Grant money opening across five Detroit programs
The Detroit Economic Growth Corporation, working with the City of Detroit, is putting more than $1 million in grant money in front of local entrepreneurs this fall. It is split across five programs, each aimed at a different point in the journey, from the founder opening a first storefront to the tech startup trying to scale to the shop that has held its corner for thirty years.
The timing is not random. Michigan recorded 152,060 new business applications in 2025, up nearly 13 percent over the year before. At the same time, a February 2026 survey from the Small Business Association of Michigan found 87 percent of owners facing higher costs and 66 percent struggling to stay fully staffed. More people are starting, and the ones already in the game are squeezed. This money is the city trying to meet both.
"Free money still has a deadline. The founders who get funded are the ones who apply before the window shuts."
For ANF's audience, two of these programs matter most. NextUp313 is built specifically for founders ages 18 to 30, and the Detroit Startup Fund backs scalable tech companies that get passed over by traditional financing. But all five are worth knowing, because a grant you never heard about is a grant you were never going to win. Here is the full board.
Every program, deadline, and check size
NextUp313
Applications: Aug. 24 to Oct. 5 · Ages 18 to 30
Round two awards $63,500 total, in grants of $1,500, $3,500, $5,000 and $10,000, to Detroit business owners between 18 and 30. This is the one built for the next generation of founders trying to get a company off the ground.
Detroit Startup Fund
Applications: Aug. 31 to Oct. 5 · Tech startups
Round three awards $300,000 in grants of $15,000 and $50,000 to technology startups with exponentially scalable models, filling the gap for founders who hit walls with traditional financing.
Detroit Legacy Business Project
Applications: Aug. 24 to Oct. 5 · 30-plus years in business
Round four awards $310,000 in grants of $5,000, $15,000 and $50,000 to brick-and-mortar Detroit businesses operating for 30 years or more, to help them modernize, stabilize finances and stay on their corridors.
Green Grocer Program
Applications: July 15 to Aug. 17 · Food retail
Round four awards $100,000 in grants of up to $25,000 to small-format grocery stores expanding fresh food access in Detroit neighborhoods. This window closes first, so move now if it fits.
Motor City Match
Applications: Sept. 1 to Oct. 1 · New brick-and-mortar
Round 33 awards $315,000, averaging $50,000 per grant, to new brick-and-mortar Detroit businesses, connecting entrepreneurs with vacant commercial space.
How to apply
Every one of these programs runs through a single hub. Start at bit.ly/DEGCsmallbusiness, the DEGC small business page, where each program links out to its own application, eligibility rules and required documents. The DEGC team says it works with applicants one on one from the first conversation through ribbon cutting, so the application is a starting point, not a lottery ticket.
A few things worth doing before the window closes: confirm which program actually fits your stage, get your basic business documents in order, and do not wait until October 4. Most of these close October 5, and Green Grocer closes August 17. The founders who win are almost never the ones who found out the day before.
"We hear from business owners who have a great product but can't clear the next hurdle. These grants exist to clear that hurdle, whether it's opening day or year thirty."
This is the version of opportunity ANF pays attention to. Not the coastal mega-round, but public money aimed at the block, handed to the founder who shows up with a real business and a clear read of the neighborhood. The checks run modest by startup standards. The doors they open do not.
The money is on the table until October. Whether it becomes your money is a form and a deadline away.