Open Call for Applications
Unlocking the Power of AI and Blockchain for Data Integrity and Trust
The UNICEF Venture Fund seeks to invest in Open Source, frontier technology solutions that can drive transformative change for children. We are offering up to US$100K in equity-free funding for early-stage, for-profit technology start-ups dedicated to improving the lives of children.
We’re particularly interested in startups working with artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning (ML), or blockchain technology. If your company is registered in one of UNICEF’s programme countries, has a viable working prototype, and is committed to Open Source licensing and practices, we’d like to hear from you!
Women-led startups, young founders, and founders from emerging markets are especially encouraged to apply.
What We’re Looking For
Our focus is on innovative tools and platforms that support youth in building resilience to misinformation and enhancing data integrity. UNICEF’s Venture Fund is closely watching trends in connectivity, data transparency, and the role of social media in spreading false information. Key focus areas include:
Area 1: Misinformation and Disinformation
Are you developing technology-driven tools or behavioural interventions that help young people identify and combat misinformation? We are particularly interested in approaches that address mis/disinformation in multiple languages and formats (e.g., audio, video, image) and encourage platforms accessible to persons with disabilities. Potential solutions may include:
- Game-based platforms or interventions that promote social and behavioural change to help identify misinformation.
- Tools to review information, identify mis/disinformation, and validate authentic information, such as software that can detect deepfakes in videos and images.
- Platform-agnostic tools using data science and AI to analyze and track the source and spread of false content.
- Interactive tools or games for children that teach fact-checking skills.
- Mechanisms to tag or watermark content at the source or during distribution to increase trust in it.
- Crowdsourcing tools that harness the power of social networks to collectively monitor and identify data inaccuracies.
- Blockchain tools that can eliminate the need for third-party audits in data collection or recording processes.
- Tools to audit non-transparent social media platforms to determine how effective they are at removing or labelling mis/disinformation.
- AI-enabled systems to manage misinformation in times of crisis and ensure the dissemination of accurate information.
Area 2: Data Generation, Collection, and Analysis
Are you using innovative methods to gather and validate large data sets, or creating new data sources through field collection, crowdsourcing, or social networks? Potential applications include:
- Secure, transparent data collection and management systems adhering to Open standards, anonymizing sensitive data, or leveraging privacy-enhancing technologies.
- Models that analyze large datasets and generate insights for decision-making and resource allocation.
- Methods to reduce emotional or cognitive bias in data collection.
- Tools for crowdsourced or social network-based data generation to track trends and conduct situational analyses.
- Systems that enhance transparency and accountability in data collection, management, analysis, and generation.
- Systems that aid in navigating existing resources and available information.
Area 3: Digital Trust
Are you leveraging existing and new technologies to build digital trust or to understand and mitigate digital risks for children? We are looking for new tools such as:
- Decentralized protocols for content ownership, attribution, and licensing using blockchain technology.
- ML/AI applications to monitor and model potential online risks to children, including those generated by AI systems.
- Blockchain or AI tools to ensure credible proof of humanity and secure “Know Your Customer” (KYC) processes.
- Tools that use digital footprints from sources like social media or mobility patterns to generate risk analyses or forecasts, triggering interventions before a crisis occurs.
- Tools that leverage blockchain to verify online content, for example by creating trusted collections of information verified by transparent sources.
- Systems that improve data provenance and auditability.
- Game-based educational tools and guidance for children to learn about the concepts of privacy, respect, and sharing content online.
Our goal is to identify pioneering companies leveraging AI, blockchain, or other frontier technologies to address these challenges through scalable, globally impactful solutions. We're open to solutions beyond the areas listed and are particularly interested in startups pushing boundaries and setting new standards. If your startup aligns with these criteria, we want to hear from you!
Why Focus on Data and Trust?
UNICEF’s Venture Fund is closely monitoring digital trends, particularly around connectivity, data integrity, and social media’s impact on misinformation. The Fund aims to invest in tools, platforms, and games that help youth identify misinformation and build media literacy.
We focus on the positive potential of technologies like AI, machine learning, and big data to validate information and develop solutions that enhance digital trust. We are also exploring blockchain to enhance data integrity and reduce intermediaries.
Digital technology has opened unprecedented opportunities for children and young people, providing access to information, culture, communication, and entertainment. However, these advantages also present new risks, especially around data integrity and misinformation. Online, children can be exposed to harms that traditional safety measures don’t address, as digital threats operate constantly.
As technology evolves, so will digital trust. This is why we are committed to investing in solutions that empower young people to navigate the digital world safely. We are looking for groundbreaking technologies that secure data collection, promote media literacy, and counter misinformation to build a safer online environment for children.
About the UNICEF Venture Fund
The UNICEF Venture Fund has been specifically designed to finance early-stage, Open Source technology that can benefit children. The core motivation of the Venture Fund is to identify “clusters” or portfolios of initiatives around emerging technology so that UNICEF can shape markets, learn about, and guide these technologies for children. Our investments target solutions in $100-billion industries focused on frontier technologies like blockchain, virtual and augmented reality, machine learning, and artificial intelligence.
Additional Resources
- Read more about the eligibility criteria and scoring: Request for Expressions of Interest (REOI)
- Previously funded projects: https://www.unicefventurefund.org/portfolio
- Read more about the Startup selection process
- What happens after you receive an investment: Portfolio Management Experience
- For any questions regarding the application process, please write to [email protected]
- The Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities defines living with a disability as having a long-term physical, mental, intellectual, or sensory impairment that – in interaction with the environment – hinders one’s participation in society on an equal basis with others.
