Pre-accelerator successor to Startup Next is looking to guide and support start-ups in Dublin, New York, Detroit, Los Angeles, Toronto and London.
Start-ups with potential that have what it takes to join Startup Boost have until 17 September to get their applications in.
Launched in Dublin, Austin, Detroit, Los Angeles, London and Toronto in October last year, the volunteer-led Startup Boost wants to bring together start-ups and put them in the right direction before securing further funding or joining accelerators or incubators. Other cities around the world are poised to grow the programme globally.
Locally, Startup Boost Dublin is organised by four city co-directors, namely: Carolyn Quinlan, Startlab programme manager at Bank of Ireland; Nubi Kay, Stripe; Finn Murphy, Frontline Ventures; and Gene Murphy, entrepreneur in residence at Bank of Ireland.
Earlier this year, Startup Boost forged a partnership with Techstars to continue to further its core goal to improve a pre-seed-stage start-up’s ability to gain access to accelerators, investment and revenue.
In Dublin, between six and eight pre-seed/seed-stage tech teams will be selected to take part in the programme.
Prerequisites include a comprehensive business model, a minimum viable product (MVP) and market validation or traction. Working with great speakers, mentors and the Startup Boost city directors, teams get industry insights along with hands-on mentorship, guidance, validation and the necessary resources for building traction.
Open evening
Tomorrow night in Dublin (5 September), to help prepare start-ups thinking of applying, the local team behind Startup Boost in Dublin will hold an open evening at the Bank of Ireland Innovation Lab.
At the open evening, attendees will be able to meet the Startup Boost alumni and mentors to learn more about the programme first-hand. Free tickets are available here.
“Startup Boost was an invaluable experience for our business; it really helped us to validate our business idea and focus on our target market,” said Ronan Kelly, founder of Bespoke Choice, whose company was part of the 2017 autumn cohort.
Each programme finishes with a global demo day where start-ups that graduate will gain exposure to potential new sales leads, and the opportunity to pitch and connect directly with investors and accelerator directors.
Start-ups accepted into the programme are not charged any fees and no equity is taken.