Hey, Gen Z founders! The Singapore University of Technology and Design (SUTD) launched $2.3M USD* fund for “micro-innovation” ideas by students called the Baby Shark Fund.

• Yes, the name comes from the reality TV show we all know too well, Shark Tank! (And not the song)

• The Baby Shark Fund will invest up to $4.4K USD for each team of at least two founders. 

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🤙 What it’s all about

The Baby Shark Fund is designed as a stepping stone for student innovators. 

• Once they’ve become full-fledged founders, they can apply for more advanced funding programs like Enterprise Singapore’s Startup SG Founder grant, where founders can get up to $37.3K USD*in funding.
• Want another option? SUTD also has the Create4Good Innovation Fund!

More details. According to a SUTD spokesperson, the fund is expected to be active for a few years. Oh, and applications will open this September. 

“With the new Baby Shark Fund, we hope to provide every student with the opportunity to engage in bottom-up innovation by experimenting continuously,” said Chong Tow Chong, SUTD president.

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🧑‍🎓 The kids are alright

Don’t count the Gen Zs out, because they’re starting early. Here are just some student-focused funds in the region:

• Protege Ventures. A Singaporean student-run and sector-agnostic fund raised $373K USD* in funding last year. They’ve backed Series A mental health startup Intellect and marktech startup Hypotenuse AI.

• Nila Capital. A Philippine-based VC fund supporting Gen Z founders. Their check sizes can go up to $10K a round. 

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*1 SGD = 0.75 USD