Military Founders Lab (formerly Bunker Labs Veterans in Residence)
Generalist & Demographic · Run by D'Aniello Institute for Veterans and Military Families (IVMF), Syracuse University · Syracuse, NY
Every field is checked against a primary source where we can. How we verify.
The facts
All fields verified Jul 22, 2026- Terms model
- Equity-freeProvides support with no cash invested and no equity taken.
- Investment
- Not publishedFree, no fees, no equity, and no direct investment (education/mentorship program), so amounts are null by design. Bunker Labs was acquired by IVMF in January 2024 and its programming continues under IVMF. Fully virtual, 10 weeks, 5-8 hrs/week. 2026 cohorts: 26A Jan 26-Apr 5, 26B Apr 20-Jul 5, 26C Sep 14-Nov 22. next_deadline null because the exact application close date for cohort 26C was not published on the fetched page.
- Equity taken
- Not publishedFree, no fees, no equity, and no direct investment (education/mentorship program), so amounts are null by design. Bunker Labs was acquired by IVMF in January 2024 and its programming continues under IVMF. Fully virtual, 10 weeks, 5-8 hrs/week. 2026 cohorts: 26A Jan 26-Apr 5, 26B Apr 20-Jul 5, 26C Sep 14-Nov 22. next_deadline null because the exact application close date for cohort 26C was not published on the fetched page.
- Program length
- 10 weeks
- Format
- Remote
- Location
- Syracuse, NY
- Cohorts per year
- 3
- Cohort size
- Not published
- Stage focus
- early stage (6+ months operating; under $250K revenue or capital-backed pre-revenue)
- Sub-vertical
- veteran/military-connected founder incubator with 8 tracks (Women, Black, Latinx, AAPI/NI, Seed Stage, Startup Stage, Construction Skilled Trades, Non Profit)
- Demographic focus
- veterans, active-duty, guard/reserve, and military spouses/family
- Backers
- PwC Foundation, Home Depot Foundation, Bank of America, Macy's, Travelers, Truist, GM
- Notable alumni
- Not published
Terms notes: Free, no fees, no equity, and no direct investment (education/mentorship program), so amounts are null by design. Bunker Labs was acquired by IVMF in January 2024 and its programming continues under IVMF. Fully virtual, 10 weeks, 5-8 hrs/week. 2026 cohorts: 26A Jan 26-Apr 5, 26B Apr 20-Jul 5, 26C Sep 14-Nov 22. next_deadline null because the exact application close date for cohort 26C was not published on the fetched page.
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Terms in plain English
Military Founders Lab is a free 10 week virtual program from Syracuse University's IVMF, with no fees, no equity taken, and no direct investment. Participants get a weekly speaker series, track specific office hours called Founders Exchange, and structured coursework at roughly 5 to 8 hours per week. Specialized tracks include Women Founders, Black Founders, Latinx Founders, and AAPI and Native founders. Application deadlines, including the close date for the 26C cohort, are not published on the IVMF site.
Who this is actually for
Military connected founders, meaning active duty, veterans, guard and reserve members, and military and veteran spouses, life partners, adult dependents, and caregivers with documentation of honorable service. Eligibility requires a registered business with at least six months of active work and either under $250K in annual revenue or capital investment funding.
Application windows
26C cohort, runs Sep 14 to Nov 22, 2026; application close date not published by IVMF: Timing expected, exact dates not yet confirmed.
Verified date not recorded
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Sources
Everything above was checked against these, verified Jul 22, 2026.
- https://ivmf.syracuse.edu/programs/entrepreneurship/bunker-labs/veterans-in-residence/
- https://ivmf.syracuse.edu/2024/01/10/daniello-institute-for-veterans-and-military-families-announces-acquisition-of-bunker-labs/
- https://ivmf.syracuse.edu/programs/entrepreneurship/start-up/military-founders-lab/
- https://ivmfsyr.formtitan.com/ftproject/militaryfounderslab