The IDEA Fund: Missouri’s State-Sponsored Venture Capital Program [...] The Innovation, Development, and Entrepreneurial Advancement (IDEA) Fund is MTC’s flagship state-sponsored venture capital initiative that makes investments in exchange for equity or convertible debt to the most promising early-stage, high-growth potential businesses. By leveraging state and federal funding, the IDEA Fund makes direct investments to early-stage entrepreneurs as part of their venture funding rounds to support commercialization, accelerate additional private investment and create jobs in the state. This program is a catalyst for economic growth, supporting businesses as they create jobs, drive technological advancements, and build a stronger future for Missouri. The IDEA Fund is primarily funded by the Federal State Small Business Credit Initiative (SSBCI) 2.0 program. [...] The July 2026 Award Cycle – IDEA Fund Info Session is scheduled for Tuesday, March 17. 2026 beginning at 12 PM. [...] Venture Capital Program: • Designed for Series A or later-stage companies raising $5 million -$20 million. • Provides up to $2 million in investments and matching co-investment. • For the purpose of scaling the businesses, attracting additional private capital, and increase the impact of third-party investments • The company must identify at the time of application, a lead investor with relevant domain expertise and/or significant due diligence experience, as determined by MTC. • The lead investor requirement is waived for MTC Portfolio Companies if 25% of the funding round is identified and the company is in good standing with MTC’s data collection process. [...] Investment Process: [...] 1. Application Process: Complete the required application process. 2. Application Submission: Submit the application before the deadline for consideration in the next award cycle. 3. Review: MTC staff reviews applications quarterly. 4. Notification: Applicants are notified approximately one month after the deadline whether they are invited to present to the MTC Investment Committee. 5. Committee Presentations: Selected applicants present to the Investment Committee, which recommends funding decisions to MTC’s Executive Committee and Board of Directors. 6. Board Approval: Recommendations are reviewed and approved by the MTC Board of Directors. 7. Due Diligence: Approved companies with matching funds undergo a due diligence process. 8. Participation Agreement: Approved companies sign a Participation Agreement before closing the investment. (Download Participation Agreement →) [...] 2026 Award Cycle Deadlines [...] • January 2026 Award Cycle • April 2026 Award Cycle • July 2026 Award Cycle • October 2026 Award Cycle [...] January 2026 Award Cycle [...] CLOSED January 2026 Award Cycle • Application deadline: 11:59 pm, November 4, 2025 • Presentation to Investment Committee: January 2026 • Approval & Award: by end of January 2026 [...] April 2026 Award Cycle [...] CLOSED April 2026 Award Cycle • Application deadline: 11:59 pm, February 3, 2026 • Presentation to Investment Committee: April 2026 • Approval & Award: by end of April 2026 [...] July 2026 Award Cycle [...] July 2026 Award Cycle • Application deadline: 11:59 pm, May 5, 2026 • Presentation to Investment Committee: July 2026 • Board approval: by end of July 2026 [...] October 2026 Award Cycle [...] October 2026 Award Cycle • Application deadline: 11:59 pm, August 4, 2026 • Presentation to Investment Committee: October 2026 • Board approval: by end of October 2026 [...] 2026 Application – Ready to Apply? Take the next step toward securing state-sponsored venture capital funding with the FY26 IDEA Fund Application. [...] • Download the FY26 IDEA Fund Application (PDF) → for review purposes. • We recommend preparing responses in advance, as the online platform does not support saving drafts. Please complete your submission in one sitting.

Here are some ideas and opportunities we’re most excited to see founders tackle next at Pear VC.

Flux Capacitor - Request for Explorers - Investments for Sci Fi Founders - 1517 Fund Skip to Main Content [...] Flux Capacitor - Request for Explorers - Investments for Sci Fi Founders [...] Opens Mar 30 2026 12:00 AM (PDT) [...] Deadline Apr 21 2026 12:00 PM (PDT) [...] We're backing up to 10 amazing scientists with $50K to $1M investments to turn their scientific intuitions into a startup. Applications are due on April 18th, 2026 at 11:59pm Pacific. [...] By May 1st, finalists will be invited to our San Francisco Sci Fi Summit in June and the new cohort will be announced in July. [...] Apply today! [...] Flux Capacitor - Request for Explorers - Investments for Sci Fi Founders [...] We're backing up to 10 amazing scientists with $50K to $1M investments to turn their scientific intuitions into a startup. Applications are due on April 18th, 2026 at 11:59pm Pacific. [...] By May 1st, finalists will be invited to our San Francisco Sci Fi Summit in June and the new cohort will be announced in July. [...] Apply today! [...] Mar 30 2026 12:00 AM (PDT) [...] Apr 21 2026 12:00 PM (PDT)

