Roddenberry Prize

The Roddenberry Prize is a biennial competition that provides non-dilutive funding to early-stage, mission-driven ventures. It is an initiative of The Roddenberry Foundation, which was established in 2010 by Eugene 'Rod' Roddenberry, the son of Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry, to build on his father's legacy and vision for a more inclusive and harmonious society.

The Prize aims to support and crowdsource innovative solutions to significant global challenges. The focus of the prize changes, with past themes including climate change solutions in 2018, responses to the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, and ventures supporting the UN Sustainable Development Goals in 2023. The 2024 prize, totaling $1 million, is designated for an early-stage science or technology venture leveraging artificial intelligence for positive global impact. Eligible applicants include both for-profit and nonprofit entities that have raised financing from Seed to Series A rounds.

The selection process involves a multi-round application, and winners are chosen based on criteria such as their potential for transformative impact, scalability, and feasibility. The grand prize winner receives a significant non-dilutive grant, with the 2024 award being $1 million. For example, the 2025 grand prize winner was iCardio.ai, a health tech startup using AI to automate the analysis of cardiac ultrasounds for early detection of heart disease. The prize operates as one of the four core initiatives of The Roddenberry Foundation, alongside the Catalyst Fund, the Roddenberry Fellowship, and the +1 Global Fund.

Keywords: non-dilutive funding, early-stage ventures, impact investing, social enterprise, technology prize, science funding, global challenges, AI for good, sustainable development goals, innovation competition, startup funding, foundation grants, philanthropic funding, seed funding, Series A, ethical AI, climate change solutions, global health, tech for good