GIST Community | GIST Network

Innovators

By combining its online platform with on-the-ground partners, GIST creates education and training opportunities for young innovators in more than 130 countries around the world by providing access to U.S. experts and through in-country entrepreneurship networks and support systems.

Ecosystem Builders

Ecosystem Builders aim to bolster networking and entrepreneurial skills to build durable, long-term, supportive networks. The ultimate goal is to stimulate local entrepreneurial activity and ensure participants can grow their skills and scale their businesses together – both in their home country and through the GIST Network’s global connections.

Investors

GIST partners with in-country stakeholders in entrepreneurial ecosystems to bolster local financial support for startups. GIST is able to bring American investment experts to different regions around the world and provides an opportunity for in-country investors to learn how to create and sustain investor networks for entrepreneurs.

Partners

Since 2011, GIST has partnered with the private sector to reach over 27 million innovation community members globally and has provided training for over 15,000 startups who have gone on to generate over $250 million in revenue. This is done through competitions, startup trainings, and interactive online programs, implemented by AAAS and VentureWell. If you would like to explore partnership opportunities please contact Hillary LeBail.

General Pitch Competition

GIST runs a variety of Pitch Competitions that do not fall into the same category as Tech-I or Catalyst. These are usually associated with specific conferences or themes.

Business Incubation

The U.S. Department of State’s Global Innovation through Science and Technology, or GIST, Initiative launched this new program in the fall of 2019 for entrepreneurs in emerging economies.

GIST Startup Trainings

GIST Startup Trainings empower young science and technology innovators and entrepreneurs through on-the-ground training and mentoring delivered by top U.S. mentors and in-country partners.

GIST Tech-I Pitch Competition

The GIST Tech-I Competition is an annual competition for science and technology entrepreneurs from emerging economies worldwide.

GIST Catalyst Pitch Competition

Applications open 2 August for the 2021 GIST Virtual Pitch Competition!

The GIST Innovates program is a multi-component training program to provide innovators with the training, mentoring, and resources they need to bring their ideas out of the university lab and into the market.

Resources

GIST TechConnect

GIST TechConnects provides entrepreneurs around the world with direct access to leading U.S. experts from business and academia, but without the travel and other related costs.

GIST Innovation Hubs

Innovation Hubs, or IHubs, are designed to build strong and vibrant networks of young science and technology entrepreneurs around the world.

News

Walking the Talk and the Legacy of Women Innovators: a Q&A with Rahinah Ibrahim of Oceanori

Oceanori took the top prize at the GIST APEC Startup Training in Brisbane, Australia in 2018. The intensive training program brought startup teams from APEC countries to improve their business ideas, perfect their pitches, and showcase their innovations in front of business leaders, policymakers, academics, and chief science advisors from around the world. This conversation between Oceanori’s Dr. Rahinah Ibrahim and GIST Innovation Hub program lead Drona Dewi was conducted March 17, 2021 and was edited for clarity.

GIST Insights: 4 Tips for Women Founders

Being a founder presents certain obstacles no matter who you are. But women founders have unique challenges that make their path even more complex. In these tips from our innovation experts we provide resources to some of the issues we see repeatedly in our trainings. Issues that women founders face but that don’t need to prevent them from finding success.

GIST Innovation Talks: Social Innovation

In this episode of GIST Innovation Talks we explore Social Innovation with innovator and ecosystem builder, Kasia Weina of Evergreen Labs.

GIST Innovates Ukraine Launches 2021 Cohort!

The U. S. Department of State’s Global Innovation through Science and Technology initiative (GIST) is pleased to announce the launch of the second GIST Innovates Ukraine pre-accelerator training, a 10-week program that will train and mentor Ukrainian STEM innovators on their journey to becoming entrepreneurs.

GIST Year in Review 2020

This past year saw one of the most difficult times in the history of our modern global community. Here at GIST we appreciated, like never before, those who worked on the front lines of this calamitous time. Teachers and healthcare workers joined the ranks of superheroes. Throughout this harrowing time, the GIST community showed true resilience.

Smart Cities, Clean Water, and Solving the Climate Crisis: a Q&A with Rituparna Das of Hydrotec Solutions

Rituparna Das was selected for the GIST Bus

GIST Innovation Talks Episode 9: Lab to Market

In this episode of GIST Innovation Talks we explore one of the first and most difficult steps an innovator can take on the road to entrepreneurship--leaving the lab and entering the market.

GIST Insights: Lab to Market

You are a researcher at a university or company and you have a great idea for a new product. How do you make the leap to starting a company around that product? What is your first step to commercialize that innovation?

GIST Launches Next Great Training Program in Bhutan

The U. S. Department of State’s Global Innovation through Science and Technology initiative (GIST) is pleased to announce the launch of GIST Innovates Bhutan, an 8-week program that will train and mentor Bhutanese STEM innovators on their journey to becoming entrepreneurs.

GIST Celebrates Women's History Month

Since the first Women's History Day in 1909, to the year Women's History Day became a full month (1987), people have celebrated the accomplishments of women around the U.S and the world.

Fire, Time Travel, and Mars: a Q&A with Vamekh Kherkheulidze, founder of Elven Technologies

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GIST Insights: Accelerators Versus Incubators

Your idea for your startup has promise. The startup you founded needs to scale. Your team is struggling with landing investment. Now is the time you seek out a program to meet your needs. But is it an accelerator or an incubator? And how do you get into those programs? GIST’s team of experts shares their insights with you about how to find and succeed in the right program for your startup.