Moore Inventor Fellowship

_“50 inventors to shape the next 50 years.”_

The Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation is pleased to announce the ninth competition for the Moore Inventor Fellows program. The foundation seeks to identify outstanding inventors and innovators who harness science and technology to enhance the conduct of scientific research, strengthen environmental conservation, or improve the experience and outcomes of patient care.

The Moore Inventor Fellows fellowship focuses on supporting scientist-inventors at a critical prototyping stage to capture opportunities that otherwise might be missed. We seek to provide freedom and support to promising inventors with the most compelling ideas to pursue creative and disruptive innovations.

Program Overview

Gordon Moore’s contribution to the development of microelectronics helped produce the exponential growth of the digital revolution. In the spirit of Dr. Moore’s passion for science and penchant for inventing, the foundation seeks to support people who create new tools, technologies, processes, or approaches with a high potential to accelerate progress in the foundation’s three main areas of interest: scientific research, environmental conservation, and patient care.

The foundation will provide nearly $34 million through 2026 to support 50 Moore Inventor Fellows. The fellowship focuses on early-career staff at select research universities, medical schools and selected non-academic environmental research and patient care institutions. Each eligible institution may nominate two people.

Who and What We Seek to Fund

Candidates must be faculty, research scientists, postdocs or other full-time staff who can receive funding through their institutions. Candidates must be no more than 10 years past receiving the terminal advanced degree in their field (M.S., Ph.D. or M.D. received on or after 2014). Please see the Moore Inventor Fellows FAQs for more information.

The scope of this call is intentionally wide: proposed projects do not need to fall within our current funding priorities but should be broadly within the program areas of foundation interest (science, environmental conservation and patient care).

Funding

Each fellow will receive $200,000 per year from the foundation for three years. In addition, the foundation will provide the host institution with $25,000 each year to cover costs associated with administering the grant, resulting in a total three-year award of $675,000. Each host institution will be required to contribute $50,000 in annual direct support of the inventor’s work. This can be “in kind” as released time or access to special facilities for which there is normally a charge.

Eligibility

_ You can learn more about this opportunity by visiting the funder's [website]().

Application Details

“50 inventors to shape the next 50 years.”
The Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation is pleased to announce the tenth competition for the
Moore Inventor Fellows program. The foundation seeks to identify outstanding inventors and
innovators who harness science and technology to enhance the conduct of scientific
research, strengthen environmental conservation, or improve the experience and outcomes
of patient care.
The Moore Inventor Fellows fellowship focuses on supporting scientist-inventors at a critical
prototyping stage to capture opportunities that otherwise might be missed. We seek to
provide freedom and support to promising inventors with the most compelling ideas to
pursue creative and disruptive innovations.
Program overview
Gordon Moore’s contribution to the development of microelectronics helped produce the
exponential growth of the digital revolution. In the spirit of Dr. Moore’s passion for science
and penchant for inventing, the foundation seeks to support people who create new tools,
technologies, processes, or approaches with a high potential to accelerate progress in the
foundation’s three main areas of interest: scientific research, environmental conservation,
and patient care.
The foundation will provide nearly $34 million through 2026 to support 50 Moore Inventor
Fellows. The fellowship focuses on early-career staff at select research universities, medical
schools and selected non-academic environmental research and patient care institutions.
Each eligible institution may nominate two people.
Each fellow will receive $200,000 per year from the foundation for three years. In addition, the
foundation will provide the host institution with $25,000 each year to cover costs associated
with administering the grant, resulting in a total three-year award of $675,000. Each host
institution will be required to contribute $50,000 in annual direct support of the inventor’s
work. This can be “in kind” as released time or access to special facilities for which there is
normally a charge.
Page | 1

invention. Fellows may use the grant funds to support their own salary to create this
opportunity. They may also hire research personnel and purchase services, equipment, or
supplies.
Who and what we seek to fund
Candidates must be faculty, research scientists, postdocs or other full-time staff who can
receive funding through their institutions. Candidates must be no more than 10 years past
receiving the terminal advanced degree in their field (M.S., Ph.D. or M.D. received on or after
2015). Please see the Moore Inventor Fellows FAQ for more information regarding candidate
eligibility and exceptions.
The scope of this call is intentionally wide: proposed projects do not need to fall within our
current funding priorities but should be broadly within the program areas of foundation
interest (science, environmental conservation and patient care). Patient care inventions
solutions that improve clinical diagnosis.
invention or advance an existing prototype that tackles an important problem. We seek
innovations that promise to make a long-lasting and meaningful impact by addressing
underlying problems in their field, but a clear path toward commercialization is not a
requirement. For this opportunity we are not interested in supporting fundamental research
projects or projects already at a stage where significant venture capital is available. As with
all our grants, we seek to measure progress toward a defined goal during the three years of
support. The foundation’s policy is that intellectual property that results from a grant must
be managed and disseminated in a manner that leads to the greatest impact. Each award will
include IP terms to reflect the needs of that project.
We recognize real invention can take surprising turns, so we seek creative individuals who
have big ideas, deep knowledge, and the courage to take smart risks.
and innovators come from a diversity of backgrounds, disciplines and experiences and seek
creative individuals across a broad array of academic programs and research institutions.
Examples of such programs include but are not limited to environmental science and
Page | 2

