Win Up to $75,000 in Funding

Are you driving the future of sustainable protein? The Bezos Center for Sustainable Protein at NC State is hosting a Start-Up Pitch Competition, offering two funding awards of up to $75,000 each to innovative ventures. We are seeking US-incorporated startups with under $2M in total funding that are scaling transformative technologies. Focus areas include enabling technologies for alternative proteins (plant-based, cell-cultivated, and fermentation-enabled products), including new protein ingredients, protein extraction technologies, technologies leveraging underutilized raw materials, manufacturing hardware and software, and novel product formulations.

FAQs

• Participation in this competition has no impact to your intellectual property ownership or access. This is a public event so it is the company’s responsibility to protect their IP and in general this presentation should share non-confidential information.

• Schedule for the competition (subject to change at any point):
  • September 4: Application submissions due and judging of applications begins.
  • September 21: Notification of finalists. 5 companies will be selected to attend the Bezos Center’s 2026 Annual Summit in Raleigh and deliver a live presentation to a panel of judges. Each finalist company must designate one presenter, who will receive complimentary admission to the Summit.
  • October 22-23: The designated presenter from each finalist company should plan to attend both days of the Summit. Live pitches will take place on October 22, with the 2 award winners announced on October 23. Award eligibility requires attendance on both days.

Questions about eligibility? Contact Tim Martin at [email protected].