Six start-ups plan to create 40 jobs with new Ryan Academy ‘Propeller’ funding of €240,000.
The Propeller Accelerator, part of the DCU Ryan Academy for Entrepreneurship, has revealed the first group of companies funded and supported under its mentor-led programme.
These start-ups, five from Ireland and one from the UK, cover key technologies such as mobile applications, clean tech, online gaming, informatics, Facebook e-commerce and social media. The Propeller Accelerator provides €30,000 in funding for each company, and several months of free space for their companies. These start-ups are planning to create more than 40 jobs over the next year, and have already started to hire temporary staff.
This first group of six companies has already its three-month intensive programme of mentor-led acceleration that culminates in the Propeller Demo Day on 6 May, when the start-ups present to a group of investors.
The six companies funded by Propeller include Associate Mobile, Fantom, GreenEgg Technologies, HealthComms, Simple LifeForms and VendorShop.
“We had over 70 applications from across Ireland, the UK and Europe and even included the US and Brazil,” said Gordon McConnell, director of the Propeller Accelerator and deputy-CEO of the Ryan Academy. “We are delighted to have such an exciting group of start-up companies working in the Propeller Space, and a group of over 40 mentors to work with them over the next three months.”
The Propeller Accelerator was recently announced as a charter member of the Techstars Network, which was announced in the White House. It has also agreed to partnerships with the Halo Business Angel Network (HBAN) and the Irish Technology Leadership Group (ITLG) in recent weeks.