Programs
Programs
Built for builders who start with a real problem.
Signal finds problems from orbit. You build the solution. No pitch decks required to start.
Ganges-Brahmaputra Delta, Bangladesh
Technology Gap
Flood Early Warning Systems
Signal Track
What Signal finds, you build.
Every brief starts with satellite evidence, not a founder's hunch. Signal has already identified the gap, mapped the affected community, and matched it to open funding pathways. Your job is to build the solution.
01 / Signal Track
Claim a brief. Ship a solution.
Cohort-basedSignal has already identified the problem, gathered the satellite evidence, and matched it to open funding pathways. Your job is to build the solution.
Teams that claim a brief are fast-tracked into cohort review, matched with a domain mentor, and given full access to Signal's data infrastructure and API. The technology approach is completely open: a sensor network, an ML pipeline, autonomous hardware, or new materials are all valid.
What matters: the solution is technically serious, addresses a real identified gap, and ships something tangible by the end of the cohort. No pitch deck required to start. Claim a brief and begin.
Evidence-First
Every problem begins with satellite data, not a founder's hunch.
Mentor Matching
Matched with a domain expert based on the technical approach of your solution.
Full Data Access
Complete access to Signal's infrastructure, APIs, and 15+ open satellite data sources.
Hardware
Physical systems, sensors, embedded engineering
Aerospace
Orbital, suborbital, UAV, propulsion
Climate Tech
Carbon capture, grid, energy storage
Physical AI
Robotics, autonomous systems, sensor fusion
02 / Open Deep Tech Track
If it ships atoms, it belongs here.
Hardware + AerospaceFor founders already working on something hard who do not need Signal to find their problem. This track accepts teams in hardware, aerospace, climate tech, materials science, robotics, and AI with a physical or scientific component.
The filter is simple: the work has to be physically hard and the team has to be building something real. No consumer apps, no social tools, no generic SaaS. If your hardest problem is growth, this is not the right track.
Start building before you apply.
No application required. Claim any open Signal brief, show up to monthly virtual workshops, and get access to mentor office hours and a community of teams working across similar problem domains.
Pathfinders is the on-ramp. Teams that make consistent progress get early access to new briefs and can fast-track into the next formal cohort without standard review. The expectation is momentum, not perfection.
Claim a Brief
No application. Browse open briefs and claim any that matches your interests and skills.
Monthly Workshops
Virtual sessions with researchers and mentors working across all active threads.
Fast-Track Access
Consistent momentum earns early access to new briefs and cohort review bypass.
03 / Pitch Competition
Where deep tech founders compete.
Caelus holds pitch competitions open to student founders working on deep tech, aerospace, and science-based ventures. One filter: the work has to be technically hard. Open to any age, any location.
Past competitions have drawn 200+ submissions globally, such as NovaSpark, with judges and mentors from leading research institutions, venture funds, and deep tech companies. Finalists receive direct feedback from practitioners and priority consideration for Signal Track or Open Deep Tech cohort placement.
Future competitions will focus on specific Signal thread domains, bringing together SAR researchers, multimodal AI builders, and edge hardware engineers for dedicated tracks with field-specific judging panels.
Global submissions
Competition stages
Judging panels
Cohort placement for finalists
Investment + Sponsorship
Tie your name to a real output.
Every investment is tied to a specific output, a research paper, a deployed solution, a running platform, not a general operating fund. Caelus does not take equity in student ventures. All terms are published publicly.
Research Thread
Direct funding toward a specific research thread: SAR, multimodal, or edge perception. Includes research credits, co-authorship consideration, and direct researcher access.
Signal Brief
Sponsor an individual brief with a prize pool that goes directly to the team that deploys the best solution for that community gap. Terms published with the brief.
Platform Support
Support Caelus infrastructure, cohort operations, and data platform with full visibility into how funds are deployed and what they produce.
The future of your idea starts here.
If you have seen a gap, in your community, your field, your research, Caelus can help you build the solution and connect you with the people who can make it real.