MassCEC Catalyst & DICES Grants


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About

MassVentures co-manages this grant program with the MassCEC.

Catalyst provides up to seven (7) grants of up to $75,000 to researchers and early-stage companies looking to demonstrate initial prototypes of their clean energy technologies.

Diversity in Cleantech Early Stage (DICES), in parallel with Catalyst, awards three (3) additional grants of up to $75,000 each for projects led by eligible (certified or certifiable) women-owned or minority-owned early-stage companies.

The program is designed to demonstrate the feasibility of transforming new ideas from the research stage into commercially viable technologies that attract industry and investor interest. All awardees gain access to a vast network of partners, expert local market and policy insights, and mentoring from MassCEC and MassVentures, while all finalists receive complimentary pitch coaching and business mentoring.

Who's Eligible?

Catalyst and DICES are for technologies that are at Technology Readiness Level (TRL) 2-4, according to the TRL Calculator developed by the New York State Energy Research & Development Authority.

Eligible applicants include principal investigators at all Massachusetts-based research institutions or Massachusetts-based early-stage clean energy companies.  

For DICES, applicants must also verify that they are eligible as a woman- or minority-owned startup. More information about this process can be found in Section V of the Catalyst and DICES Request For Proposals (RFP).

Key Dates

January 14, 2026 - Application period opens

January 28, 2026 - Optional webinar 12:00PM (Register)

February 23, 2026 - Deadline to submit questions

February 26, 2026 - MassCEC to post responses to questions

March 13, 2026 - Applications due by 11:59PM

Late April 2026 - Applicants notified of finalist status

Week of May 18, 2026 - Finalists' presentations

Late June 2026 - Finalists notified of award status

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More Information

Read about past Catalyst grantees.

Visit MassCEC Catalyst and DICES.

Email us at companycatalyst@masscec.com.

Testimonials

What people are saying…

“

We are profoundly grateful to MassVentures and their exceptional leadership team for their support. The funding provided through the MassCEC’s Catalyst and DICES programs is instrumental in advancing the scale-up prototyping of our cutting-edge technology, enabling us to bring our vision to fruition.”

Amelia Thomas

CEO, River Otter Renewables

“

We are profoundly grateful to MassVentures and their exceptional leadership team for their support. The funding provided through the MassCEC’s Catalyst and DICES programs is instrumental in advancing the scale-up prototyping of our cutting-edge technology, enabling us to bring our vision to fruition.”

Amelia Thomas

CEO, River Otter Renewables

“

We are profoundly grateful to MassVentures and their exceptional leadership team for their support. The funding provided through the MassCEC’s Catalyst and DICES programs is instrumental in advancing the scale-up prototyping of our cutting-edge technology, enabling us to bring our vision to fruition.”

Amelia Thomas

CEO, River Otter Renewables

“

The Catalyst award was pivotal in helping us refine our focus, advance the technology, and lay the groundwork for impactful real-world applications. This journey ultimately led us to spin out Drosera Bio from the Doyle lab at MIT.”

Arjav Shah

Cofounder & CEO, Drosera Bio

“

The Catalyst award was pivotal in helping us refine our focus, advance the technology, and lay the groundwork for impactful real-world applications. This journey ultimately led us to spin out Drosera Bio from the Doyle lab at MIT.”

Arjav Shah

Cofounder & CEO, Drosera Bio

“

The Catalyst award was pivotal in helping us refine our focus, advance the technology, and lay the groundwork for impactful real-world applications. This journey ultimately led us to spin out Drosera Bio from the Doyle lab at MIT.”

Arjav Shah

Cofounder & CEO, Drosera Bio

“

We really appreciate the support from MassVentures and MassCEC in our development. Not only has the DICES program been beneficial, but the MassVentures team also helped us engage with different programs like MassChallenge, which is very helpful for connecting with various startups to form a supportive group. We are deeply grateful for the support from both organizations. Priya and Vinit's insights have been invaluable. We cannot express our gratitude enough. Thank you all for offering these amazing programs.”

Aone Wang

Cofounder & CEO, Loop CO2

“

We really appreciate the support from MassVentures and MassCEC in our development. Not only has the DICES program been beneficial, but the MassVentures team also helped us engage with different programs like MassChallenge, which is very helpful for connecting with various startups to form a supportive group. We are deeply grateful for the support from both organizations. Priya and Vinit's insights have been invaluable. We cannot express our gratitude enough. Thank you all for offering these amazing programs.”

Aone Wang

Cofounder & CEO, Loop CO2

“

We really appreciate the support from MassVentures and MassCEC in our development. Not only has the DICES program been beneficial, but the MassVentures team also helped us engage with different programs like MassChallenge, which is very helpful for connecting with various startups to form a supportive group. We are deeply grateful for the support from both organizations. Priya and Vinit's insights have been invaluable. We cannot express our gratitude enough. Thank you all for offering these amazing programs.”

Aone Wang

Cofounder & CEO, Loop CO2

“

We cannot overstate how critical funding from the Catalyst program has been for our technological development. Going into this program, we were too early and our system too small to warrant any serious market consideration. Thanks to Catalyst funding, we have been able to improve our technology and scale it to the point where we are going to pilot our system with a paying customer. We have also been able to hit key milestones that have made our system much more commercially ready while making the company more suitable for investment. We could not have made this progress without Catalyst funding.”

David Brown

Cofounder & COO, Helix Carbon

“

We cannot overstate how critical funding from the Catalyst program has been for our technological development. Going into this program, we were too early and our system too small to warrant any serious market consideration. Thanks to Catalyst funding, we have been able to improve our technology and scale it to the point where we are going to pilot our system with a paying customer. We have also been able to hit key milestones that have made our system much more commercially ready while making the company more suitable for investment. We could not have made this progress without Catalyst funding.”

David Brown

Cofounder & COO, Helix Carbon

“

We cannot overstate how critical funding from the Catalyst program has been for our technological development. Going into this program, we were too early and our system too small to warrant any serious market consideration. Thanks to Catalyst funding, we have been able to improve our technology and scale it to the point where we are going to pilot our system with a paying customer. We have also been able to hit key milestones that have made our system much more commercially ready while making the company more suitable for investment. We could not have made this progress without Catalyst funding.”

David Brown

Cofounder & COO, Helix Carbon

Team Massachusetts is excited to connect you with the latest and most relevant resources available for businesses. We’re here to support you every step of the way as your company grows. Through the Business Front Door, we can make your business journey in Massachusetts a successful one. Learn more at www.mass.gov/business-front-door.

Team Massachusetts is excited to connect you with the latest and most relevant resources available for businesses. We’re here to support you every step of the way as your company grows. Through the Business Front Door, we can make your business journey in Massachusetts a successful one. Learn more at www.mass.gov/business-front-door.

Team Massachusetts is excited to connect you with the latest and most relevant resources available for businesses. We’re here to support you every step of the way as your company grows. Through the Business Front Door, we can make your business journey in Massachusetts a successful one. Learn more at www.mass.gov/business-front-door.

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Fuel your innovation journey! Stay connected.

Join the MassVentures newsletter to receive insights, funding opportunities, portfolio news and founder resources in your inbox monthly.

Join our mailing List

Fuel your innovation journey! Stay connected.

Join the MassVentures newsletter to receive insights, funding opportunities, portfolio news and founder resources in your inbox monthly.