The startup competition at 4YFN, alongside MWC Barcelona. Twenty shortlisted startups pitch in the semi-finals, five finalists pitch at the awards ceremony, and the winner takes EUR 20,000.
€20k prize · equity not published
A prize and commercialisation programme for African innovators with scalable engineering solutions. Up to 16 shortlisted entrepreneurs get training and mentoring, and finalists pitch for a GBP 50,000 grand prize.
£50k prize · equity not published
An annual prize competition for African entrepreneurs with established businesses. Ten finalists share US$1.5 million in grant funding, with up to US$300,000 for the winner.
US$300k grant · equity not published
An annual award and fellowship for women-run impact businesses from any country. Regional winners receive grants of up to US$100,000 and join a year-long fellowship programme.
US$100k grant · equity not published
A free green business ideas competition run through national competitions, with boot camps and coaching. National winners go on to regional finals and a Global Grand Final.
Funding not published · equity not published
A year-long student startup competition for for-profit ventures that support at least one UN Sustainable Development Goal. One finalist team wins US$1M in seed investment.
US$1m invested · equity not published
A competition and training programme for European life sciences and health tech start-ups. Finalists pitch to investors at the EIT Health flagship event for EUR 30,000 per category.
€30k prize · equity not published
A training and pitch competition for early-stage innovators in parts of Europe, run by the EIT Community. Teams get training and mentoring, then finalists pitch to investors for up to EUR 10,000.
€10k prize · equity not published
E-Cell IIT Bombay's free business model competition, open to anyone with an idea or startup, running from online registration through offline zonal rounds and a VC round to finals and a demo day in December.
Funding not published · equity not published
An EU prize for women who founded innovative companies in Europe. Nine prizes across three categories, with EUR 100,000 for the first-placed Women Innovators winner.
€100k prize · equity not published
A global competition for technology startups with impact. The 2026 edition, AI:360, selects startups to present live at a summit and startup showcase in California.
Funding not published · equity not published
A global network of three-minute pitch competitions for students, researchers and early-career innovators. About 100 Lab winners a year go on to the Global Finale in Berlin each November.
Funding not published · equity not published
A competition for university students who already run a business while studying. Local and national rounds lead to Global Finals, where students compete for US$100,000 in cash prizes.
US$50k prize · equity not published
Harvard's annual venture competition for student founders from all 13 schools and select alumni. Winners share more than US$500,000, with advising and pitch coaching along the way.
Funding not published · equity not published
A global competition for deep tech startups, judged by industry track. Selected Deep Tech Pioneers join a year-round network; finalists pitch at the Hello Tomorrow Summit in Amsterdam.
€200k invested · equity not published
The startup pitch competition at Latitude59 in Tallinn. Thirty teams are shortlisted and finalists pitch on the main stage for investment from Baltic and Finnish angel networks and a VC fund.
Funding not published · equity not published
A deep tech startup competition held every two years by Singapore Management University. Startups from around the world pitch in Singapore for cash, investment and grant prizes.
Funding not published · equity not published
Maharashtra State Innovation Society's startup showcase in which 24 selected startups across 8 sectors win state government work orders of up to ₹15 lakh each to pilot their solutions with departments.
Funding not published · equity not published
A student-run competition at MIT in three stages from December to May: Pitch, Accelerate and Launch. The Launch winner takes a US$100,000 grand prize.
US$100k prize · equity-free
A student-run competition at MIT for student-led climate and energy startups from universities worldwide. Teams compete for more than US$100,000 in non-dilutive cash prizes, with mentoring.
US$100k prize · equity-free
MIT Solve's open innovation challenges for tech-based solutions in climate, health, learning and economic prosperity. Selected Solver teams join a nine-month programme and share more than US$1M in prize funding.
Funding not published · equity not published
An annual technology startup competition in British Columbia. Entrants get jury feedback over several rounds, and the three highest-placed finalists win prize packages worth over CA$250,000 in total.
CA$110k prize · equity not published
A student startup competition at Rice University in Houston. Invited university teams compete over three days for investment and cash prizes, and every team wins at least one prize.
Funding not published · equity not published
Scotland's twice-yearly business funding competition. Finalists pitch at a live final for grants and loans from GBP 10,000 to GBP 150,000, with mentoring and support.
Funding not published · equity not published
Singapore's global startup competition, held during the SWITCH innovation week. Over S$2M in grant prizes, with 50 startups selected for a sponsored trip to Singapore to pitch.
Funding not published · equity not published
The startup competition at Slush in Helsinki. 100 startups are shortlisted, 20 semi-finalists pitch on stage, and one of three finalists wins EUR 500,000 equity-free.
€500k prize · equity-free
A global pitch competition run through more than 100 regional events; regional champions pitch at a grand finale in San Francisco for a US$1M investment prize.
US$1m invested · equity not published
The global pitch competition at Expand North Star in Dubai, judged in three stage tracks: pre-seed, seed and Series A. Semi-finalists pitch live and winners are picked on site.
Funding not published · equity not published
An annual startup showcase at SXSW in Austin where selected finalists pitch new technology to judges and investors across eight technology categories, plus a student category.
Funding not published · equity not published
TechCrunch's pitch competition at Disrupt in San Francisco. The Battlefield 200 exhibit free and finalists pitch on stage for a US$100,000 equity-free prize.
US$100k prize · equity-free
An annual pitch competition for Bermuda-based businesses, run by the BEDC with the Global Atlantic Re foundation. Five winners receive capital grants of up to $25,000 each.
Funding not published · equity not published
The startup pitch competition at Web Summit in Lisbon, run with KPMG. Startups from the event's startup programme are selected to pitch on stage to investor judges.
Funding not published · equity not published
A global prize for small and medium enterprises and non-profits with sustainability solutions in health, food, energy, water and climate action. Each category winner receives US$1,000,000.
US$1m prize · equity not published
We list 35 programmes: >>venture>> Startup Competition, 43North, 4YFN Awards, Africa Prize for Engineering Innovation, Africa's Business Heroes, Cartier Women's Initiative and 29 more. Each listing links to the programme's own pages and shows the day we last verified it.
5 of the 35 say they take no equity: >>venture>> Startup Competition, MIT $100K Entrepreneurship Competition, MIT Climate & Energy Prize, Slush 100 and TechCrunch Startup Battlefield. 29 do not publish their equity terms.
Applications are open for 4YFN Awards (closes 26 October 2026), MIT $100K Entrepreneurship Competition (closes 28 October 2026), Supernova 0X (Supernova Challenge) (closes 2 November 2026), MIT Solve Global Challenges (closes 6 November 2026), SXSW Pitch (closes 13 November 2026) and 4 more. The deadlines page lists every date we track.
We list programmes that say on their own site how to apply, and we build every listing from those pages. Listing is free, and we are not affiliated with any programme listed here.
Send us your dates and terms and we will publish them with a link to your own pages.