FAQs

• Recently completed your Ph.D. or about to?
• Want to harness your deep tech expertise to start a company?
• Want to do it in New York City and get funding from day one?
• Check out our Apply Now page to learn about application criteria.

Yes, as long as you apply the knowledge of deep technology you mastered in graduate school.

If you need Runway’s educational and institutional support, you should still consider applying.

You are allowed to bring in team members — but the program’s benefits flow to you solely, the co-founder with the Ph.D.

You can only reap the benefits of Runway, the Cornell Tech campus, and the rich local startup ecosystem if you’re living in New York City. Of course, we expect you’ll travel during the program to attend conferences and meet with customers, investors, vendors, etc.

No, we evaluate our applications based on other criteria.

Application deadline is February 1st, and accepted applicants are announced on April 15th. Found out more application information here.

We’re happy to host you on campus! Please let us know about your upcoming visit and if our team is available we’ll be happy to host you.

Yes, you will get a royalty-free, exclusive, and perpetual license from the Jacobs Institute, essentially under the condition that you use your IP.

Please see our Benefits and Perks page.

Unlike many accelerators and incubators, Runway exists within a not-for-profit organization. Part of the Jacobs Technion-Cornell Institute’s mission is to devise new approaches to commercializing university technology and strategies for collaboration between companies and universities. That’s the role of Runway at the Jacobs Institute, and our Startup Postdocs are helping us fulfill it. At the moment, donations from generous supporters are funding the program.

None. It is your business. We’re here to help you and your company succeed. Jacobs Technion-Cornell Institute will have equity shares in the company (typically around 8.5%), but no major decision-making provisions.

Jacobs Technion-Cornell Institute and Cornell Tech faculty and staff will introduce you to angel investors, venture capitalists and other investors in New York City and beyond. We’ll also invite investors to the Cornell Tech campus several times during the program, including for Open Studio — our version of a demo day — to celebrate and present the current crop of startups across the Cornell Tech campus.

No. If you join Runway, expect a mini United Nations of PhD startups. We already have entrepreneurs from France, India, Israel, Brazil, Singapore, Netherlands, Iran, Canada, Lithuania, Germany, and of course, the United States.

The Jacobs Technion-Cornell Institute will provide you with the forms to apply for a J-1, O1, or another appropriate visa for your duration in the Runway program.

Yes, your company must be incorporated in the U.S. to be a credible partner for investors, customers, and employees and to protect your rights.

Only the Startup Postdoc is entitled to a visa. Your non-citizen founders or employees must be legally present in the U.S. to work for your company.