Congrats to Dualizer (FreeV SP26 batch) on launching in YC F26 🚀
They turn process diagrams + plant data into physics-based models engineers can simulate, calibrate & optimize, all checked by a real simulation stack, not an LLM.
Process engineers: [email protected]
Free Ventures is Berkeley's student-run pre-seed startup accelerator. We help Cal student founders go from ideas to funded companies for no equity.
Applications for our next batch/fellowship are due September 28th.
Apply now and build with us.
🔗 freeventures.org/apply
Congrats to @watneyrobotics on their $80M Series A, backed by @conviction, Valor and @HummingbirdVC 🚀
FreeV FA23 Batch → now running the largest fleet of dexterous robots in the US, helping hyperscalers build data centers faster.
Proud of Ryan, Sean, & the whole team 💜
Free Ventures retweeted
Can’t believe the work being done in universities actually see outsized outcomes like these!
If you are a @UCBerkeley student and are building, or interested in start ups, check out @FreeVentures
Free Ventures retweeted
We’ve raised $80 million in Series A funding, co-led by the Valor Atreides AI Fund and Hummingbird Ventures, with continued participation from Conviction, Abstract, A*, and Grant Gordon. This brings our total raised to over $100 million.
We started Watney by asking a simple question -- what can a robot enable in industries where the work remains valuable on an infinite horizon? We found an answer in the fundamental inputs to civilization: energy, matter, and intelligence.
A robot will never be as charming as a barista or as personable as a housekeeper, but it can be more exacting than a surgeon. And, a breakthrough in one quickly becomes the capability of millions. We don’t imitate human motions or processes. We care about the new, differentiated capabilities robots can unlock. We work on problems where our choice of embodiment gives us an order of magnitude advantage, whether through precision, reliability, or scale.
Compute is just beginning to transform society, but it’s constrained by execution. Since 2025, Watney has been serving the largest hyperscalers in the world, helping accelerate their compute rollout through an end-to-end deployment model.
Across hundreds of thousands of hours in customer facilities, our systems have achieved more than four nines of reliability. They’ve enabled our customers to build data centers faster, at larger scales, and with more ambitious architectures. Today, we operate the largest fleet of dexterous robots running 24/7/365 across the United States.
This is all to say, it's an exciting time at Watney. We’re all here because we want to see more ambition in the physical world. We are hiring across all domains. Join us.
TONIGHT 6 PM @ Grimes, GEC 304.
Free Ventures FA26 info session + founder mixer. Open to all Cal students, undergrad or grad.
Our entire last batch got into YC. We took 0% equity. Come hear how, then grill the team.
Apps due Sept 28 → freeventures.org/apply
🚀 Want to network with the best in the Cal startup ecosystem?
Join us for our Founder Mixer to meet founders, VCs, and students while learning about our batch and fellowship programs!
Register now: luma.com/tjpd88le?tk=ZTrezo
🚀 Want to break into Entrepreneurship & Venture Capital? The Free Ventures Fellowship is for undergrads seeking hands-on experience in the Cal startup ecosystem & beyond. No prior experience needed—just curiosity & ambition!
Apply before Feb 16: freeventures.org/fellowship !
🚀 Berkeley founders—Ready to take your startup from 0→1? Free Ventures' Spring 2026 Batch offers mentorship, top-tier curriculum & hands-on advisory to help you build, scale & raise capital.
Apply now: freeventures.org/apply
Deadline: Feb 16 @ 11:59 PM PST!
🚨Deadline extended!!! Applications for the Free Ventures Internal Team are now due Sunday, Nov 16th at 11:59pm. Join us to work hands-on with Berkeley founders, advise startups, and help shape the next wave of innovation. Apply at freeventures.org/apply !
🚨 Last call for Internal Team apps!
Become a Free Ventures Associate: work with Berkeley founders, advise startups, and build your own initiative.
Apps are due tomorrow at 11:59PM — apply at 🔗 tinyurl.com/freeventuresasso…
TOMORROW NIGHT
🚀Join us for an exclusive @Meta Superintelligence Fireside Chat with @NoahLeshan1024 - Special Projects at Meta Superintelligence Labs and former Chief of Staff at PlayAl (acquired)!
Thursday, Nov 13 | 6-7 PM
RSVP at luma.com/pwdwqa1p?tk=jxTt5e
Tomorrow!!! luma.com/pe4htwiv?tk=hPyM9U
🚀 Join us for a Fireside Chat with Shreya Shekhar, Partner @ Greylock and UC Berkeley M.E.T. alum!
📍 MLK BNorth 82D
🕔 Wed, Oct 29 | 5–6 PM
🚀 Free Ventures x Mercor: Women’s Panel + Mixer
Open to all female-identifying & non-binary Berkeley students in engineering & startups!
📍 Berkeley eHub | 🕢 Oct 27, 7:30 PM
✨ Panel + networking night — RSVP: luma.com/khbvz6wx
Free Ventures retweeted
Trae is coming to @UCBerkeley!
Join us for an exciting AI Hackathon hosted by @Trae_ai in collaboration with @AIEBerkeley and @FreeVentures.
Cohost with:
@pinai_io: Amazing A16Z-backed AI + Web3 startup from Stanford University building a personalized AI platform.
@novita_labs: A global provider of cloud infrastructure, LLM services, and GPU computing solutions.
📍 Location: UC Berkeley Campus
🗓 When: April 6, 9:00 AM – 6:30 PM
🎁 Perks: Every participant will receive $50 in LLM credits and a chance to win prizes worth thousands of dollars!
👉Event Link: lu.ma/76gy00z6
#trae #hackathon #UCBerkeley
🚀 Want to break into Entrepreneurship & Venture Capital?
The Free Ventures Fellowship is for undergrads seeking hands-on experience in the Cal startup ecosystem & beyond. No prior experience needed—just curiosity & ambition!
Apply now: freeventures.org/fellowship !
🚀 Berkeley founders—Ready to take your startup from 0→1?
Free Ventures' Spring 2025 Batch offers mentorship, top-tier curriculum & hands-on advisory to help you build, scale & raise capital.
Apply now: freeventures.org/apply
Deadline: Feb 17 @ 11:59 PM PST!
We're hosting this panel on how to scale a startup from 1 to 100 w/ @prak and @daveybloom on May 1st, 7-10pm in Berkeley! Sponsored by @thehousefund and in partnership with StudentPreneurs. Register here: lu.ma/freeV
📣 Calling Berkeley 🐻 students! Free Ventures' Internal Team applications are LIVE & due THIS MONDAY, April 8! Join the team running Cal's leading pre-seed startup accelerator 👇 freeventures.org/apply ❗
























