USC Viterbi Startup Garage

What USC Viterbi Startup Garage does

USC Viterbi Startup Garage is the technology entrepreneurship program and incubator operated by the USC Viterbi School of Engineering. It serves USC engineering students, faculty, alumni, and founders from partner institutions, providing venture-creation support, mentorship, non-dilutive prize funding, and commercialization infrastructure. Core programming includes the Maseeh Entrepreneurship Prize Competition (MEPC, $100,000 grand prize), the Min Family Challenge (MFC, $50,000 grand prize), Summer Smasher, the Viterbi Student Entrepreneur Experience (VSEE), the Viterbi Student Innovation Institute (VSi2), and contributions to national programs including NSF I-Corps Hub West and Hacking for Defense. Program leadership includes Vice Dean Ellis Meng, Managing Director Ralph Lin, and Director Dave Eastman. The program is based in Los Angeles with a stated headcount of 11-50.

The Startup Garage's underlying platform is a structured pipeline combining prize competitions, federal entrepreneurship training curricula (I-Corps customer discovery methodology), corporate and law-firm service partnerships (e.g., DLA Piper pro-bono legal services), and a multi-university consortium (I-Corps Hub West, 10 regional universities, backed by a $15M NSF award in August 2021). It does not build proprietary technology products; its output is programming, mentorship, and ecosystem connectivity for early-stage founders. Portfolio traction is evidenced by company outcomes such as Flint, which closed a $15M Series A on 2025-11-10.

The business model is grant- and donation-supported program delivery rather than commercial revenue generation. Funding flows from the NSF I-Corps Hub West award, philanthropic gifts (notably the Massiah Foundation and Min Family), and university allocation. Founders receive non-dilutive prize capital and in-kind services rather than purchased programming. There are no fees charged to participants, no ARR, and no equity-return mechanic disclosed in the input. Value capture accrues to portfolio companies, USC, and the broader regional ecosystem rather than to the program itself, which is consistent with its classification as a university-hosted public-good initiative rather than a commercial venture.

Name

USC Viterbi Startup Garage

Legal name

USC Viterbi School of Engineering - Technology Innovation and Entrepreneurship

Website

https://viterbiinnovation.usc.edu

Company type

Private

Founded year

2021

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

USC Viterbi Startup Garage is the technology entrepreneurship program of USC's Viterbi School of Engineering, supporting student, faculty, and alumni founders through prize competitions (MEPC, MFC), NSF I-Corps Hub West training, mentorship, and partnerships spanning a 10-university regional consortium.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Startup Incubator Services

NAICS

Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools (611310), Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools (6113), Educational Support Services (611710), All Other Schools and Instruction (61169)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Technical Universities with Entrepreneurship & Incubation Focus (EDAHAEAH)

akta.pro secondary industries

Entrepreneurship, Startup Incubation & Pitch Programs (EDAMAKAK), Youth Business Incubators & Accelerators (EDAMAHAC), Entrepreneurship, Business & Innovation Camps (EDAMALAL)

Keywords

• Startup incubator program
• Entrepreneurship education
• Technology commercialization
• NSF I-Corps Hub
• Venture funding competitions

Headquarters

HQ city

Los Angeles

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Others, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Philanthropic and Grant Funding: The USC Viterbi TIE office operates as a university technology innovation and entrepreneurship support function, funded through philanthropy (e.g., Massiah Foundation, Min Family donations) and government grants (NSF I-Corps Hub West award). No commercial revenue is generated from startup programs.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

USC Viterbi Startup Garage is a 1-year startup incubator program based in Los Angeles that provides entrepreneurship education, mentorship, customer discovery grants, and competition-based non-dilutive prize funding to early-stage technology startups affiliated with USC. The program integrates with USC Viterbi's broader Technology Innovation and Entrepreneurship ecosystem, including MEPC ($100K grand prize), MFC ($50K grand prize), VSEE, Summer Smasher, and the NSF I-Corps Hub West regional program serving 10 Western US universities. It does not sell commercial products; rather, it delivers program-based services to help student teams and faculty researchers develop and launch technology ventures.

