Polsky Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation

Choosing the right programme

• No UChicago link: Duality is the open door in this list. Applications close November 20, 2026.
• UChicago student or alum: the NVC is the yearlong flagship, with applications closing January 20, 2027. Build and Launch runs over the summer and its current round has closed.
• Science-based venture with a UChicago founder: the George Shultz Innovation Fund. Applications close November 30, 2026.
• Indian deep tech startup tied to an IIT or research institution: the UChicago India Deep Tech Accelerator. Its 2026 deadline has passed; watch the programme page for the next intake.

How to apply

• Each programme page has its own application link and deadline. Check the page before you apply.
• For licensing UChicago intellectual property, contact the Polsky Center's licensing desk at polskylicensing@uchicago.edu.

How selection works

• NVC applicants submit a short executive summary, an 8-page feasibility summary, a 2-minute pitch video and a cap table.
• Shultz finalists take part in a mandatory six-week virtual validation sprint, then diligence, with finals before the advisory committee in May.

What reviewers look for

• A credible market need and a committed founding team (Shultz).
• A US subsidiary or entity formed or planned during the programme, and a path to US market entry (India accelerator).

Most programmes at the Polsky Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation are for University of Chicago students, faculty, postdocs and alumni. A few are open to any founder, including Duality, a quantum accelerator with no UChicago requirement. The centre sits within Chicago Booth and supports startups, technology licensing and entrepreneurship teaching across the university.

How the programmes work

The flagship is the Edward L. Kaplan, '71, New Venture Challenge (NVC), a yearlong launch programme for teams led by UChicago students. The George Shultz Innovation Fund makes pre-seed investments in science-based, deep-tech and AI ventures. The Build and Launch Accelerators run over the summer for UChicago students and alumni, and their current round has closed.

For founders outside the university, the open door in this list is Duality, which focuses on quantum and enabling technologies. The UChicago India Deep Tech Accelerator took early-stage deep tech startups affiliated with Indian academic and research institutions, including IIT-linked companies, and its 2026 deadline has passed. Alchemist Chicago, a deep tech accelerator for technical founders, was also open to any founder, but its application window has closed.

Who can apply

NVC teams need at least one currently registered UChicago graduate student. Teams without one can apply only if a current UChicago graduate student is an integral part of the team, with a 10% equity stake in the venture. The Shultz fund requires a current UChicago faculty member, student, postdoc or staff member on the founding team, but a patent is not required. Build and Launch requires at least one founder who is a current student or an alum of a UChicago degree programme.

The UChicago Science Incubator provides wet lab space and facilities for early-stage life sciences, quantum, clean energy and data science companies. Its page does not say who may apply. Harper Court Ventures is a pre-seed deep tech fund that backs startups spun out of university labs, accelerated by the Polsky Center, or founded by UChicago alumni.

Facilities

The Polsky Exchange North on East 53rd Street hosts event spaces that can be reserved. The UChicago Science Incubator is based at Hyde Park Labs, a 300,000+ square-foot facility near the main campus and medical center. A Third Coast Foundry space in San Francisco serves startups from partner universities.

Licensing UChicago technology

Startups that want to commercialise UChicago intellectual property can apply for a UCGo! Startup License. The company must be licensing UChicago IP that it depends on to form, have at least one UChicago faculty, student or staff member as a founder, and be incorporated when the licence is signed. It also needs at least two team members, conflict-of-interest approval from UChicago, and founders who waive their inventor share of any success fee the University receives. The licence must be signed without modification. Applicants may be asked to join Polsky educational programming.

Who runs it

The Polsky Center sits within Chicago Booth and works across the university. Its offices include the Chicago Booth location on Woodlawn Avenue, the Polsky Exchange, the Polsky Center at Harper Court and the UChicago Science Incubator. It also helps lead Third Coast Foundry, a consortium of partner-university centres.

Scale and history

The NVC page says the programme has graduated more than 600 startups and created thousands of jobs, and that more than 200 of those companies remain in business. The Shultz fund says it has invested in more than 80 companies. These are the centre's own counts. The site gives 1996 as the year the NVC launched and 1998 as the year the entrepreneurship centre was set up, so the two dates are not the same.