NUS commits S$150 million to a venture capital program for deep tech startups

The National University of Singapore (NUS) announced on July 22, 2025 that it is committing S$150 million, about US$116 million, to a new Venture Capital Programme run through NUS Enterprise, its entrepreneurial arm. The program targets early-stage deep tech startups in the university's ecosystem.

The commitment has two parts. NUS will invest S$50 million over three years in selected venture capital firms with a record in early-stage deep tech. A further S$100 million is set aside for co-investment alongside those partners in NUS-affiliated startups, including companies emerging from the National Graduate Research Innovation Programme (National GRIP). Granite Asia and the life sciences investor 4BIO Capital were named as venture capital partners.

National GRIP helps turn laboratory research into companies and provides up to S$250,000 in seed funding per startup; the new program is intended to support ventures after that stage as they scale commercially. NUS said research-based startups face longer development cycles than conventional startups, which leaves them exposed when investors are cautious. The release cited figures showing venture capital investment in Asia at a ten-year low of S$85 billion in 2024, with early-stage funding below S$38 billion. NUS described the program as the first of its kind in Asia.