Founder Nav

Berkeley SkyDeck Accelerator

Berkeley SkyDeck Pad-13

4-month incubator at UC Berkeley for 60–80 early-stage teams per cohort offering co-working space, mentorship, and ecosystem access without guaranteed investment.

The Basement – UC San Diego

Blackstone LaunchPad Incubator

Year-long incubator open to all UC San Diego students, providing 24/7 co-working space, prototyping funds, mentorship, and seed funding eligibility. Housed in The Basement, UCSD's student innovation hub, it supports student entrepreneurs from idea stage through early traction.

CITRIS Foundry Accelerator

CITRIS Foundry Accelerator

A one-year deep tech incubator for UC system-affiliated founders (students, faculty, staff, alumni within 5 years), with cohorts across UC Berkeley, Davis, Merced, and Santa Cruz. Focuses on AI, health tech, sustainability, robotics, climate, and quantum.

CNSI Incubator

Offers wet-lab and office space for technology-focused startups, fostering collaboration between academia and industry, and providing mentorship, resources, and programming to support business development and commercialization within the UCSB innovation ecosystem.

EvoNexus — Irvine Tech Incubator

EvoNexus Irvine Incubator Program

A 2-year incubator residency at 101 Academy in Irvine in partnership with UC Irvine, offering milestone-based mentorship for deep tech and tech startups. Only 1% equity fee.

G2 Summer Launchpad Accelerator

Offers wet-lab and office space for technology-focused startups, fostering collaboration between academia and industry, and providing mentorship, educational programs, and access to business resources to support commercialization and entrepreneurial growth.

Carlsen Center for Innovation & Entrepreneurship

Innovation Lab

Empowers students to rapidly validate ideas, build prototypes, and gain traction through hands-on learning, mentorship, and milestone-based progression, preparing them for startup launch and pitch competitions in a collaborative, supportive environment.

LavaLab – University of Southern California

LavaLab Startup Incubator

USC's premier student-run product incubator, founded in 2013. Each semester, 28 carefully selected USC students (developers, designers, and product managers) are organized into teams to build technology startups from scratch. Teams go through a full-semester curriculum based on YC and Zero to One methodology, culminating in Demo Night where products are pitched to investors and industry leaders.

Leatherby Center for Entrepreneurship and Business Ethics

Leatherby Center Incubator (Launch Labs)

A structured incubator for Chapman University students, staff, faculty, and alumni in the pre-revenue startup phase. Teams participate for up to two semesters, receiving mentoring, formal progress reviews, collaboration with other Launch Labs teams, and connections to the Chapman Alumni Entrepreneur Network and SoCal ecosystem events. No cost to participants; IP remains with founders. Open to all industries with a special emphasis on scalable tech ventures in entertainment and sports (leveraging Chapman's #4-ranked film school).

UC San Diego Entrepreneurship Center

MedTech Accelerator by IGE

Accelerates deep-tech innovation through entrepreneurship education, mentorship, and commercialization support for engineers and scientists, offering programs like MedTech acceleration, NSF I-Corps, and global innovation training to help bring research-driven technologies to market.