Startups opportunities

Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA)

NIMASA Blue Economy Accelerator Programme (NIMASA-BEAP), National Call for Innovators

NIMASA's national accelerator for Nigerian maritime and blue economy innovators opens its call on 5 October and closes on 13 November 2026, with cash awards, a 12-week accelerator and a Demo Day investor showcase.

Eligibility: Nigerian citizens aged 18 and above

Deadline

November 13, 2026

Location

Nigeria

Funding or benefit

Prizes include cash awards, accelerator placement, mentorship packages, cloud credits, co-working space and introductions to investors. The portal states that the full prize structure will be published with the call for innovators, so no amount is confirmed yet.

AwardX, run by LaunchX LLC

AwardX International 2026 Young Entrepreneurship Competition

A free entry global pitching competition for high school student founders, carrying a cash prize, a full LaunchX Online Flagship Program scholarship and scholarship awards for the finalists.

Eligibility: High school students anywhere in the world with a passion for entrepreneurship

Deadline

November 14, 2026

Location

Africa

Funding or benefit

The prize table lists the winner at 1st $5000 Cash plus a Full Scholarship to LaunchX Online Flagship Program, a Certificate and LinkedIn Badges, and the finalists at 1st $3,000 Scholarship to LaunchX Online Flagship Program with a Certificate and LinkedIn Badges. The announcement of the round states a $5,000 cash prize for the winning founder or team and a $3,000 LaunchX program scholarship for each of the top 10 finalists. The submission fee per team to participate is FREE.

VentureLab

VentureLab Founder Programme, 27 January to 2 April 2027 cohort

A fully virtual, free founder programme running a curated global cohort from 27 January to 2 April 2027, with applications closing 1 December 2026 at 11:59pm GMT+8.

Eligibility: Any early-stage founder, anywhere in the world, preferably with an MVP or product

Deadline

December 1, 2026

Location

Africa

Funding or benefit

The programme is free to join. The page prints no grant, equity or cash figure, the offer is mentorship, frameworks and peer support.

INSEAD AI Venture Lab

INSEAD AI Founder Sprint 2027

A free, 10 week fully virtual startup program with Demo Days, running 27 January to 2 April 2027. Applications close 1 December 2026, with no fees and no equity taken.

Eligibility: Early stage founders anywhere in the world

Deadline

December 1, 2026

Location

Africa

Funding or benefit

Free program, no fees and no equity taken.

ODF (One Day Fellowship for solo founders), listed with The Startup Opportunity

ODF Solo Founder Program, Fall 2026 Cohort

A week-long, equity-free founder experience in San Francisco built for solo founders building without a co-founder, with $800k+ in perks and a lifelong community. Applications for the Fall 2026 cohort are open now.

Deadline

Timeline not announced

Location

United States

Funding or benefit

Equity-free. The source states $800k+ in perks rather than a cash investment.

Z Fellows

Z Fellows Program 2027

Z Fellows is a one week builder program in San Francisco for technical people working on an idea. Each fellow gets $10,000 in financial support, either as no money or as a $10,000 investment at a $1B valuation cap that converts to stock later, plus a week in the room with ten builders and mentors who have founded billion dollar companies. There is no application fee, no company requirement and no degree requirement, and applications run on a rolling basis.

Eligibility: Open internationally

Deadline

Timeline not announced

Location

Africa

Funding or benefit

$10,000 in financial support, offered either as no money or as a $10,000 investment at a $1B valuation cap that converts to stock later

Pennington Promise Capital Limited

Pennington Promise Capital Seed Funding Applications 2026

Pennington Promise Capital is a Nigerian investment firm taking seed capital applications on a rolling basis from early stage African startups. The firm backs companies with proven traction and scalable business models that are accelerating the digital economy across key sectors in Africa, and the funding goes towards scaling operations, deepening market penetration and strengthening teams. The application form takes about 15 minutes.

Eligibility: Founders of early stage African startups

Deadline

Timeline not announced

Location

Africa

Funding or benefit

Seed capital for early stage startups, described by the firm as investment in companies with proven traction and scalable business models that are accelerating the digital economy across key sectors in Africa, to scale operations, deepen market penetration and strengthen teams

EWOR

EWOR Deep-Tech Startup Studio and Pre-Seed Investment

A deep-tech startup studio and pre-seed investor backing science-based ventures with up to €500,000 plus mentorship from founders and operators who have built large companies.

Eligibility: Founders building deep tech and science-based ventures in Europe

Deadline

Timeline not announced

Location

Germany, Austria, Switzerland

Funding or benefit

Up to €500,000 pre-seed investment alongside mentorship