Ivory Innovations Invites Innovators across the Country to Showcase Solutions Addressing Housing Affordability through its Annual Ivory Prize

Nominations now open for organizations of all sizes advancing innovative, feasible and scalable solutions to improve housing affordability and accessibility in America

SALT LAKE CITY, Sept. 2, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Ivory Innovations, a nonprofit academic center based at the University of Utah David Eccles School of Business, today announced that nominations for the 2026 Ivory Prize for Housing Affordability are now open through Oct. 31, 2025. Now in its eighth year, the Ivory Prize recognizes ambitious, practical and scalable solutions that expand housing affordability and accessibility nationwide.

Innovators of all sizes - including startups, public entities and nonprofits - are encouraged to submit nominations at ivoryinnovations.org/ivory-prize-nominate. Both self-nominations and third-party nominations are welcome. Winners are awarded $300,000 in prize money across three focus areas: Construction & Design, Policy & Regulatory Reform and Finance. In addition to the monetary award, both winners and finalists also receive access to substantial operational support from Ivory Innovations' staff and national network of funders, strategic partners and peer innovators.

"The Ivory Prize shines a spotlight on groundbreaking solutions tackling America's housing crisis - many of which would otherwise fly under the radar," said Kimberly Burnett, Executive Director, Ivory Innovations. "Previous Ivory Prize winners have brought to market innovative solutions ranging from micro-factories that build houses faster, cheaper and more sustainably to historic policy reforms that streamline local zoning laws and offer tax exemptions to incentivize affordable and workforce housing. Each year, our innovators raise the bar. We expect this year's nominations to be our best yet."

Since its inception, the Ivory Prize has awarded more than $1.5 million to innovators nationwide. Ivory Prize winners are selected by Ivory Innovations' Advisory Board, which is comprised of housing experts from academia, government and the private sector.

In addition to the Ivory Prize, Ivory Innovations operates a suite of programs and activities focused on supporting its mission of catalyzing innovation in housing affordability:

• Hack-A-House: A 24-hour hackathon that encourages college and graduate students to formulate and pitch new approaches to overcoming America's housing crisis. Hack-A-House takes place virtually on Sept. 26, 2025. Registrations are currently open.
• Fieldworks: A housing innovation implementation program designed for innovators - builders, tech companies, materials startups and beyond - who are past the pilot stage and ready to gain market traction and demonstrate real-world impact. Through Fieldworks, innovators partner directly with Ivory Innovations to implement their solutions in a portion of Ivory's 1500+ unit affordable housing development pipeline.
• 2025 Ivory Prize Summit: The Ivory Prize Summit features winners and finalists from the Ivory Prize in Housing Affordability, bringing together entrepreneurs, public sector innovators, policymakers, researchers and industry practitioners to discuss the best ideas for housing innovation. The 2025 Ivory Prize Summit takes place on Oct. 29, 2025.

To submit a nomination or learn more about the 2026 Ivory Prize for Housing Affordability, visit ivoryinnovations.org/ivory-prize.

About Ivory Innovations
Ivory Innovations is an academic center based at the University of Utah dedicated to catalyzing innovation in housing affordability. The organization works with students, entrepreneurs and experts to source, support, and scale the most promising housing solutions nationwide. Ivory Innovations also puts innovation into practice through its foundation arm, which has more than 1,500 affordable housing units under development in Utah. To learn more, visit ivoryinnovations.org.

SOURCE Ivory Innovations