SCET and AWS partnership launching Dreamer Package; $1000 in free stackable, non-dilutive, credits for student founders

 

February 4, 2023

 

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The Sutardja Center for Entrepreneurship & Technology at UC Berkeley is partnering with Amazon AWS to bring the Dreamer Package through the  AWS Activate program to SCET students. This special package will allow new companies a runway to validate and grow their company. Students can now receive $1000 in free AWS Activate credits, which for the first time are stackable and non-dilutive, meaning the credits can be used for your startup, regardless of any prior credit history with AWS. Additionally, these credits will not count against the $100,000 lifetime credit limit for companies.

Founders using the Dreamer package will have access to the entrepreneurs on the AWS Startup mentorbusiness development team – 50 founders from myriad market verticals with successful exits. Any founder using these credits will be able to meet with the Amazon AWS team of founders who have built and sold companies on AWS via exclusive office hours. Founders can discuss go-to-market strategy, product, fundraising, and technical questions with the AWS team. 

For more information about the program, we asked AWS program lead Michael Greenberg – this is what he had to say!

What is the Program?

The AWS Activate program was created to help founders at every step of their journey, from free cloud computing credits to offset any early-stage building costs to mentorship from startup founders within AWS. Student founders can take advantage of this opportunity by going to an official AWS Activate Partner Program within their campus Ecosystem.

Why AWS?

AWS believes that by betting on the founders of today with this major early-stage investment of credits, technical support, and business mentorship, they will be able to serve the great companies of tomorrow. AWS is the leading cloud service provider for start-ups and has always believed that it’s success would be tied to the visionaries that create with it.

Students have used AWS to create multiple platforms and innovations. AWS is a happy long-term supporter of start-ups in the UC Berkeley Ecosystem. Dozens of start-ups within our campus partner cohorts each year leverage the AWS Activate program to launch their companies. Many of these start-ups become the great tech companies of tomorrow. 

What types of upcoming ventures are you excited about?

Because my background is in physics, I am always excited about supporting start-ups leveraging AI/ML in an interdisciplinary way to disrupt the status quo in different fields. Specifically, I am seeing incredible ideas around rapidly simulating experiments that would normally take years in a matter of days with machine learning. This may change the way breakthroughs take place in drug discovery, genomics, and synthetic biology. Additionally, I am excited to see the new business models that are developed in concert with AI-powered content creation.

Who can sign up for the program and how to apply for credits?

The program is open to all Berkeley students – To join the program…


Have any questions? Contact Jennifer Nice at jennifernice@berkeley.edu.