Free Ventures

Giving UC Berkeley Students the Freedom to Dream, Build, and Innovate.

About Us

We are a startup launchpad for Berkeley students, providing resources and a framework to build ideas (for products or services) into companies

We envision a world where Berkeley students spend less time on class projects and more time on building tools that create a positive impact on people's lives and the world. With the right resources, motivation, and support, students can be some of the most fearless and innovative thinkers the world has ever seen. Free Ventures is a sandbox that takes those minds and gives them an environment where they can push themselves to create the next generation of products and services.

Free Ventures was created by students who understood the need for a program like this in the Berkeley ecosystem. After researching dozens of student entrepreneurship incubators across the country, the Free Ventures program was modeled after tried and true frameworks with a unique spin specific to the Berkeley campus. As award winners in the Big Ideas @ Berkeley contest, the idea was validated, and the inaugural class was held in Fall of 2013. We recently welcome a Spring 2014 class with 6 teams.

Program

Free Ventures provides a comprehensive program to kickstart your idea into a scalable business.

Units

Two Upper Division Units

Students receive two units in Computer Science for participating in the Free Ventures program. By providing units for development of their startup, students can invest more time and energy into their project while working toward their degree. We work through the decal program, and you can view our course page at decal.org/freev.

Funds

Up to several thousand dollars per team, allotted on a needs basis

We provide funds to provide student startups with finanical support for their project. We call them micro grants, made to alleviate students' finanical concerns during the development of their startup with no strings attached.

Mentorship

Industry specific mentors to drive development forward

Each project team is assigned a mentor with project specific background from either industry or academia. These mentors ensure each team maintains a productive development timeline and provide critically important real world experience.

Weekly Workshops

Workshops led by professionals from a myriad of fields

Every week industry or academic experts sit down with the team in one-on-one meetings during our workshop, giving feedback and passing on knowledge from their domain. The workshops are designed to provide information that tracks the development of each team's progress and premptively answers any questions that may arise. Topics range broadly and include design, product managment, funding, and legal incorporation.

Community

Get plugged into the network you need to succeed

Free Ventures provides students access to a variety of contacts from industry, academia, and the student community. This network can be tapped to provide technical expertise, funding advice, legal services, amongst other wisdom and help.

Workspace

On-campus workspace provided several times a week

Students will be provided a dedicated space to meet with their team members and work. For students with needs for specific resourses (e.g. hardware development equipment), Free Ventures will work to secure the required resources through collaboration with other university entities.