Local startup accelerator Blue Startups is currently recruiting participants for its next cohort, and companies have until July 21 to apply.
The program will run for 13 weeks, from Sept. 25 to Dec. 15, and from Jan. 16 to 19. The program will include eight weeks of work based in Honolulu that will be focused on customer discovery and product-market fit, and four weeks of virtual participation focused on investor and customer connections. The final week will be spent in San Francisco, where companies will focus on investor connections.
In an email newsletter last month, Blue Startups said it is looking for “scalable technology companies in the go-to-market phase” in sectors including SaaS, travel and tourism, and sustainability. It also is focused on companies based in Hawaii, the U.S., or Asia, and it considers geographic and gender diversity in its cohort decisions.
“While our areas of focus are prioritized, they not required for admission. We accept applications from all companies with driven founders and global ambition,” the newsletter said.
This will mark the 15th cohort for Blue Startups, which provides mentorship and business development to technology-based or technology-enabled companies. Blue Startups was founded in 2012 by Henk Rogers and Maya Rogers of the Tetris company and Chenoa Farnsworth of Hawaii Angels, with the goal of bolstering tech and innovation in the Islands and helping to diversify the local economy.
In an email to Pacific Business News, Farnsworth, Blue Startups’ managing partner, said they’re seeking eight to 10 companies for this cohort.
When asked what she feels participants will get out of the program, she noted that companies will “expand their networks through access to our alumni, mentor and investor networks; refine their product offering through customer discovery and product testing; define a repeatable, scalable business model; acquire new customers through network and marketing effort; and prepare and perfect an investor pitch.”
Participating companies also will have the opportunity to earn up to $150,000 in funding.
According to a Blue Startups slide presentation on the program provided to PBN, the organization has a global network of more than 200 mentors, and the program can include introductions to more than 400 global investors. It has more than 100 companies as part of its portfolio, including locally founded businesses such as Volta, Turno and Smart Yields.
For more information and to apply, click here.
