Competition Details
Selection Process
Questions? Reach out at ivoryprize@ivoryinnovations.org
September 2, 2025
Nominations open for the Ivory Prize
October 31, 2025
Ivory Prize nominations close
January 27, 2026
Ivory Prize Top 25 Finalists Announced
May 12, 2026
Ivory Prize Winners and Runners-Up Announced
Finalist Benefits
All finalists and winners receive access to a suite of benefits designed to help their solutions scale and succeed.
Exposure & Access
Finalists are featured in national press coverage, newsletters, and social media campaigns. They also gain access to exclusive speaking opportunities at industry events including panels, conferences, and pitch competitions.
High-Quality Connections
We provide tailored introductions to potential funders, strategic partners, and customers through our national network. We also leverage our connections in Utah to support opportunities for finalists to scale their innovations in our home state.
Sponsored Summer Interns
Where interests and expertise align, finalists may be matched with a sponsored summer intern through our student associate program at the University of Utah.
Pro Bono Support
Finalists may receive pro bono consulting support from the Ivory Innovations team, including help with go-to-market strategy, customer discovery, and vision or KPI development—based on organizational needs and team capacity.
FAQ
Process
Each year, the Ivory Prize solicits roughly 200 nominations. These nominations are a mix of third-party nominations, self-nominations, and nominations sourced by our team of student associates at the University of Utah. To submit a nomination for the 2026 Ivory Prize, please fill out the short nomination form on our website. The nomination window for the 2026 Prize is open from September 2 to October 31, 2025.
The Ivory Prize nomination form is intentionally designed to be concise to streamline the initial review process and allow a broader range of organizations to participate without being deterred by a lengthy submission process.
We do understand that organizations often have more to share. If you'd like to provide additional information or elaborate on any aspects of your organization, there will be an opportunity in later stages of the evaluation process. After an initial review, selected nominations will be followed with a short video call with our team. Later on in our process, organizations selected as finalists are asked to join us for 1-2 additional calls and to provide additional information and materials.
Ivory Prize winners are selected via a four-phase judging process which takes place between January and May of each year. Final selections are made by our Advisory Board, which is comprised of veteran housing experts from industry and academia. Between February and May, our board selects a Top 25 finalist group followed by Winners and Runners-Up for each of our three areas of focus. Our team of full-time staff and student associates supports our advisory board with research and diligence on each nominee.
Contending nominees are updated of their status after each round of the selection process, usually within a couple of weeks of the dates listed on our competition details. The winners of the Ivory Prize are typically announced during our annual award ceremony held in the spring. The exact dates and location of this ceremony vary from year to year, so please make sure to sign up for updates via our newsletter or check our website regularly for the latest information.
Eligibility
We know that innovation comes in many forms and that a diverse array of solutions is necessary to ensure that high-quality housing is affordable and accessible to all Americans. Our three areas of focus - Construction & Design, Finance, and Policy & Regulatory Reform - represent our best attempt at categorizing the key challenges facing the housing industry such that the Ivory Prize can recognize and support models that address these challenges.
Some nominees may not fit perfectly into one (or any) of our areas of focus. In these instances, our team will select the area of focus which we deem to be the best fit.
Ultimately, the criteria for selection are innovation, scalability, and impact on housing affordability, and any nominated organization that demonstrates these elements, regardless of how well it fits into one of our areas of focus, will be evaluated equally.
Yes! All organizations that demonstrate the Ivory Prize criteria of innovation, scalability, and impact on housing affordability are eligible.
As noted, the criteria for selection for the Ivory Prize are innovation, scalability, and impact on housing affordability. Any organization that demonstrates these elements will be evaluated equally, regardless of size or other factors.
Yes! Many of our past winners were self-nominated. Once submitted, all nominations are evaluated equally, regardless of who submitted them.
The Ivory Prize aims to recognize solutions to the unique challenges of the United States housing market. Nominated organizations must be based in the U.S.
Awards and Benefits
The aim of the Ivory Prize is to elevate and highlight the most innovative, impactful, and scalable solutions in housing affordability. As such, we ask that all winners and runners-up:
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Attend and participate in our annual Ivory Prize Summit (required)
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Display the “Ivory Prize Winner” or “Ivory Prize Finalist” logo prominently on their website and other relevant materials to help spread awareness of their achievement and the broader mission of the Ivory Prize (encouraged, but not required)
Our annual Summit brings together an audience of peer innovators, industry experts, and media, with the goal of amplifying our mission and celebrating the strides being made in the housing affordability sphere. The gathering provides an opportunity for Ivory Prize winners and finalists to step into the spotlight and be publicly recognized for their contributions.The exact dates and location of the winner event vary from year to year, so please sign up for updates via our newsletter or check our website regularly for the latest information.
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Ivory Prize winners benefit from significant industry recognition and publicity, consulting and operational support, and partnership opportunities - with both our applied research center at the University of Utah and our operating foundation, through which we are building over 1,500 units of affordable housing in Utah. In addition, the Ivory Prize awards $300,000 annually in unrestricted grants to winners in each of its three areas of focus.
The prize money for the Ivory Prize is generously provided by our Innovators Circle and Legacy Partners. Our sponsors range from corporate entities to philanthropic individuals who share our vision for recognizing and supporting groundbreaking ideas and solutions. We're grateful for their ongoing support.