conservation, remote sensing, biology, oceanography, engineering, physics, chemistry,
materials science, neuroscience, and public health.
Nomination procedure
We are sending letters of invitation letter to the presidents, chief research officers and other
officials, and past points of contact of invited institutions. Each eligible institution can submit
two nominations for consideration.
Eligible institutions should designate a point of contact who is authorized to submit the
nominations and candidate applications. Please submit the point of contact form with the
name and information for the designated contact person to receive access to the application
portal and updates about the 2025 Program.
Institutions may submit up to two nominations with the elements described below.
For more detailed information please read the Moore Inventor Fellow FAQ located on
moore.org. If you seek more clarity, please reach out to the Moore Inventor Fellows team at
inventors@moore.org.
Nomination and application requirements
All documents should follow a single spaced, 1-inch margin and 12-point font format. Please
submit all documents as PDFs only.
Using the guidelines below, it is at your discretion of how you would like to present the
content. Figures are allowed but count toward the page limits. Please strictly adhere to page
limits.

• Name of candidate, brief description of invention, keywords describing invention.
• Name of nominating institution, department, and contact information.
• Institutional Statement of Support.

The nominating institution is required to commit to ensuring the nominee
is able to spend at least 25% of their time on their invention and will receive
1 Please submit the nomination form and the completed application through the SurveyMonkey Apply Portal.
Page | 3

$50,000 per year in direct support to the inventor’s work. The point of
contact should check the related box in the nomination form located in the
Survey Monkey Apply portal.

• Statement of invention (2-page limit, including citations):
• The first paragraph should clearly, and without jargon, describe the
• o
• invention, the problem it seeks to address and its potential impact.
• The statement of invention should also include the following information:
• o
•  Description of invention, stage of invention, feasibility, and current
• funding
•  Importance to the foundation’s areas of interest (science,
• environmental conservation and patient care), potential impact,
• risks, and approach to measuring success and progress over the 3-
• year fellowship.
• • Please describe any technical risks that might lower chances
• of success and what you will do mitigate these risks. For
• example, “If A doesn't work, we'll do B.”
• • Curriculum Vitae (2-page limit):
• Educational and professional background.
• o
• Key accomplishments, honors and demonstrated areas of expert
• o
• knowledge.
• Other background information relevant to this invention.
• o
• • Budget narrative that outlines how grant funds will be used (1-page limit)
• The budget overview does not need to be overly detailed as the
• o
• Foundation’s detailed budget template will be provided to the selected
• fellow when we internally process the awards in the spring, after the cohort
• is selected in May 2025.
• • Letters of Reference (2-page limit per letter)
• The letter of reference(s) should evaluate the applicant's promise and the
• o
• invention.
• It is your discretion to choose a recommender, noting that one letter
• o
• should be from an individual within the nominating institution and one
• from another institution.
• Page | 4

Selection process
The selection process has two stages. In the first, each submission will be reviewed by
foundation staff with advice from external reviewers. Applications will be selected in line with
the goals of the Moore Inventor Fellows program and random selection may be used in tie
break situations.
In the second stage, ten finalists will be invited to virtually present to a panel of advisors on
the importance, plausibility, status, and possible impact of their proposed line of work (more
information about presentation criteria will be included closer to Finalist Day). After these
presentations, the advisory panel and foundation staff will make recommendations to the
foundation president for the 2025 fellowships. Non-selected finalists will receive a
consolation contribution of $25,000 to directly support their work.
Please see below for a detailed timeline of the selection process.
Details of the proposed invention will be held confidential, and members of the external
reviewer cohort and advisory committee will sign nondisclosure agreements before
reviewing any applicant materials. The foundation will collaborate with selected fellows and
their host institutions on agreeable language to be shared in announcements of the award
winners.
Applicants will be considered solely on their merits and awards will be made regardless of
age, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, race, national origin, religion, or disability.
Evaluation criteria
In the first round, the following questions are used to evaluate each application:

• • Rate the candidate’s capabilities as an inventor.
• • Rate the potential of the proposed invention to make a difference in the foundation’s
• areas of interest: scientific discovery, environmental conservation, and/or patient
• care.
• • Rate the potential for measurable progress within a 3-year period.
• In the second round, the following questions are used to evaluate each application:
• Page | 5
• Rate the candidate’s capabilities as an inventor.
• Rate the potential impact of the proposed project.
• Rate the plausibility of the invention to achieve its stated impact.
• Rate the potential for measurable progress within a 3-year period.
• Rate the overall application, considering both the inventor and invention.

