Entrepreneurs looking to boost their startup and get investment are well aware of the glut of NYC accelerators to choose from. Finding the best program for your new company can be challenging, so we've rounded up ten of the most influential accelerator programs in New York that help startups get to the next level.
Techstars is consistently ranked as one of the top accelerator programs in the world.
Launched in Boulder, CO, in 2007 there are now 18 different programs in cities across the U.S. and internationally in London and Berlin. The NYC program has been operating since the summer of 2011.
Entry is extremely competitive as only 10 startups are chosen for each three month term. The lucky 10 get a convertible note to the value of $100,000 dollars in exchange for a six percent equity stake in the company.
Techstars looks for companies trying to launch on a national or global level and generally won’t pick two entrants that are in competition with each other.
The 90-day program provides advice and mentorship from more than 100 mentors associated with the NYC program, which includes notable investors and entrepreneurs like Dennis Crowley (Foursquare) and Fred Wilson of Union Square Ventures.
Participants also get to leverage the network of Techstars alumni which now almost number 1,000 worldwide. Entrants also get $20,000 in living expenses and office space for 90 days, at the end of which they pitch their startup to investors.
Across all the programs to date the average investment received is more than $3 million and only 10 percent of companies to have gone through the program have ended up failing.
This year Techstars is also running the Barclays NYC 13 week accelerator in partnership with the bank.
Entrepreneurs Roundtable Accelerator (ERA) is an original New York accelerator.
Any internet-related business to customer (B2C) or business to business (B2b) ideas are considered for entry. Ideally, there will be a team in place and a product built.
Ten companies are chosen for a four-month program, involving classes and mentoring from a team of more than 270 of New York’s brightest and best in the startup community.
The program provides $40,000 in seed capital, free legal, finance, accounting and other business services and office space for eight percent equity.
Dreamit encourages entries from very early stage companies and three programs: healthcare, education and overdrive, for everything else.
Since 2008 the program has launched more than 200 companies including SeatGeek and Meerkat.
The accelerator typically invests between $25,000 and $100,000 in member companies for a five to eight percent equity stake but there is a zero investment option. In this case, Dreamit won’t take any equity, but reserves the right to invest $250K in a seed funding round.
The programs run for 16 weeks and culminates with a demo day. There are also Dreamit hubs in Philadelphia, Austin and Baltimore.
AngelPad, founded by early Google employee Thomas Korte in 2010, was one of San Francisco’s most successful accelerator programs and expanded to New York in 2013.
The Seed Accelerator Ranking Project judged AngelPad to be the number one program in the U.S.
AngelPad runs a 10-week program with around 12 startups twice a year. Most of the time is spent in the New York office, but there will be some trips to San Francisco during the program including the demo day pitch.
The New York Times' timeSpace is a four-month media incubator that invites early stage digital media startups into The Times building to work with staff on their idea.
Rather than taking equity, The New York Times Company offers to loan each participant $25,000 in the form of a convertible note. If they like the idea The New York Times Company will consider investing at funding rounds.
Founder Institute is for very early stage ideas. The four-month program takes place in the evenings so that entrepreneurs can keep their day jobs before they’re willing to commit full time.
From its beginnings in Silicon Valley, Founder Institute has grown more than 100 chapters in cities all over the globe, making it the world's largest entrepreneur training and startup launch program.
To foster collaboration, each graduate gives 3.5 percent equity to a shared pool. When liquidized the proceeds are distributed as follows: 30 percent split among program graduates; 30 percent to mentors; 25 percent to local program directors; and 15 percent to the Founder Institute.
Blueprint Health is a three-month program for healthcare tech startups.
Companies give six percent equity for $20,000 and office space in the Soho loft and receive mentorship from some of the biggest names in tech healthcare, like ZocDoc and Oscar.
Now four years old, Blueprint Health has launched 60 startups, notable alumni include AdhereTech and Artemis.
New York Digital Health Accelerator is slightly longer than most programs, and works with eight to 10 digital health startups in a five-month program to develop their business.
Each startup gets $100,000 and is paired with hospital executives and an investment mentor.
Funded by the state, leadership from 17 hospitals across New York choose the entrants.
New York is the most important financial city on the planet, so it seems obvious there should be an accelerator specializing in financial tech. FinTech Innovation Lab, founded in 2012, is that accelerator.
The 12-week program takes place every spring in NYC, and is jointly run by the Partnership Fund for New York City and Accenture.
The accelerator takes just 0.5 percent equity of participating startup. Participants are given the choice to relocate to a Manhattan workspace and gain mentorship from an impressive list of venture capitalists.
Rather than fostering new businesses, Prehype aims to bring the innovation of startups to large corporations.
The accelerator goes into a company, finds problems that need solving and identifies executives with entrepreneurial abilities, which they call "intrapreneurs." The intrapreneur then launches a startup with hand-picked talent in the Prehype incubator to solve the business problem.
At the end of the incubation program the startup has the option of spinning back into the larger corporation or continuing as a separate entity.
Prehype limits the whole process to a three-month period, forcing intrapreneurs to come up with ideas quickly. Prehype also works with VC partners, and if the startup is successful, will refund 20 percent of its fee back to the corporation.
