Games industry figures Geoff Keighley, creator of The Game Awards, and Mark Cerny, PlayStation's lead system architect, have launched the Nova Games Foundation, a philanthropic fellowship offering substantial grants to student game designers. The scheme partners with 13 universities worldwide to identify and fund promising talent, with both men describing it as an effort to invest in the next generation of developers rather than a commercial venture.

Each year, 20 students will receive $100,000 grants, with applications opening in December for members of the class of 2026 and 2027. Recipients whose projects progress well could receive further payments of up to $500,000 tied to development milestones, and crucially will retain ownership of their games. Keighley and Cerny have each made multi-million-dollar personal donations to establish the foundation and stressed it involves no equity stake or expectation of financial return, while Hazelight Studios founder Josef Fares has also joined as a founding donor and mentor, with hopes others in the industry will contribute too.