REQUEST FOR APPLICATIONS: DECARBON8-US IMPACT FUND 2026 [...] Accepting Applications from Climate Resilience Companies in Grid, Water, & Food Application Deadline: June 18, 2026 [...] Our 2026 Decarbon8-US Fund is focused on Climate Resilience: Grid, Water, & Food. Climate change is already reshaping where and how people can live, grow food, and access basic resources. As extreme heat, drought, flooding, and storms intensify, protecting access to energy, water, and food is becoming as essential to climate action as reducing emissions. [...] INVESTMENT DETAILS [...] If you’re one of the 2 - 4 selected companies, you have the opportunity to receive: [...] Investment capital of ~$300k in combined funding from Decarbon8-US Fund, E8 Annual Fund, and direct investment by E8 members (Decarbon8-US shows up on your cap table as a single SPV investor to keep it clean). [...] APPLICANT CRITERIA [...] entrepreneurial experience, tenacity, and self-awareness [...] a venture-scale business. [...] Be in Pre-seed to Series A stages of growth financing. [...] Have a funding round (SAFE/priced equity, note) that will accept investments at least through mid October 2026. [...] If you’re a former Decarbon8-US applicant or E8 portfolio company, we encourage you to apply. Our Decarbon8 Screening Committee and expert judges will evaluate your application, specializing in cleantech investing and climate resilience. The criteria used includes climate resilience and impact, problem/solution fit, including competitive advantage, team, traction and go-to-market plan, investment terms and likelihood of returns. [...] TIMELINE [...] May 1 — Applications open. [...] June 18 — Applications close. [...] Late June — Screening Committee selects 12-16 companies for pitch round. [...] Early July — Companies present to the Screening Committee; 6-8 semi-finalists are selected. [...] Mid July — Semi-finalists undergo deeper evaluation; 3-5 finalists are selected. [...] August — Due diligence with finalists. [...] Early September — 2-4 companies are selected for investment by Decarbon8-US Fund. [...] September 17 — Selected companies pitch at the Annual Meeting in Seattle to the full E8 membership for additional co-investment by E8 members. [...] Late September / Early October — E8 Annual Fund votes to invest in selected companies. [...] LEARN MORE & APPLY [...] Apply to Decarbon8-US 2026 here. For more information, contact us at director@e8angels.com. [...] Companies that apply to Decarbon8-US may also be considered for E8's standard funding process, which runs from September to May. Learn more on our website. [...] Decarbon8-US is an impact fund administered by 501(c)(3) Realize Impact that invests donations and grants into early-stage climate companies through equity and debt. Founded by E8 in 2020, the fund has deployed $10.4M in combined philanthropic and personal co-investment. Investors lead screening and diligence alongside sector experts to identify high-potential companies at early stages. Selected companies receive investment from Decarbon8-US and the opportunity to pitch E8's member community for additional capital, including through the E8 Annual Fund.

One of the world's largest multi-stage venture capital firms, investing across technology and healthcare since 1977.

Lightspeed Venture Partners (LSVP) is a multi-stage venture capital firm that backs bold founders and disruptive innovations with capital and strategic support from early seed to later growth stages.

Base Case Capital is an early-stage venture capital firm based in San Francisco that partners with founders early, often pre-product and pre-traction, by writing first institutional checks and providing capital and strategic support.

Chapter One is an early-stage venture capital firm focused on backing product-driven founders building category-defining technology companies.

BoxGroup is a New York-based early-stage venture capital firm that backs founders at the earliest stages (pre-seed through Series–A) with capital and strategic support. It partners with visionary founders across many technology sectors.

SV Angel is a San Francisco-based venture capital firm that focuses on early-stage and seed investments in technology startups. It has backed many successful companies and supports founders with both capital and strategic engagement.

Amplify Partners is a venture capital firm based in Menlo Park and San Francisco that invests in early-stage technical startup founders building next-generation infrastructure, developer tools, AI, and related technologies.

Investing in the next generation of Berkeley Founders. For students, researchers & alumni. No idea is too early. Accepting rolling applications; the earlier you apply the earlier you get a decision. Applications close on April 12th.

Initialized Capital is a San Francisco-based early-stage venture capital firm focused on providing seed and pre-seed investment and support to startups and founders. Founded by Alexis Ohanian, Garry Tan, and Harjeet Taggar, the firm invests in high-potential technology startups and partners with founders throughout their growth journey.

Precursor Ventures is an early-stage venture capital firm that invests in founders at the very beginning of their entrepreneurial journey, backing them through pre-seed and seed rounds with capital and long-term support.

Global investment and transformation firm partnering with founders from seed through growth to build resilient, AI-enabled companies.

First Round Capital is an early-stage venture capital firm specializing in seed-stage investments and founder support for technology startups. It provides capital and operational resources to help companies grow from idea to product-market fit and beyond.

Global, technology-focused investment firm backing companies from early stage through buyouts.

San Francisco-based venture capital firm backing companies building revolutionary technologies.

Global multi-stage venture capital firm with a long history of backing enterprise, consumer and healthcare companies.

Multi-stage venture capital firm investing in products and founders across consumer, enterprise, infra, gaming, fintech and AI.

Early-stage and growth venture capital firm founded by Vinod Khosla, investing in ambitious technology companies across enterprise, consumer, health, sustainability and frontier tech.