Over $2 Million in Funding Available for Solver Teams

• Solve will announce the most promising 42 innovators that have been selected as Solver teams and Indigenous Communities Fellows

• Livestream the event on September 17 at solve.mit.edu. Join as a Solve Member to access the full event. 

Cambridge, Mass., September 9, 2021 —Solve, an initiative of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), today announced the headline speakers including Eric S. Yuan, Founder and CEO of Zoom and Karlie Kloss, Supermodel and Founder of Kode With Klossy, who will join Virtual Solve Challenge Finals on September 17. Solve will livestream the opening and closing plenary, along with the 2021 Solver and Indigenous Communities Fellow pitches. 

At the event, Solve will announce the 42 social impact entrepreneurs who have been selected as Solver teams and Indigenous Communities Fellows from a pool of over 1,800 applications from 128 countries and 14 Native Tribes. They will present their selected solutions to one of Solve’s five 2021 Global Challenges: Digital Inclusion; Equitable Classrooms; Resilient Ecosystems; Health Security & Pandemics; Antiracist Technology in the US; and the Indigenous Communities Fellowship. 

Additional speakers at the event will include:

• Professor Dame Sally Davies, Executive Chair, The Trinity Challenge

• Ron Guerrier, Global Chief Information Officer, HP Inc.

• Telva McGruder, Chief Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Officer of General Motors 

• Gwyneth Gaul, Executive Director, Strategic Partnerships, Comcast NBCUniversal 

“During a year with no shortage of challenges, including the ongoing Covid-19 and climate crises, we are inspired by the ingenuity of the incredible Solver teams who you will hear pitching at Virtual Solve Challenge Finals,” said Alex Amouyel, Executive Director of MIT Solve. “It’s their innovative solutions and the support of our Members and Partners, which will help create sustainable change and solve some of the world’s most pressing challenges.” 

More than $2 million in prize funding will be announced for selected Solver teams during Virtual Solve Challenge Finals, including the following prizes: 

• The GM Prizes, supported by General Motors

• The Innovation for Women Prize, supported by the Vodafone Americas Foundation 

• The HP Prize for Advancing Digital Equity

• The ServiceNow Prize

• The Elevate Prize for Antiracist Technology

• The ASA Prize for Equitable Education, supported by American Student Assistance 

• The AI for Humanity Prize, supported by the Patrick J. McGovern Foundation

• The GSR Prize

• The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Prize

• The Global Fund Prize

• The Andan Prize for Innovation in Refugee Inclusion

• The Minderoo Prize to End Global Overfishing 

In addition, all solutions selected for Solve’s five current Global Challenges and Indigenous Communities Fellowship will receive a $10,000 grant from Solve. The remaining $200,000 in available funding will be announced at Solve at MIT on May 5-7, 2022, Solve’s annual flagship event and the capstone that celebrates the Solver teams’ partnerships, catalyzed by the Solve community. 

Anyone can tune in to solve.mit.edu to livestream the opening and closing plenary and 2021 Solver and Indigenous Communities Fellow pitches on September 17 by registering here. 

Finalists for all 2021 Global Challenges and Indigenous Communities Fellowship can be found here and you can vote for your favorite solution by registering on Solve’s platform until September 17 at 1:30PM ET. 

Media interested in attending Virtual Solve Challenge Finals should email press@solve.mit.edu.  Non-media interested in attending the entire event--including an in-person reception in New York City on September 20--can inquire about Solve membership at membership@solve.mit.edu.

Virtual Solve Challenge Finals is made possible thanks to Solve’s Partners: General Motors, Comcast NBCUniversal, Morgridge Family Foundation, Vodafone Americas Foundation, HP, and Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation. 

About MIT Solve:

Solve is an initiative of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) with a mission to solve world challenges. Solve is a marketplace for social impact innovation. Through open innovation Challenges, Solve finds incredible tech-based social entrepreneurs all around the world. Solve then brings together MIT’s innovation ecosystem and a community of Members to fund and support these entrepreneurs to help them drive lasting, transformational impact. Join Solve on this journey at solve.mit.edu.