Virtual Embryo Challenge 2026
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Quick Answer
NeurIPS 2026 challenge from Stanford's Qiu Lab to model embryo development from single-cell data. US$112,000 in prizes and awards; first prizes are US$8,000 per track.
- Funding amount
- Varies
- Funding type
- Competition
- Provider
- Stanford University
- Application deadline
- 27d — 2 Dec 2026
- Location
- International
About this competition
The Virtual Embryo Challenge is an online machine learning competition organised by the Qiu Lab at Stanford University and its collaborators, run as part of the NeurIPS 2026 competition track. Teams build models that predict how an embryo develops, using single-cell and spatial data from about a million cells. There are US$112,000 in prizes and awards (about ₹1.06 crore), with a US$8,000 first prize (about ₹7.6 lakh) in each of two tracks. Final submissions are due on 2 December 2026, and the listing is open now.
This is a research competition for people who can build and train machine learning models, not a startup grant. There is no entry fee, and the rules do not exclude any country, so entrants from India are welcome.
What the program offers
The money is split into four pots. Winner prizes total US$27,000 per track. In each track there is one first prize of US$8,000 (about ₹7.6 lakh), two second prizes of US$5,000 and three third prizes of US$3,000. There are two separate tracks with equal pools, a Human Team track and an Agent Team track.
On top of that, a Generality Award of US$8,000 goes to the single best entry, from either track, that answers more than one task with one shared architecture. It is paid in addition to any placed prize. Travel awards of US$30,000 in total are meant for 15 to 20 early-career researchers who want to attend the NeurIPS workshop. A Community Contribution Award pool of US$20,000 pays up to US$200 per tutorial, notebook, tool, documentation piece or fix that helps other entrants, and it is open to people who are not competing. Prize money is paid to the team, and the team divides it among itself.
Who can apply
Individuals, academic labs and companies can enter. Each team has a captain who must be at least 18, or the age of majority where they live if that is higher. Other members have no minimum age under the rules, as long as the law and any school, employer or guardian allow it. Teams can have up to 10 people, and each person may be on only one team and hold only one account.
Excluded are the organising committee, anyone with access to the held-out evaluation data, employees, interns and students of the Qiu Lab and of Professor Neil Chi's group at UC San Diego, people those labs have advised since January 2026, the organisers' contractors and vendors, and anyone the law stops from taking part or whom the organisers cannot legally pay. India is not excluded. Employee teams must all come from one organisation, while university representatives may come from several universities; a team cannot mix personal and organisational entries.
It suits founders and engineers building AI for biology, and teams curious about agent-built methods. It does not suit anyone looking for startup funding without technical work.
How to apply
Register on the Virtual Embryo Challenge site with your legal name, a verified sign-in, a contact email and an affiliation (you can write independent researcher). Every team member accepts the Official Rules and Terms of Use individually; a captain cannot accept for a teammate. Choose the Human or Agent track and form your team. You can join a team at any time before the final deadline.
In the final test phase you get two official submissions per test board, and format checks are free and unlimited. Entrants pay their own costs, including computing.
How applications are judged and what happens next
Every submission is scored on hidden test sets with one published metric panel, and teams are ranked within their own track. To be eligible for a prize a team must beat the published floor entry. Final evaluation begins on 4 December 2026 and winners are announced at NeurIPS on 11 December 2026. Winners may be asked for code or documentation to reproduce the result before payment, and must send a written report on their method within 14 days of being told. Agent Team winners must also show the agent's trajectory, prompts and harness.
About the Qiu Lab
The Qiu Lab at Stanford University leads the challenge with collaborators, and the data was generated by Professor Neil Chi's group at UC San Diego. The challenge is funded by the Laude Institute Moonshots Seed Grant.
Things to check before you apply
- The Agent Team track is for methods built by an autonomous coding agent. A person may write the starting prompt but may not steer the run from intermediate results, and entries need evidence such as the agent's trajectory.
- You keep ownership of your methods, code and models, and you do not have to publish code, though the organisers may ask to see it privately.
- Prize recipients handle their own taxes and must supply payment details. The source does not say which currency or method is used.
