OCULLO · Criteria
The rules we decide by.
Every application is judged against the eleven rules below. Applications that miss one aren't reviewed, so they're worth five minutes before you start.
OC-00
Purpose
OCULLO has set aside USD 1,000,000 for people who have already designed and built space technology. Each cheque funds one defined next step. We're looking for engineers we'd want to work with for years, and we'd rather back them now than later.
OC-01
Eligible work
Hardware, software or a related system that exists today: spacecraft, launch vehicles and propulsion, communications, ground systems, Earth observation, and the equipment those missions depend on. Concepts become eligible once they run.
OC-02
Authorship
You designed the core and can explain it in detail. A supplier may manufacture your design. Resold products, white-label products, and anything that would only be built after funding are out.
OC-03
Instrument
Each cheque is USD 30,000–100,000 on a post-money SAFE at one fixed USD 1,500,000 cap. No company yet? It's a convertible grant on the same terms. Up to one third can be taken as flight credits. We don't lead priced rounds.
OC-04
Allocation
USD 1,000,000 across cohorts, backing 10 to 20 founders in total. Cohort 1 has 5 seats and closes on 11 December 2026. Later cohorts open as earlier ones are funded.
OC-05
Evidence
A photo of the work and a video of it running, as a file or a private link. No pitch deck needed, and a deck doesn't replace the video. A bench demo is enough when it's clear you built it.
OC-06
Review
A complete application gets an answer within 21 days: an invitation to talk, a no, or one request for missing evidence. The clock starts when the application is complete.
OC-07
Confidentiality
You keep all intellectual property. We use your materials only to decide on your application. We don't publish them or use them to train AI models. We never name a company we haven't funded, and we name funded companies only with the founder's written agreement. Don't send export-controlled technical data; a video is enough.
OC-08
Terms
One standard document, the same for everyone. You keep control: no board seat, no veto, and it isn't a job offer. We ask for pro-rata, a right to bid if you sell, first chance to fly your hardware, and a short quarterly update. Money moves only after both sides sign.
OC-09
Outside the mandate
Resale businesses, rebranded third-party products, token offerings, deck-only proposals, teams that can't say who designed the core, and consumer products that aren't space systems.
OC-10
Use of proceeds
Name the next technical step the money pays for: a design revision, an environmental test, a flight, an IP filing, or paid time for the person who built the work. Conference travel isn't funded.