Applicants must meet the following eligibility requirements:

• The challenge is open to residents and citizens of Canada
• You must be age 21 or older on the first day of the GSP
• You must be fluent in written and spoken English
• You must be able to participate in the entire Global Startup Program in South Africa and Mountain View, CA, USA
• Applicants selected as finalists will participate in the Live Pitch Event that will be held in June 2019 in Burnaby, BC, Canada

We will be really thrilled to find:

• SU mission alignment: You have a startup in one of the global grand challenge (GGC) spaces.
• Team: Your startup has at least two full-time co-founders.
• Experience: You have expertise in an exponential technology and/or a key GGC space.
• Time: Your venture is a fully formed entity, and is in the seed-stage or idea-stage.
• Traction: You have demonstrated market traction (LOIs, purchase orders, validated trials, sales, etc.).
• Eagerness to learn: You’re looking for a substantial shift in mindset and skill set, and are eager to globalize your startup and 10x your impact.
• Availability: You’re available to travel to South Africa for the Activate (four weeks) phase, and the SU campus in Mountain View for the Accelerate (four weeks) phase.

The GSP is for startups aligned with global grand challenges (GGCs) that want to 10x their current startup and scale it globally. We’re looking for startups that have experience with exponential technology, some level of demonstrated market traction, and an eagerness to radically level-up their business. Cohorts include founders from different countries, backgrounds, ages, ethnicities, and cultures, and you’ll find gender diversity in cohorts representing more than 40 countries.

If we’ve described you, please apply! Know someone else who’s a good fit? Please spread the word.

We will evaluate submissions using the following criteria:

• Degree of the solution’s relevance to the theme of the challenge
• The regional relevance in solving the challenge in Canada
• Project or Idea leverages exponential technology to solve the problem
• Feasibility, viability, and coherence of implementing the idea
• Impact & compelling need and potential to scale globally
• Committed existing team

• CV or resume
• Summary of accomplishments
• An abstract of the project idea
• Video (provide url) of the project idea

• Applications open: November 21, 2018
• Applications close: March 1, 2019
• Finalists Announced & Live Pitch Event: May 29, 2019, Burnaby, BC, Canada

The GSP is for startups aligned with global grand challenges (GGCs) that want to 10x their current startup and scale it globally. We’re looking for startups that have experience with exponential technology, some level of demonstrated market traction, and an eagerness to radically level-up their business.

Ideal candidates full-time founders with a fully formed entity in the early-stage or seed-stage.

Intellectual property resulting from a GIC belongs to the applicant(s).

The selection process has 2-3 phases, depending on the GIC. The first phase involves a review of all applications to determine 5-10 finalists, and the second phase involves final judging to select the winner at a pitch event.

Yes, there is an expectation for winners to continue working on their winning projects.

GIC winners are responsible for their own travel expenses to/from SU.

In all cases where a GIC winner cannot attend GSP, the winner forfeits his or her GSP seat to the first runner-up and would then need to reapply for admission in a future year.

For more information, see the Global Solutions Program.