September 18, 2024 2025 Program Announced
October 10, 2024 Virtual Q&A with the Moore Inventor Fellows team
Eligible Institutions
Albert Einstein College of Medicine Boston University Medical Campus
American Museum of Natural History Brown University
Arizona State University, Tempe California Academy of Sciences
Baystate Medical Center Case Western Reserve University
Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center Children’s Hospital of Los Angeles
Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences Children's Hospital of Philadelphia

Cleveland Clinic Georgetown University
Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Georgia Institute of Technology
Delaware State University Island Conservation
Desert Research Institute J Craig Venter Institute, Inc.
Environmental Defense Fund Kansas State University
FAU Harbor Branch Oceanographic Louisiana State University and Agricultural
Institute & Mechanical College
Field Museum of Natural History Marine Biological Laboratory
FlipLabs / Future of Fish (Impact Assets) Massachusetts General Hospital
Florida Agricultural and Mechanical Massachusetts Institute of Technology
University Mayo Clinic
Florida Institute of Technology Medical College of Wisconsin
Florida International University Medical University of South Carolina
Fordham University Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center
Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center Michigan State University
Page | 7

Monterey Bay Aquarium Foundation Scripps Institution of Oceanography
Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute Smithsonian Institution
National Aquarium Stanford University
National Geographic Society Stroud Water Research Center Inc.
New England Aquarium SUNY, University at Albany
New Jersey Institute of Technology SUNY, University at Buffalo
New York University Temple University
New York University Grossman School of Tennessee State University
Medicine Texas A&M University
North Carolina A&T State University Texas A&M University, Corpus Christi
North Carolina State University at Raleigh Texas Christian University
Northwell Health Texas Tech University
Northwestern University The Botanical Research Institute of Texas
Oklahoma State University Institute)
Oregon Health and Science University The National Center for Genome Resources
Oregon State University The Nature Conservancy
Penn State Health (Hershey Medical The Scripps Research Institute
Purdue University University of Alabama
Radiant Earth Foundation University of Alabama at Birmingham
Rocky Mountain Institute University of California, Davis
Rutgers, The State University of New University of California, Irvine
Jersey University of California, Los Angeles
Salk Institute for Biological Studies University of California, Merced
Page | 8

University of California, Riverside University of Minnesota, Twin Cities
University of California, San Diego University of Mississippi
University of California, San Francisco University of Missouri, Columbia
University of California, Santa Barbara University of Nebraska, Lincoln
University of California, Santa Cruz University of Nevada, Las Vegas
University of Cincinnati Campus
University of Colorado, Boulder University of New Mexico, Main Campus
University of Colorado, Denver University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
University of Idaho Campus
University of Illinois at Chicago University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine
University of Illinois at Urbana, Champaign University of Rochester
University of Iowa University of South Carolina, Columbia
University of Kansas University of South Florida, Main Campus
University of Maine University of Tennessee, Knoxville
University of Maryland, Baltimore (School University of Texas at Arlington
of Medicine) University of Texas at Austin
University of Maryland, College Park University of Texas at Dallas
University of Maryland, Eastern Shore University of Texas at El Paso
University of Massachusetts Medical University of Texas at San Antonio
University of Massachusetts, Amherst Center
University of Memphis University of Texas, Southwestern Medical

Moore Inventor Fellows | 2025 Application Guidelines
“50 inventors to shape the next 50 years.”
The Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation is pleased to announce the tenth competition for the
Moore Inventor Fellows program. The foundation seeks to identify outstanding inventors and
innovators who harness science and technology to enhance the conduct of scientific
research, strengthen environmental conservation, or improve the experience and outcomes
of patient care.
The Moore Inventor Fellows fellowship focuses on supporting scientist-inventors at a critical
prototyping stage to capture opportunities that otherwise might be missed. We seek to
provide freedom and support to promising inventors with the most compelling ideas to
pursue creative and disruptive innovations.
Program overview
Gordon Moore’s contribution to the development of microelectronics helped produce the
exponential growth of the digital revolution. In the spirit of Dr. Moore’s passion for science
and penchant for inventing, the foundation seeks to support people who create new tools,
technologies, processes, or approaches with a high potential to accelerate progress in the
foundation’s three main areas of interest: scientific research, environmental conservation,
and patient care.
The foundation will provide nearly $34 million through 2026 to support 50 Moore Inventor
Fellows. The fellowship focuses on early-career staff at select research universities, medical
schools and selected non-academic environmental research and patient care institutions.
Each eligible institution may nominate two people.
Each fellow will receive $200,000 per year from the foundation for three years.