New LLHF Start-Up Grant Opportunity – For Early-Career Diabetes & Aging Investigators
Sponsor: Larry L. Hillblom Foundation (LLHF) – Start-Up Grant
Focus areas: Diabetes or Aging (broadly defined)
Eligible institutions: PI’s lab must be based at a California institution
Award: Up to $120,000/year for up to 3 years (non-renewable; includes up to 10% indirects)
Key features:
Designed to support highly promising early-stage investigators starting independent labs
Preference for applicants who have held a faculty position (ordinarily Assistant Professor) for ≤1 year; not eligible if in a faculty role >3 years before the application date
Strong institutional commitment required: full start-up package, office/admin support, research space, access to core facilities, and teaching/clinical load limited to ≤1 day/week
Effort expectations: 80% research effort in Year 1; in Years 2–3, 80% research effort overall with at least 20% effort and salary from the Hillblom Start-Up Grant
Timeline:
Application portal opens: January 1, 2026
Application deadline: January 31, 2026, 5:00 pm PST
Funding decisions: June 2026
Anticipated start date: July 2026
Full details and online application are here: https://llhf.org/programs/startup-grant/
