AthenaDAO is a decentralized community of researchers, funders, and advocates working to advance women’s health research, education, and funding.
AthenaDAO primarily funds translational R&D. We are particularly interested in transformational contributions to women’s health. We will also fund more ‘basic’ research that will be critical to moving the needle for science.
Read More
All researchers are welcome to apply, including professors, post-docs, research scientists, and even students. We can also fund early stage biotech startups! There is no limitation to institution or country of origin and no Web3 knowledge is required.
We would prioritize translational projects or ones with translational potential down the line. If you’re not sure whether your project is a good fit for AthenaDAO funding, you can connect with the 👉 AthenaDAO discord community for guidance, or ✉️ contact us.
Research with translation potential in underfunded areas of female reproductive health is our focus. We particularly want to fund the projects that are ‘moonshots’ – potentially revolutionary. On occasion we will also fund more ‘basic’ research. Current areas of focus:
Ovarian and reproductive aging
Polycystic ovarian syndrome & Uterine fibroids
Endometriosis
You apply with a grant-style application, our team of senior reviewers (professors, scientists, biotech operators, VC investors) will provide initial feedback. We will help you polish the project to comport with industry-standards for R&D, and then you submit a final application – following which we quickly (<1 month) vote on whether to fund it. Much faster than government grants!
Note: Existing biotech & femtech startups are also eligible for funding from AthenaDAO.
No, it’s not necessary to already own project IP.
Terms vary on a case-by-case basis, depending on the maturity of your data, R&D plan, and team.
It depends on the funding terms, which are negotiated on a per project basis. In some cases AthenaDAO owns the intellectual property from the projects that it funds, either directly or in the form of an exclusive licence. In other cases the funded institution and other third parties can maintain partial or full ownership of IP.
$50-150K. Funding may be lower or higher, depending on the project, but we prioritize lower budgets.
1-2 years R&D, depending on project and funding size.
The funding can be used for reasonable R&D and Operations expenses, such as: researchers salaries, equipment and material cost, lab spaces, legal fees.
After you fill out the application form, our internal team will do a preliminary assessment and get in touch if additional information is required. A panel of senior scientists will then assess the current project cohort. After projects are approved we will negotiate the deal terms with the appropriate institution. Depending on the project, funding could be provided in full or separated by milestones.
When funding is finalized we will ask for quarterly updates on the projects.
We will have applications on a rolling basis. The first deadline is December 15th 2022.
Read about the latest research, meet some of the scientists and advocates in the field, and get excited about building a future with better health outcomes for women.
We’re hard at work on a brand new website and many more exciting updates. Sign up to the AthenaDAO newsletter and we’ll keep you in the loop on the latest developments.
Or join the conversation...
