About This Fund
The George Shultz Innovation Fund is a seed-stage venture investment program managed by the Polsky Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation at the University of Chicago. Named in honor of George Pratt Shultz (1920–2021), U.S. Secretary of State and University of Chicago alumnus, the Fund embodies his conviction that scientific knowledge and entrepreneurial initiative are the twin engines of lasting societal progress.
The Fund provides equity investments of up to $250,000 to early-stage technology ventures emerging from the University of Chicago, Argonne National Laboratory, Fermilab, and the Marine Biological Laboratory. Its investment mandate spans deep technology, life sciences, healthcare, and applied sciences, with a particular emphasis on helping academic scientists and engineers make the transition from laboratory research to scalable commercial enterprise. The Fund operates within the UChicago innovation ecosystem, complementing other Polsky Center programs including the New Venture Challenge and the Innovation Fund Associates Program.
Since its inception, the George Shultz Innovation Fund has backed more than 90 companies. Notable exits include ExplORer Surgical, acquired by Global Healthcare Exchange, and Super.Tech, acquired by ColdQuanta. Active portfolio companies include OrisDx (2022 New Venture Challenge winner), Flow Medical (which went on to secure $5 million in seed funding), and Alnair Therapeutics (which closed an oversubscribed $1+ million pre-seed round). CavilinQ, a quantum computing company developing neutral-atom interconnect architectures, also received Innovation Fund support before raising an $8.8 million seed round from institutional investors including QVT, Safar Partners, and MFV Partners.