Eligibility
See if you're eligible
Full eligibility criteria — entity type, stage, sector, founder profile and registration requirements — plus your fit for this program. Sign up to view.
Organizers
Prizes & Awards
What You Get
Prizes and awards add up to US$112,000 (about ₹1.06 crore). Each of the two tracks pays US$27,000: one US$8,000 first prize (about ₹7.6 lakh), two US$5,000 second prizes and three US$3,000 third prizes. A single US$8,000 Generality Award goes to the best method that answers more than one task with one shared architecture, in addition to any placed prize. US$30,000 funds travel awards for early-career researchers to attend the NeurIPS workshop, and US$20,000 funds Community Contribution Awards of up to US$200 each. Prizes are paid to the team, which divides them.
- Disbursement
- Lump Sum
- Bootstrap friendly
- Yes
Timelines & Process
Selection Process
Every submission is scored on hidden test sets with one published metric panel, and teams are ranked within their own track. A team must beat the published floor entry to be eligible for a prize. Final evaluation begins on 4 December 2026 and winners are announced at NeurIPS on 11 December 2026. Winners may be asked to show how to reproduce their result and must write up their method within 14 days.
Application Process
- 1
Register
Sign up on the challenge site and accept the rules.
You - 2
- 3
- 4
- 5
How to apply
Four steps from draft to disbursement — one action each.
- 1
Submit on the official portal
Use the official application link and verify all details before final submission.
- 2
Follow up
Reach out 5–7 days after submitting to confirm receipt and ask about the review timeline.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who can enter the Virtual Embryo Challenge 2026?
Individuals, academic labs and companies can enter, in teams of up to 10. The team captain must be at least 18, or the age of majority where they live if that is higher. The organising labs, people they advise, their contractors and anyone legally barred are excluded.
Can Indian startups and researchers enter the Virtual Embryo Challenge?
Yes. The rules do not exclude any country, and they bar only the organising labs, people they advise, their contractors and anyone the law prevents from taking part or being paid. Check that your employer or institution allows you to take part, as the rules ask entrants to confirm.
How much are the prizes?
The total is US$112,000 (about ₹1.06 crore). Each track pays US$8,000 for first place (about ₹7.6 lakh), two US$5,000 second prizes and three US$3,000 third prizes. There is also an US$8,000 Generality Award, US$30,000 in travel awards and a US$20,000 Community Contribution Award pool.
How is the prize money paid?
Prizes go to the team, which divides them itself. Winners may be asked for code or documentation to reproduce their results before payment, and must supply payment information. The source does not say which currency or payment method is used.
What is the deadline, and what if it has passed?
Final submissions are due on 2 December 2026. Official evaluation begins on 4 December and winners are announced at NeurIPS on 11 December 2026. The organisers may extend a deadline but will not bring it forward without notice, and the source does not say whether there will be another edition.
Is this a grant or equity?
It is a competition prize, not an investment. The rules say you keep ownership of your methods, code and models, and no equity is mentioned. You give the organisers a limited licence to evaluate your entry and describe methods in challenge reports.
What is the Agent Team track?
It is for methods developed by an autonomous coding agent. A person may write the starting prompt but nobody may steer the run based on intermediate results. Each submission needs evidence of the run, including the agent's trajectory, and prize winners must show the trajectory, prompts and harness.
Do I have to publish my code or share data?
You are not required to publish code, but the organisers may ask to see it privately to verify a result. Winners must write a method report within 14 days of being told, and it is published with the results. Outside public data and pre-trained models are allowed if the licence permits and you disclose them, but not data from the held-out time points or genotypes.
Do I have to travel to NeurIPS?
The source does not say that winners must attend, but winners are announced at NeurIPS on 11 December 2026. Separate travel awards of US$30,000 exist for 15 to 20 early-career researchers who attend the workshop. Entrants pay their own costs otherwise.
Is it free to enter the Virtual Embryo Challenge?
Yes, there is no entry fee. Entrants pay their own costs, including the computing they use. Format checks of your upload file are free and unlimited.
Sources
Data on this page is compiled from official program and provider references.