Product overview

USC Viterbi Startup Garage operates as the startup incubator component of USC Viterbi's Technology Innovation and Entrepreneurship (TIE) office, functioning as a platform-plus-programs model. The core offering centers on the Maseeh Entrepreneurship Prize Competition (MEPC) providing a $100,000 grand prize, the Min Family Challenge (MFC) offering a $50,000 prize for social impact ventures, and the Summer Smasher Program for experiential entrepreneurship training. Supporting programs include VSEE for first-year student education, I-Corps Hub West for NSF-funded technology transfer, Hacking for Defense for national security innovation, VSi2 for student innovation coordination, and K-12 outreach programs. These modules work together to support the complete startup lifecycle from early education through market launch.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Viterbi Student Innovation Institute (VSi2): Integrates all student-facing activities supporting USC students, faculty, alumni, and community in technology development and entrepreneurship.
• Maseeh Entrepreneurship Prize Competition (MEPC)
• Min Family Challenge (MFC)
• Summer Smasher
• Viterbi Student Entrepreneurship Education (VSEE)
• I-Corps Hub West

Products and services

• Maseeh Entrepreneurship Prize Competition (MEPC) The flagship startup competition of USC Viterbi that awards a $100,000 grand prize to help innovators turn their concepts and technologies into companies and solutions. The competition selects concepts rooted in deep technology with market viability and highest potential for growth and impact. Funded by the Massiah Foundation.
• Min Family Challenge (MFC) A social entrepreneurship challenge that awards a $50,000 grand prize to USC Viterbi students developing engineering solutions to societal impact problems, inspired by the 17 Sustainable Development Goals. Funded by the Min Family through the ESSential Foundation.
• Summer Smasher Program A summer crash course in entrepreneurship for current USC students that provides experiential learning by placing participants as Entrepreneurs-in-Training with fully operational tech startup companies.
• Viterbi Student Entrepreneurship Education (VSEE) A program that teaches entrepreneurial skills to all first-year engineering students during ENGR 102 sections, covering value propositions, customer discovery, and lean canvas business model. Reaches 1,000+ students annually.
• I-Corps Hub West A National Science Foundation Innovation Corps regional hub partnership led by USC Viterbi with ten top research universities across the Western United States, providing experiential education to develop and launch deep technology startups. Offers $50,000 team grants to eligible research teams.
• Hacking for Defense (H4D) A course (CSCI 532) where student teams develop minimum viable products and prototypes for Department of Defense and Intelligence Community users to address national security challenges using Lean Startup methodology.
• Viterbi Student Innovation Institute (VSi2) An institute that integrates all student-facing activities to support USC students, faculty, alumni, and community in technology development and innovation, including competitions, networking events, and mentoring.
• K-12 STEM Programs Various K-12 educational opportunities including Camp Invention Connect, CS@USC Summer Camps, Viterbi K12 Summer Programs, and USC Summer Programs for High School Students, along with resources from partner organizations such as the National Inventors Hall of Fame and NFTE.

Quantifiable outcome

• MEPC participants have raised hundreds of millions of dollars from top-tier VCs and achieved successful exits
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

