Hello startup people! Here’s the latest drop on Grants, Pitch Competitions, Awards, and Summits.
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💪 The Biggies
Newly Added:
🎤 Pitch Competitions
New Ventures BC Competition – $250,000 total pool
British Colombia | Mar 12 | Apply Here
Amazon Web Services AI Pitch Competition – $50,000 in services
Arkansas; AI | Mar 31 (my guess) | Apply Here
💰 Grants
EDGE Grant Competition – $400,000 total pool
Delaware | Mar 6 | Apply Here
Arch Grants Startup Competition – $100,000
Missouri; early-stage startups | Mar 31 | Apply Here
O’Shaughnessy Ventures Fellowships and Grants – $100,000
Everyone | Apr 30 | Apply Here
Visionaries Hey Helen Grant – $10,000
Women-led | Apr 30 | Apply Here
💼 Events
SelectUSA Investment Summit - Maryland – 5,000+ attendees
Foreign expansion | May 3-6 | Apply Here
Finovate Spring - San Diego – 50,000+ attendees
FinTech; Financial services; RegTech | May 5-7 | Apply Here
Women in Tech Global Conference - Virtual – 100,000+ attendees
Women-led | May 12 | Apply Here
National Restaurant Association Show - Chicago – 53,000+ attendees
Food & Bev; Packaging; Food service | May 16-19 | Apply Here
IoT Tech Expo - San Jose – 8,000+ attendees
IoT; Edge computing: Connectivity; Smart cities | May 18-19 | Apply Here
Electrify Expo - Denver – Demos; Kids area
EV; Sustainable Mobility; Aerial Mobility | May 30-31 | Apply Here
🔨 Challenges
Daymond John’s Next Level CEO – Get featured in new TV Series
All businesses | Feb 28 | Apply Here
Next Challenge for Media & Journalism – $75,000
Media; Journalism; Creator Economy; Local News | Mar 10 | Apply Here
EIT Food Pet Food Open Call – €20,000 + joint POC with Mars
Pet Food; Food & Bev | Mar 16 | Apply Here
DARPA Lift Challenge – $2,500,000
Drones; UAS | May 1 | Apply Here
ISC3 2026 Innovation Challenge – €15,000
Sustainable materials; waste management; Renewable energy | May 4 | Apply Here
NextGen Supply Chain Conference - Call for Speakers – Speak at Conference
Supply Chain; AI; Robotics; Analytics | May 15 | Apply Here
🏆 Awards
World Food Prize Foundation Top Agri-Food Pioneers Award – Recognition
AgTech; Food tech | Mar 25 | Apply Here
Cloud Awards The SaaS Awards – Recognition
SaaS; UI/UX; Sustainability | May 22 | Apply Here
Closing Soon! Last Chance!
🎤 Pitch Competitions
>>venture>> Startup Competition – CHF 150,000
Switzerland; All startups | Feb 25 | Apply Here
Start Global Pitch Competition – 10,000 CHF or Recognition
Switzerland; Deep Tech; Sustainability; AI | Feb 27 (my guess) | Apply Here
Michigan 2026 Pitch Competition – $10,000
Michigan; All Businesses | Feb 27 | Apply Here
Hatch Detroit Contest – $100,000
Detroit; Brick & Mortar | Feb 27 | Apply Here
Cooley Capital Call Digital Healthcare Innovation – Pitch VC’s at DHIS
Digital Health; Data; Healthcare | Feb 27 | Apply Here
Women in Cleantech & Sustainability Pitch Competition – Prize pool
Women-led; Cleantech; Sustainability | Feb 27 | Apply Here
Start in Block Pitch Competition – $10M total prize pool + Pitch at Paris Blockchain Week
Web3; Blockchain; DeFi | Feb 28 | Apply Here
RubyConf Pitch Competition – $15,000
Runs on Ruby | Feb 28 | Apply Here
💰 Grants
Wireless Foundation Catalyst 2026 – $100,000
Social impact; Wireless; Mobile-first | Feb 24 | Apply Here
SkinnyDipped $25,000 Female Founder Fund – $25,000
Women-led; Food & Bev; CPG | Feb 25 | Apply Here
Colorado Office of Economic Development and International Trade Advanced Industries Grant – $250,000
Colorado; all early-stage tech | Feb 26 | Apply Here
Innovate ND Grant – $50,000
North Dakota; All startups | Feb 26 | Apply Here
European Innovation Council Advanced Innovation Challenges - Pilot – €300,000
EU; Deep Tech; AI Robotics | Feb 26 | Apply Here
Women Founders Grant - Feb – $5,000
Women-led | Feb 28 | Apply Here
💼 Events
Women in Payments USA Symposium - Wash DC – Keynotes; Workshops
FinTech; Payments; Digital currency; DeFi | Feb 26-27 | Apply Here
Crypto Expo Europe - Bucharest – 3,000 attendees + company presentations
Crypto; Blockchain; Web3 | Mar 1-2 | Apply Here
🔨 Challenges
Radicle Corn Challenge – $1.75M investment pool
AgTech; Bioplastics; Sustainable fuel | Feb 25 | Apply Here
Business Angels Netzwerk Deutschland Female Funding ‘26 – Access to investor matching event
Germany; Female-led | Feb 26 | Apply Here
Circular Economy Innovation Competition – $20,000
Circular economy; Supply chain | Feb 27 | Apply Here
National Association of Broadcasters 2026 PILOT Innovation Challenge – Be a panelist at NAB Show
Media; Broadcast Entertainment | Feb 27 | Apply Here
UPS Small Biz Challenge – $25,000
All Businesses | Feb 27 | Apply Here
IC Taiwan Grand Challenge – $30,000 + Semi industry matchmaking
AI; Semiconductors; Next-Gen apps | Feb 28 | Apply Here
Daymond John’s Next Level CEO – Get featured in new TV Series
All businesses | Feb 28 | Apply Here
🏆 Awards
Sustainability LIVE: The US Awards – Recognition
US; Canada; Sustainable business; Leadership | Feb 25 | Apply Here
Globee Awards for Technology – Recognition
All Tech | Feb 25 | Apply Here
Romanian Startup Awards 2026 – Recognition
Romania; All startups | Feb 25 | Apply Here
GeekWire Awards – Recognition
Pacific Northwest; All startups | Feb 25 | Apply Here
Global Water Awards – Recognition
Wastewater; Water Tech; Desalination | Feb 27 | Apply Here
JFD The Margaret Awards – €1,000,000 in services
Female-led; AI | Feb 27 | Apply Here
EY Entrepreneur of the Year 2026 – Recognition
Ambitious, Visionary Founders | Feb 27 | Apply Here
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🚪 Beyond the Deal Room curates grants, pitch competitions, awards, and tech summits for 13,000+ founders, VC’s and startup organizations. Over $60M global opportunities, mostly non-dilutive, are available across all verticals each year.
Disclaimer: I receive no compensation for promoting any of these events. While I try to be as accurate as possible when posting requirements such as deadlines, it’s your responsibility to confirm all requirements.
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