LabCentral Launches Five Ignite Golden Tickets

$250,000 of Ignite Golden Tickets will provide opportunities for early-stage biotech founders to leverage LabCentral's lab space, shared resources and community 

CAMBRIDGE, Mass., July 31, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- LabCentral, the premier Massachusetts-based network of coworking labs designed to accelerate high-potential biotech startups, today launched its fifth annual Ignite Golden Ticket contest, which will award five tickets totaling $250,000 in value.

Winners of the Ignite Golden Tickets receive a $50,000 credit towards space available at LabCentral's flagship site in Kendall Square, along with a one-year fellowship program designed to help them access resources and supercharge their networks. As LabCentral residents, winning entrepreneurs will have access to cutting-edge laboratory infrastructure, exceptional operational support and shared services, and a dynamic life sciences community.  

This year, the five Ignite Golden Tickets will be awarded to entrepreneurs who need access to resources and expanded networks to advance their breakthrough science.

Applications for this year's contest are now officially open, and the deadline to apply is August 24, 2025. As with all LabCentral Golden Tickets, candidates will be evaluated based on the quality and potential impact of their science, along with other standard selection criteria. A select number of finalists will receive access to coaching and an invitation to present at a pitch event on November 6, 2025, where the five Ignite Golden Tickets will be awarded. To learn more and apply, visit https://www.labcentral.org/startup-support/ignite-golden-tickets.

"Supporting early-stage companies is the foundation of what we and our partners do at LabCentral, and Ignite Golden Tickets represent a truly special opportunity," said Maggie O'Toole, CEO of LabCentral. "In partnership with our generous sponsors - Bayer, Lilly, Pfizer, and Takeda – these awards provide vital runway and resources that enable recipients to advance their novel, life-changing science while gaining access to tremendous resources, as well."

"Takeda is excited to, once again, be a sponsor of the Ignite Golden Ticket contest," said Alison Handley, Head of Center for External Innovation for Takeda "We are proud to be part of the LabCentral community, championing emerging life sciences companies and bolstering the innovation economy in Massachusetts."

About LabCentral 
A private, non-profit institution, LabCentral is a launchpad for high-potential life-sciences and biotech start-ups with 243,000 square feet of space across Kendall Square in Cambridge, Mass., and the Harvard University campus. Founded in 2013, LabCentral offers a full complement of programming and networking to life sciences entrepreneurs in addition to fully permitted laboratory and office space for early-stage and growing life sciences companies. In its first eleven years, LabCentral residents raised more than $20 billion in funding and created more than 7,000 jobs.  More information is available at www.labcentral.org. 

SOURCE LabCentral