Top Resources For Founders
Embark on your entrepreneurial journey with VIP-C. Whether you're a first-time founder or second-time entrepreneur, VIP-C offers an inclusive space for abundant learning, networking, and community-building.
Innovation Fund
The Innovation Fund exists to fund creative and meaningfully innovative ventures from the Penn student community.
Founder Programs
The Summer Venture Award (SVA) of $10,000 is intended to assist students financially over the summer in lieu of full-time internships so that they can concentrate on developing their entrepreneurial ventures.
This award is now offered to participants of the Startup Challenge
This award is now offered to participants of the Startup Challenge
VIP-Incubator (VIP-INC)
Our 3-month, cohort-based incubator is designed to help founders transform strong ideas into market-ready solutions and tactfully navigate the challenges of launching a new business.
Founder Programs
The Startup Challenge is a competition for Penn student-founded ventures where student entrepreneurs pitch to a live audience and alumni judges to show their startups are ready to become the next big thing!
Founder Programs
VIP-Accelerator (VIP-X)
For dedicated student and alumni entrepreneurs with advanced startups, VIP-X propels your venture towards rapid growth and investment readiness with targeted support, non-dilutive funding, and other resources.
The Food Innovation Lab is an 800-sq. ft. facility that supports a unique cohort of food and beverage startups at Penn.
Now Accepting Applications For Fall 2022
Now Accepting Applications For Fall 2022
Our Retail Lab is a flexible retail space to showcase successful alumni and student ventures, to inspire Penn students and provide active learning opportunities.
Founder Programs
The Wharton Scale School workshop series in San Francisco guides entrepreneurs making the transition from a successful startup to a large enterprise. Hear from experts who share solutions to critical challenges faced by rapidly growing companies.
Compete for a slice of more than $300,000 in cash and in-kind awards to help launch your venture!
Founder Events & Workshops
01
May
Join us on Friday, May 1, 2026, at Tangen Hall, Second Floor Colloquium to witness the top student-founded startups go head-to-head in a live pitch competition for over $200,000 in cash prizes and in-kind awards.
This year’s competition received applications from student founders across schools at the University of Pennsylvania, demonstrating the interdisciplinary nature of innovation at Penn. The finalist teams are building ventures across industries, including travel and hospitality technology, food and beverage technology, cybersecurity, government technology, robotics and automation, industrial and agricultural technology, and media and entertainment technology.
This year’s competition received applications from student founders across schools at the University of Pennsylvania, demonstrating the interdisciplinary nature of innovation at Penn. The finalist teams are building ventures across industries, including travel and hospitality technology, food and beverage technology, cybersecurity, government technology, robotics and automation, industrial and agricultural technology, and media and entertainment technology.
09
April
A joint workshop between Venture Lab, International Student and Scholar Services, and Klasko Immigration Law Partners.
17
April
Zach is passionate about leveraging data in the additive manufacturing (i.e. 3D printing) industry. He is a past Venture Lab/Penn alumni.
16
April
Alex was Co-CEO/Co-Founder of LOLA, a mission-driven, omni-channel women’s health brand. She now works at BCG X as the Managing Direct
14
April
Ethan Beard is a longtime technology operator, entrepreneur, and investor, most recently co-founder of Yoz Labs.
Retail Lab Founder Series: Fernando Rojo, CEO of Patos
Fernando Rojo, C’19, CEO of PATOS has been featured in Forbes, Inc. Magazine, Business Insider, Huffington Post, Refinery29, Buzzfeed, NBC News, CNBC, and more. Patos provided work for over a dozen local artisans in Peru's impoverished cities to handcraft sneakers for PATOS.
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Video Companion
Related Articles & Stories
Find out what's happening with founders across the #entrePENNeur community! Want to tell your story? Contact us at venturelab@upenn.edu.
PHILADELPHIA, May 5, 2026 — The University of Pennsylvania’s Venture Lab is proud to announce the winner of its tenth annual Startup Challenge: Cloak, founded by an all freshmen team, Rishi Ambavanekar, ENG'29, W'29, and Tyler Sacharow, C'29.
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On Apr 22, 2025, Venture Lab’s Food Innovation Lab and ZenBroth (founded at the innovation Lab!) hosted a tasting and demo cooking session at Tangen Hall.
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Announcing the Finalists of the 2026 Venture Lab Startup Challenge
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At Tangen Hall, Penn’s interdisciplinary hub for makers, designers, and entrepreneurs, two alumni chose to leave a lasting mark by naming state-of-the-art labs that reflect their personal journeys. Amish Jani (W'99 and WG'00) and Svetlana Dunaevskaya (WG'06) share how naming spaces in Venture Lab became a way to invest in future entrepreneurs, honor family legacies, and create a sense of belonging across borders.
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Two Venture lab alumni are among this year’s 84 Scholars from 25 countries!
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PHILADELPHIA, MAY 02, 2025–The University of Pennsylvania’s Venture Lab is pleased to announce the 2025 winner of its annual Startup Challenge: Sync Labs, founded by Melanie Herbert, EE'25
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