Seed Fund
Lavin Entrepreneurship Center
Fall Application is open through Oct 31, 2025
dates subject to change.
The Lavin Entrepreneurship Center Seed Fund provides non-dilutive micro-funding to support SDSU startups actively building through the SDSU Zahn Innovation Platform (ZIP) Launchpad. Eligible student teams can apply for up to $5,000 total throughout their time in the ZIP Launchpad. To encourage thoughtful use of resources, we recommend requesting only what you need, when you need it—smaller, milestone-based funding requests are higher impact and provide more runway with the funding.
How It Works:
- Maximum funding per team: $5,000
- Teams are encouraged to apply in smaller increments aligned with key business milestones
- Each application must include:
- A clear explanation of how the funds help achieve your next business milestone
- An itemized budget with relevant links and supporting research (see template below)
Allowable Expenses:
- Tools, services, or materials that directly advance your startup
- Admission to a conference or networking event that will allow you to conduct customer research or connect with your beachhead market
- Subscription-based services (with limitations):
- Up to 3 months of subscription costs covered
- You must justify any ongoing costs after the initial period or explain why only 3 months are needed
Prohibited Expenses:
- Electronics (e.g., laptops, phones, tablets) – these become university property if purchased
If your team is selected for a presentation, please use the following:
If you are not sure where to start, here are some resources:
The Seed Fund is intended to provide nondilutive, micro funding to qualifying SDSU students to help advance their business.
- Identify a key milestone resulting in a funding gap, the milestone should be measurable and objective
- Identify the funding gap required expenses by item and dollar amount to achieve the milestone
- Attend office hours to ensure the funding request is supported by the Seed Fund
- Applicant may apply multiple times to the Seed Fund for a total of $5k. The intent of the fund is a series of smaller nondillutive, micro funding.
We intend to offer the Seed Fund once each semester depending on the availability of funds. If you are interested in making a donation to the Seed Fund, you can do so here: LINK. All donations are tax-deductible and gifts made before December 31, 2025 will be matched dollar-for-dollar by the Zahn family.
The Lavin Entrepreneurship Center Seed Fund is open to any current qualifying SDSU student who is currently participating in either the Lavin Entrepreneur Program or the Zahn Innovation Platform Launchpad.
To contribute to the Seed Fund, click on this LINK and select Seed Fund from the designation dropdown menu. All donations are fully tax-deductible and gifts made before December 31, 2025 will be matched dollar-for-dollar by the Zahn family.
Seed Fund Fall 2025 Winners
Congratulations to the Fall 2025 Seed Fund Winners!
Marnova
Amount Awarded: $1,705
Andrew Barrows
Foot Kinetics
Amount Awarded: $1,799
Sammie Bradley
Past Seed Fund Winners
- Redtrieve - $3,000
Jai Sharma
Sanchit Singh - Protocol Grip Trainer- $4,358
Wayne McClellan - Shira - $899
Eytan Gipi - Aquaponics- $2,435
Claudia Ylagan - DressCode- $1,718
Eddy Benton - UniExchange - $700
Sandy Basaka - Ashter Robotics - $606
Ash Ilaty
- Plethys - $2,150
- Kuvri - $3,500