Deadline Date: June 16, 2026
The Science & Technology Pioneer Award recognizes and supports women entrepreneurs worldwide who are driving breakthrough innovation through advanced scientific and technological solutions.
This award focuses on technological and scientific innovation, embedded positive impact, and a strong market access strategy, emphasizing the development of new technologies or complex engineering processes, contribution to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and the ability to create scalable, impactful, and commercially viable solutions.
The Science & Technology Pioneer Award, launched in 2021, is designed to support women-led deep tech startups that are built on unique, protected, or hard-to-reproduce innovations. It specifically targets ventures that require significant research and development, involve high technological complexity, and have longer commercialization cycles. The award aims to fuel innovation by empowering women who are solving critical global challenges through science and technology.
Selected fellows receive significant financial support through tiered grant funding, with $100,000 awarded to each first-place awardee, $60,000 to each second-place awardee, and $30,000 to each third-place awardee.
Selected fellows receive substantial financial support, with grants awarded based on ranking, alongside a comprehensive fellowship program. This program includes leadership communication training, participation in an in-person entrepreneurship program, personalized business training, and executive coaching. In addition, participants benefit from strong social capital support, including international exposure, mentorship from jury members, and access to a global network of impact-driven entrepreneurs and supporters.
To be eligible, applicants must lead a for-profit business grounded in original technological or scientific innovation, with a minimum technology readiness level of laboratory validation and limited commercialization history. The business must demonstrate clear potential for positive social or environmental impact, align with at least one SDG, and maintain independence as an entity. Applicants must be women in key leadership roles, part of the founding team, and hold significant ownership in the company. Additional requirements include being at least 18 years old and possessing a strong command of English.
The evaluation process places emphasis on the novelty and sophistication of the technology, the depth and scalability of impact, and the strength of the market strategy. Businesses are assessed on their ability to disrupt industries, embed measurable impact into their models, and demonstrate clear competitive advantages with validated market potential.
For more information, visit Cartier Women’s Initiative.
