It has been quiet for some time, but we finally have some more startup accelerator programmes coming up. For instance, startup incubator Rockstart has selected the first startups for its AI accelerator program. This is Europe’s first AI accelerator program, logically attracting a lot of attention from startups all around the world. Thecamp has also announced its new Climb program, a 3-month tailored ‘à la carte’ programme in the heart of (French) Provence for early stage entrepreneurs. Last but not least, Startup in Residence Amsterdam commences its third startup accelerator programme, in December.
Rockstart
The accelerator from Amsterdam has announced the selected startups for its upcoming AI accelerator programme. Here, the teams from all over the world will spend the next 180 days shaping and building their products, talking to mentors, and connecting to potential investors and customers. The selected startups will receive €20.000 cash, as well as €80.000 of in-kind funding. The startups will also be provided with a working space in Den Bosch for the duration of the program. Finally, participants will get support from mentors, as well as more than 50 perks and deals worth €600.000. Summarizing, participants will receive the total package to grow and develop. It is a good time to be part of an AI startup.
Participators and partners
There is also space for some competition, as one of the lead investors of Rockstart’s accelerator programmes will invest at least €200.000 in one of the AI startups. This lucky startup will be selected after the Demo Day that’s scheduled for March 7th, 2018. Other partners of the AI accelerator programmes include VodafoneZiggo, Exact, De Volksbank, NVIDIA, Atlassian, Wintertaling, Grant Thornton, and the Jheronimus Academy of Data Science (JADS). The participating startups in Europe’s first AI accelerator programmes are Airsquire (Singapore), Aizobot (India), Baarb (the United States), Birds.ai (the Netherlands), Cambridge Humanae (Italy), Geospark (India), OPTOSS (the Netherlands), Overscore AI (South Africa), and Peazy (India). It is interesting to note that four out of nine participating startups originate from Asia. Also, it is a clear example of how this accelerator has caught worldwide attention from AI startups.
thecamp
On the other hand, startup incubator thecamp is encouraging early-stage entrepreneurs to join its upcoming Climb programme. The French innovation hub will be working together with Le Village by CA to enable a new generation of entrepreneurs to create successful innovation with a purpose. Thecamp describes the initiative as a “3-month tailored ‘à la carte’ programme” that will take place in the heart of Provence. In addition, thecamp will be providing participants with the help of mentors from all around the world. Summarizing the rest of the features provided by thecamp, participants will receive financial support, unlimited access to the campus’ accommodations, as well as numerous business opportunities.
Application requirements
So do you want to shape the future of energy, mobility, education, and food? Thecamp’s winter season starts on January 15th. The company is looking for ten early-stage startups focusing on ed-tech, e-health, sustainable mobility, people empowerment, and energy. Mission-driven tech startup founders in these fields, who are eager to be part of an ecosystem, are encouraged to apply here. Participating startups also have to be able to share an MVP. Lastly, a dedicated team of one to three people who are working full-time is required to be able to apply.
Startup in Residence Amsterdam
Last but not least, Startup in Residence Amsterdam is launching its third accelerator programme in December. The company had launched a pilot in 2015 and a very successful second programme earlier in 2016. For this third edition, the number of startups participating has more than doubled to thirteen startups in residence. Minouche Cramer, Startup Officer for the City of Amsterdam, stated the following on the success: “We are extremely proud of the growing enthusiasm for the ‘Startup in Residence’ programme. The enthusiasm [is reflected in] the high number of challenges that were brought in, but also in the number of startups that are eager to participate. We are also very excited about the other governmental organizations who joined the ‘Startup in Residence’ family. Among those are the province of Noord-Holland, the City of The Hague, and the Ministry of Justice and Security.”
Developing innovative solutions to challenges
During the six-month programme, the startups will develop innovative solutions to challenges that were published by the municipality. The startups will participate in an intensive training course and will be mentored by experienced entrepreneurs. Startups will also be guided by civil servants on the specific challenges they are going to address. Constantijn van Oranje-Nassau, Special Envoy of StartupDelta, also had some good things to say on Startup in Residence Amsterdam. “Both in the Netherlands as well as in Amsterdam we have everything to become the number 1 tech-hotspot of Europe. To achieve this we need a good startup policy and a lot of ambition. With the ‘Startup in Residence’ programme, governmental organizations show how they can use innovative public procurement to become launching customers of a startup. As the initiator of this programme, the City of Amsterdam shows great ambition.”
Participators
The programme will begin on December 1st, 2017. Participating startups include Creatives Across, FutureCV, Gamebus, Happitech, Landscape Data, Lucemgo, Platform Eerlijk Wonen, Sportyspots, SwiftComply, The Great Bubble Barrier, Thuiszorgagenda, Transformcity and WASTEDlab.
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