On-Demand Learning
Browse blog posts and videos featuring i-lab experts and advisors based on your stage and topic of interest.
Donations
Ask for a Donation
Here are concrete steps for how to make a fundraising ask from high net worth individuals or foundations.
Customer Discovery + MVP
Build a No-Code MVP
Ready to build your MVP to validate your idea and test your product? Most founders think they need an engineer to scale this hurdle, but there's another way. Learn how to turn your idea into a product you can test with real customers — without knowing how to code or hiring expensive engineers.
Entrepreneurship Essentials
Build a Strong Startup Team
Building the right team is one of the hardest and most important parts of starting a venture. Here's practical advice on what founders should keep in mind when it comes to co-founders, teammates, and equity.
Getting Started
Come Up with a Startup Idea
Startup ideas aren’t born — they’re built. They begin when you pay attention to what the world is asking for, not just what you want to create.
Marketing + PR
Develop a PR Strategy for Your Startup
An important part of starting and growing your venture is getting the word out about who you are and what you’re building.
Customer Discovery + MVP
Find Product-Market Fit
Leave your opinions behind and get into the market to learn what the high-value customer problems are and how your product solves them — so you can build what your customers truly need.
Donations
Find Your Donors
Fundraising is both an art and a science, especially when it comes to donor research. Knowing how to identify potential funders and build relationships is critical for any social impact startup.
Entrepreneurship Essentials
First-Time Founder Mistakes
12 common mistakes first-time founders make—and how to avoid them.
Nonprofit
Form and Manage a Nonprofit Board
Learn the best practices for forming and managing your nonprofit board. Discover guidelines for what good board composition looks like and templates for how to have effective board discussions and engagement.
Fundraising
Fundraise From Angel Investors
When diving into the world of fundraising, particularly from angel investors, startup founders must approach the process with both strategy and preparation.
Donations
Fundraise From Foundations
Learn how to develop your list of prospect foundations, the basic template answers you need, what data to collect early on, how to navigate restricted vision, and how this process changes as your venture grows.
Donations
Fundraise from High-Net-Worth Individuals
Here are the basics for how to fundraise for major gifts from people who have the capacity to give big dollars.
Donations
Fundraise From Your Community
Here are the basics of how to fundraise from middle to upper-income donors. This guide will get you ready to approach the networks you already have to raise money for your organization.
Getting Started
Get Started with the Harvard Innovation Labs
Building a startup at Harvard Innovation Labs is an exciting journey filled with opportunities to transform ideas into impact. Whether you’re just starting out or scaling a venture, here are key insights to help you navigate this path successfully!
Sales
Get Your First Customer
Learn how to validate demand for your B2B product, build an MVP, and create happy customers.
Getting Started
Get Your Venture Started
Have an idea for a venture, but not quite sure where to start? Here's a guide to getting things off the ground.
Pitching
Incorporate Storytelling Into Your Pitch
Pitching isn’t just about a PowerPoint deck. It is about understanding and communicating your business elements, your story, and vision effectively.
Healthcare and Life Sciences
Innovate in Medicaid and Medicare
Key Insights for Innovators from the Harvard Payer Roundtable
Getting Started
Make the Most of i-lab Membership (Explore)
For Explore members, learn how to tap into key i-lab resources like office hours, workshops, and more.
Getting Started
Make the Most of i-lab Membership (Test/Propel)
For ventures in the Test or Propel stages of i-lab membership, learn how to tap into key i-lab resources like co-working space, expert office hours, staff advising, mentorship, funding, and more.
Customer Discovery + MVP
Master Customer Discovery
Understanding your customers' needs and pain points is not just a preliminary step—it's an ongoing process that can determine the success or failure of your venture.
Getting Started
Meet Co-Founders or Join a Team
Five key ways to meet cofounders or join an existing team using the resources at Harvard Innovation Labs.
Entrepreneurship Essentials
Pivot Your Idea or Venture
A panel of i-lab alumni help you consider when to pivot, when to move on, and when to leave a job or school to go all-in on your venture idea.
Guide
Put Forth a Strong Application for the President's Innovation Challenge
The Harvard President's Innovation Challenge is a unique opportunity for student founders to get valuable advice, feedback, and funding to advance their ventures. But first you have to apply. Here's how to put your best foot forward.
Selling to Schools
Sell Your Education Venture to Schools
Have a wonderful tool or program that schools should be using? Ever wonder how to get it into the hands of kids? We’ll discuss strategies for selling into schools, how to approach it, and what techniques can make you successful.
Marketing + PR
Share Your Startup's Milestones Like a Pro
A step-by-step guide to sharing awards, funding, and other achievements across platforms.
Entrepreneurship Essentials
Startup Myths to Leave Behind in 2025
In a Harvard Innovation Labs podcast episode, Phil Green, senior advisor for B2B and tech, shares which startup myths are still holding founders back in 2025, and what to do instead.
Customer Discovery + MVP
Validate Customer Demand
How well do you understand your customers? Learn how to identify your customers’ biggest pain points, determine the size of your market, and prioritize which customer segment to target first.
Customer Discovery + MVP
Vibe Coding: How Founders Can Build Fast, Test Smart
No-code apps give founders the power to prototype, test, and iterate quickly without heavy upfront costs.