Who Are We?
The MIT Water, Food & Agriculture Innovation Prize brings together early-stage, student-led startups from across the US, awarding $50K+ in innovation grants annually to ventures driving the future of sustainable water, food, and agricultural solutions. Since its inception in 2015, the Prize has awarded $300K to 30 winning teams.
As the main innovation-focused event of MIT Water Club and MIT Food & Agriculture Club, we help emerging entrepreneurs translate research & ideas into businesses, access mentors & resources, and build networks in the water, food, and agriculture industries. All approaches to innovation are welcome, from engineering and product design to policy and data analytics.
Date: April 29th, 2026
Location: TBD
Time: TBD
Timeline
November 29th: Application Opens
December 31th: Application Closes
January: Finalists Chosen
February-April: Mentorship
April: Final Competition
Prize Eligibility
At least one leader of the startup team must be a U.S.-based student.
The startup team must have received less than $100,000 in funding before applying to the Prize.
Questions? Email us at wfaprize@mit.edu
Featured Alum - David Dellal, Floe Co-Founder
Floe - 2020 MIT Water Innovation Prize 2nd place winner
David, Co-founder of Floe was named to the Forbes 30 Under 30 list’s Energy Category
Testimonials
The MIT Water Innovation Prize is nurturing creative talent from across the globe to address key challenges in the water sector. As a mentor I was inspired by the abilities of the participants and the ingenuity of their solutions. I am looking forward to seeing what next years teams can do.
-Christobel Ferguson, PhD | Chief Innovation Officer | The Water Research Foundation
