Deadline Date: February 02, 2026
The Female Founder Award celebrates women leading innovative startups that are driving disruptive technologies and shaping the future of innovation.
The focus of the award is on innovation, scalability and viability, team profile, business model strength, and solutions that contribute to positive environmental and social impact.
Created eight years ago, the Female Founder Challenge was designed to empower women entrepreneurs by facilitating networking opportunities, increasing brand visibility, and providing access to funding. Over the years, it has become a platform for recognizing female founders who are building forward-looking technology ventures with strong growth potential.
As part of the 2026 edition, five finalists will be invited to pitch their startups in June at VivaTech 2026, one of the world’s leading technology events. This pitching opportunity allows founders to present their solutions to a global audience of industry leaders, investors, and innovators.
The winner of the Female Founder Award will be announced during the VivaTech Global Awards Ceremony, alongside other major award recipients. The selected startup will benefit from significant visibility and a prominent spotlight throughout the event, helping to elevate both the founder’s profile and the startup’s market presence.
Applications are evaluated based on the relevance and originality of the technology, the ability of the solution to scale while remaining technically, economically, and environmentally viable, the leadership capacity and skills of the female founder and co-founders, the demonstrated traction and product-market fit of the business model, and the overall environmental and social impact of the solution.
For more information, visit Viva Technology.