14 partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• University of Colorado BouldercoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 August 2021Partner in NSF I-Corps Hub West regional program. CU Boulder serves as co-lead alongside USC for the Western region innovation ecosystem supporting deep technology startups.
• University of California-Los Angeles (UCLA)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 August 2021Partner in NSF I-Corps Hub West regional program, contributing to the Western US deep tech startup ecosystem.
• Colorado State UniversitycoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 August 2021Partner in NSF I-Corps Hub West regional program, contributing to the regional technology transfer ecosystem.
• California Institute of Technology (Caltech)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 August 2021Affiliate partner in NSF I-Corps Hub West regional program, bringing elite research university to the Western deep tech ecosystem.
• University of New MexicominorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 August 2021Affiliate partner in NSF I-Corps Hub West regional program, expanding coverage of the Western innovation ecosystem.
• University of UtahminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 August 2021Affiliate partner in NSF I-Corps Hub West regional program.
• University of California-RiversideminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 August 2021Affiliate partner in NSF I-Corps Hub West regional program.
• University of California-Santa BarbaraminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 August 2021Affiliate partner in NSF I-Corps Hub West regional program.
• Texas Tech UniversityminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 August 2021Affiliate partner in NSF I-Corps Hub West regional program.
• Colorado School of MinesminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 August 2021Affiliate partner in NSF I-Corps Hub West regional program.
• DLA PiperminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerProvides the 'DLA Piper Accelerator Award' legal services prize worth $25k credit for MEPC teams, covering corporate legal advice, formation, and equity matters.
• National Inventors Hall of FameminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerProvides Camp Invention Connect program, an at-home summer camp with hands-on STEM activities for grades K-6, offered as part of USC Viterbi K-12 outreach.
• Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship (NFTE)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerGlobal educational nonprofit focused on entrepreneurship education for youth in low-income communities. Referenced as resource for K-12 programs.
• Michelson Institute for Intellectual PropertyminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerNon-profit providing IP education resources including the 'Lessons in IP Strategy' 8-week micro-course, offered to support student inventors and entrepreneurs.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Princeton Keller Center: Princeton's entrepreneurship and innovation center within the School of Engineering. Comparable as an Ivy League engineering-school entrepreneurship hub offering courses, funding, and startup support for student/faculty founders.
• Stanford StartX: Stanford-affiliated startup accelerator serving Stanford students, faculty, and alumni. Directly comparable as a top-tier US university startup accelerator focused on deep-tech founders with mentorship and demo-day funding pathways.
• Berkeley SkyDeck: UC Berkeley's flagship accelerator combining $200K investment, mentorship, and cohort programming for Berkeley-affiliated startups. Highly comparable as a California university-based deep-tech accelerator serving student and faculty founders.
• MIT delta v: MIT's premier summer startup accelerator for MIT students. Directly comparable as a top university-based accelerator providing mentorship, workspace, and demo day exposure for student-led ventures.
• NSF I-Corps Hubs (other regional nodes): Other NSF I-Corps regional hubs (e.g., Northeast, South, Midwest). Direct peers as fellow NSF-funded regional deep-tech commercialization hubs with shared methodology, SBIR pipeline integration, and team-grant mechanisms.
• Cornell Tech Runway Startup Postdoc Program: Cornell Tech's startup support and postdoc program focused on translating research into ventures. Comparable as an elite engineering school entrepreneurship program targeting deep-tech commercialization from faculty/research teams.

Broad incumbents

• Y Combinator: The world's largest startup accelerator operating broadly across all technology sectors and geographies. Comparable as a startup accelerator/incubator, though USC Viterbi Startup Garage is university-anchored and specialized in deep-tech student founders.
• Techstars: Global accelerator network with multiple industry and university-affiliated programs. Comparable as an accelerator, though broader in scope than USC Viterbi's university-anchored deep-tech student focus.

Others

• National Inventors Hall of Fame (NIHF): Partner of USC Viterbi for Camp Invention Connect K-12 programming. Comparable as an ecosystem partner providing STEM/invention education programs that complement USC's K-12 outreach portfolio.
• Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship (NFTE): Youth entrepreneurship education nonprofit referenced as a K-12 partner. Comparable as a peer organization delivering entrepreneurship education to youth, particularly in under-resourced communities, mirroring USC Viterbi's K-12 outreach mission.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/viterbigarage
• YouTubesoundcloud.com/viterbivoices
• Facebookfacebook.com/viterbistartupgarage
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/startup-garage-usc-viterbi-380b1a210

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments16 records

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about USC Viterbi Startup Garage