DC weekly roundup: $150k for AU student VCs; money and deals for federal workers; FiscalNote divests

Welcome to the weekly roundup of the latest from DC's tech and entrepreneurship scene. Want this in your inbox? Subscribe for free.

With so many universities around the region promoting student entrepreneurship, one’s putting its pupils on the other side of the deal: American University launched the Eagle Venture Seed Fund so its students can get hands-on VC experience while investing in local startups.

Founders who might want some of this money — or any money, really — face a tough road when deciding to create a startup. Luckily, if you’re in or around DC, you’ve got a lot of support programs to consider applying to. Whatever your industry or goals, there’s probably a program out there for you. Learn more about the options in our new roundup of regional accelerators and incubators.

Scroll down for more insight on top tech news in the region, and remember: We’d love to see you in Philly this May for our Builders Conference.

News incubator: What to know

• DC’s recently announced $26 million venture capital fund is looking for fund managers [Office of the Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development/Technical.ly]

• University of Maryland, College Park’s journalism school landed $1 million to create AI tools that help local newsrooms. [UMD]

• FiscalNote is divesting two of its portfolio companies, Oxford Analytica and Dragonfly Intelligence, to focus more on its policy products, according to the company. FiscalNote has faced personnel changes and was hit with an unfair labor charge at the end of 2024 by its news site’s union. [Washington Biz Journal/Technical.ly]

• Businesses in the region are offering deals to federal workers and contractors, like free flowers and headshots. [Washingtonian]

• Trump’s two oldest sons launched a data center business dubbed American Data Centers Inc. Near their dad’s house lies Northern Virginia, which has one of the highest concentrations of data centers in the world — primarily in Loudoun County. [BisNow/Technical.ly]

• The Virginia Senate voted to make the government contractors affected by cuts at the federal level eligible for state unemployment, but there’s no funding for it. [Washington Post]

• Laid-off federal workers are turning to the restaurant industry for employment. [Axios DC]

• Here’s a slew of scenarios that could happen if Home Rule is repealed. [51st]

🗓️ On the Calendar

• Seed Spot, an accelerator with programming in DC, is hosting a networking event at City Tap House Dupont on Feb. 25. [Details here]

• Join Technical.ly on Feb. 26 for another edition of our podcast, featuring cohosts Victor Hwang of Right to Start, Brian Brackeen of Lightship Capital, Maija Ehlinger of Hypepotamus, and our cofounder and CEO Christopher Wink. [Details here]

• Virtually chat with fellow women and non-binary technologists on Feb. 28 with Women and Gender eXpansive Coders. [Details here]

• Hear from startups in the defense, AI and cyber sectors at an event on March 5 hosted by Seed2Table. [Details here]