Entrepreneurship/Startup Resources in the MIT and Boston/Cambridge Ecosystem

To support the entrepreneurial endeavors of Sloanies, we have assembled a collection of resources with a specific focus on entrepreneurship. These resources aim to assist and empower Sloanies in their startups and ventures, offering valuable insights, guidance, and tools necessary for success in the world of entrepreneurship

Cambridge Innovation Center: CIC is a global leader in building and operating innovation campuses that support the growth of entrepreneurs and startups.

Executive Certificate in Strategy & Innovation: MIT Sloan is world renowned for the development and advancement of strategic and innovative management methods and practices. Pursuing an Executive Certificate in Strategy and Innovation will place you in the center of a global hub of invention and entrepreneurial thinking. Whether you want to harness an innovation ecosystem, revive mature products, or unleash the creative talent of your people, courses in this track will help you deliver on your goals.

The Martin Trust Center for MIT Entrepreneurship: At the Martin Trust Center for MIT Entrepreneurship our mission is to advance knowledge and educate students in innovation-driven entrepreneurship in a manner that will best serve the world in the 21st century. The focus of our education is MIT students to whom we provide proven frameworks, courses, co-curricular programs, state-of-the-art facilities, advisory services, and processes to create a rigorous, practical, customized, and integrated educational experience.

The Martin Trust Center for MIT Entrepreneurship – MIT Delta V Accelerator: The MIT Delta V Accelerator is the capstone entrepreneurial experience for students at MIT. From June to early September, teams have dedicated space in the co-working environment of the Trust Center on the MIT campus, or the NYC Startup Studio in Manhattan. They will work on their ventures full-time for the whole summer.

The Martin Trust Center for MIT Entrepreneurship – StartMIT: For students who are interested in exploring entrepreneurship while here in school and are looking for an entry point, StartMIT is a 2-½ week course held every January during Independent Activities Period (IAP). We call the course “your on-ramp to the entrepreneurial world at MIT.”

MassChallenge: MassChallenge is the global network for innovators working to solve massive challenges. A nonprofit, MassChallenge connects startups, experts, corporations, and communities to grow and transform businesses and economies. Our unique equity-free model allows us to accelerate high-impact startups with bold, disruptive ideas from non-traditional backgrounds. We offer a variety of programs, accelerators, and partnerships throughout the year to those who share our vision of transformative innovation.

MIT Alumni Startup Network (MITAS): MITAS is a global community for and of MIT founders looking to scale themselves as they scale their teams.

MIT Industrial Liaison Program: The MIT Industrial Liaison Program (ILP) and MIT Startup Exchange is a membership-based program for large organizations interested in long-term, strategic relationships with MIT.  We engage with organizations from around the globe – in any sector – that are concerned with emerging research- and education-driven results that will be transformative.

MIT InnovationHQ: This is the home for MIT’s thriving community of innovators & entrepreneurs. It’s the culmination of a decade of careful planning, painstaking reconstruction, and thoughtful community-building. Located in the heart of Kendall Square, “the most innovative square mile on the planet”, iHQ creates the opportunity for world-changing impact not only at MIT but throughout the Greater Boston innovation ecosystem and much further afield. See other entrepreneurship organizations here.

MIT Orbit: Orbit is the one-stop-shop for MIT student entrepreneurs. With Orbit, entrepreneurs at MIT can access everything entrepreneurship-related at MIT conveniently anytime and anywhere. Navigate the entrepreneurship ecosystem at MIT by browsing classes, resources, and startups. Engage with the MIT entrepreneurship community both in-person and online. Get help from EIRs, Professional Advisors, and Sector Practice Leaders.

MIT Regional Entrepreneurship Accelerator Program (REAP): MIT REAP is a dynamic global initiative with two programs – Global and Focus – that engages with communities around the world to strengthen innovation-driven entrepreneurial ecosystems and transform economies.

MIT Sandbox Innovation Fund Program: MIT Sandbox provides seed funding, mentorship, and tailored entrepreneurship education that empowers student innovators to explore ideas, take risks, and prepare to launch. The goal of the program is to enable any MIT student — inspired to solve a problem with an innovative solution — to learn and experience entrepreneurship.

MIT Sandbox Innovation Fund Program – Dive into Healthcare Innovation and Venture Exploration (DHIVE): DHIVE promotes healthcare entrepreneurship and fosters a community where undergraduate and graduate students learn from top experts in the field, engage in brainstorming and ideation activities, form teams to explore market opportunities, work with seasoned entrepreneurs on how to translate ideas into viable solutions, gain access to resources to enable exploration and prototyping.

MIT Sloan Management Review: At MIT Sloan Management Review (MIT SMR) we explore how leadership and management are transforming in a disruptive world. We help thoughtful leaders capture the exciting opportunities—and face down the challenges— created as technological, societal, and environmental forces reshape how organizations operate, compete, and create value.

MIT Startup Exchange – STEX25: Startups selected for STEX25, all part of MIT Startup Exchange, receive custom support. For twelve months, each STEX25 startup is assigned a team member from Startup Exchange to be its main point of contact, an individual who helps with targeted connections within the established corporate network of the Industrial Liaison Program (ILP). Furthermore, STEX25 startup executives are offered speaking opportunities at events delivered at MIT, elsewhere in the US, and internationally. This customized effort is to help startup executives explore, discuss, and start collaborations and partnerships with corporations based on common interests and business overlap.

MIT Venture Mentoring Service: MIT VMS supports innovation and entrepreneurial activity throughout the MIT community by matching prospective and experienced entrepreneurs with skilled volunteer mentors.

Venture Café Cambridge: Venture Café Cambridge connects a community of innovators, entrepreneurs, and small businesses through free, high-impact programming and events. Venture Café Cambridge is a perfect place for anyone interested in the innovation ecosystem of the Greater Boston Area and beyond.

Venture Café Global: Venture Café is a global network that seeks to further the local innovation ecosystem. Our mission is to “connect innovators to make things happen” through high-impact programming, spaces, storytelling, and broad innovation engagement.

Useful Readings, Books, and Articles:

By MIT Sloan CDO
MIT Sloan CDO