Now accepting applications for the 2025 cohort.
Our alumni say one of the biggest benefits of the program is the like-minded community.
Whether you are still building conviction in your idea or have some customers, we will help turn your vision into reality.
We source transformative ideas with the power to reshape the future. Founders who align with this vision work toward systemic change.
Through our Design Insight Group, you’ll participate in one-on-one sessions, drawing from data and the lived experiences of New Yorkers.
You'll have the resources, community, and real-world feedback needed to take your venture to market.
We offer up to $100,000 in investment, and for non-profit ventures, this comes as a recoverable grant. You'll receive tailored coaching in finance, product, sales and marketing, and engineering. Gain access to our Design Insight Group—a community of 4,000 New Yorkers with lived experience. Join a diverse, close-knit group of founders and benefit from BRL’s collective knowledge and support.
Learn how they’re driving change across key areas like health, education, financial access, and more.
Each year, Catalyst selects a small group of founders for a focused 5-month program designed to help them quickly gain customers and grow their ventures.
If you’re an entrepreneur with a passion for fighting poverty and a track record of getting things done, Catalyst could be the right program for you. We’re looking for pre-seed tech based companies focused on creating scalable solutions in six areas: education, financial access, health, housing, hunger, and jobs. Your venture—whether nonprofit or for-profit—should have a strong connection to NYC. While you don’t need to be based here, your work should make a real impact on low-income New Yorkers. Our five-month program takes place in person (two days a week) in NYC.
The best candidates for Catalyst are teams that have already launched an MVP, a small-scale version of their product, and are ready to grow. These early versions don’t need to be polished—they can be built using simple tools like Google Docs, Typeform, or Zapier and might only have been tested by a small group of people. What’s important is that real people have used your product, and you’ve learned enough to validate the need, refine your approach, and understand what needs to change to scale.
Our founders come from diverse backgrounds—some are seasoned entrepreneurs, while others are new to the startup world but deeply committed to making a difference. Whether they’re engineers, product managers, policy experts, or community leaders, they all share the same goal: building tech that tackles poverty. If you're ready to create lasting change, we want to hear from you.
Over the course of five months, as part of a small cohort of founders, we’ll help you accelerate your product development and get it into the hands of customers for feedback and validation. In parallel, we’ll work with you to identify the other resources you’ll need to be successful over the long-term – things like funding, team members, and partners.
Our team specializes in creating and supporting early-stage social tech ventures (both for-profit and nonprofit). Alums of our Catalyst program have been named Echoing Green Fellows, participated in Y Combinator, raised rounds from prominent venture capitalists, received funding from major philanthropic institutions, and been featured in the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and Fast Company. Most importantly, our alumni help millions of Americans every day. Please visit our FAQ for more answers on common questions: https://brlrh.notion.site/Frequently-Asked-Questions-05fe0a1d1316498baf4a40885b40f37f?pvs=4
Pre-Seed Investment: Up to $100K SAFE (Simple Agreement for Future Equity) investment. For our non-profit organizations, this is a recoverable grant.
Coaching and Company Building-Services: 100+ hours of dedicated coaching in areas like finance, sales, product, design, and engineering. Plus, regular in-person learnings from founders and workshops.
Portfolio Network: A supportive group of peers, alumni, and a broad network of community partners, strengthened by online and in-person community-building activities.
Lived Expertise: 30+ hours of access to New Yorkers with lived experience through one-on-one interviews and focus groups. They'll offer valuable feedback and insights to help tackle the key challenges their communities are facing.
When evaluating Catalyst applicants, we prioritize ventures that can make a real difference in the lives of low-income New Yorkers and other urban communities facing poverty. We're looking for solutions that address the unique challenges of these areas while creating scalable, lasting impact.
No, we’re open to both for-profit and nonprofit ventures. As long as your startup or organization is focused on creating real impact and aligns with our mission to fight poverty and increase economic mobility, we’re interested in hearing from you.
The next Catalyst Cohort will launch in February 2025 in NYC, with application deadline of Friday, November 15, 2024.