TechStars
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Inside the ‘cold war’ at Techstars as CEO Maëlle Gavet hires, fires, fights to force change
Financial losses, founder revolts, public firings and overflowing office sewage mark the storied institution’s annus horribilis.
Welcome to Startups Weekly — your weekly recap of everything you can’t miss from the world of startups. Sign up here to get it in your inbox every Friday. Pornhub…
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Techstars’ $80M partnership with J.P. Morgan is on the rocks, employees say
The fate of the Advancing Cities programs — and some of the around 20 people who work at Techstars in this program — is up in the air.
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Leaked documents show Techstars lost $7 million in 2023 but still had plenty of cash
Cuts to Techstars’ staff and its decision to shutter certain accelerators came after it missed its 2023 revenue goals, according to documents outlining its preliminary 2023 results viewed by TechCrunch. Techstars also lost millions of dollars more by year’s end (in adjusted EBITA) than it had anticipated it would, additional documents that discussed mid-year performance…
As Techstars retools, some former staffers say it lost focus on what made it successful
Well-known accelerator group Techstars announced a slew of changes to its operations this week, including the shuttering of some of its city-based programs. Criticism from former members of its decisions…
Techstars CEO defends changes, says physical presence in a city is not necessary for investment
Earlier this week, accelerator group Techstars announced changes to its operations. But what was planned internally to be an exciting new chapter for the organization ended up being somewhat of…
Techstars-backed Nigerian edtech Klas raises $1M for global scaling of online teaching platform
Nigerian online teaching platform Klas has raised $1 million in pre-seed funding led by Ingressive Capital, with participation from Techstars, HoaQ, and several angel investors. Founded in 2022 by Nathan…
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Is the Texas boom town of Austin losing its luster?
Texas has been historically known for its oil booms. Today the state is perhaps better known as a magnet for tech companies and tech talent, especially in its capital city of Austin. But with some startups pulling up stakes, and critical industry participants curtailing their activity in Austin, the Texas dream of taking on tech’s…
Techstars selects 12 companies for its fall space accelerator
Techstars has chosen 12 companies to join its aerospace accelerator, a 13-week program which runs in partnership with the U.S. Space Force and NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory. The new cohort…
8 VCs say they are still bullish on SAFE rounds, but it’s not 2021 anymore
SAFE rounds, or simple agreements for future equity, have been around since Y Combinator invented them a decade ago. But they took on a different role in 2021 when they…
The accelerator is seeking new capital ahead of the end of the deployment period of its third institutionally-backed fund, Techstars Accelerator 2021, late this year.
If you add up the fact that rival accelerators 500 Startups and Techstars have given up on their Stockholm programs, a pattern starts to emerge.
A look at Sweden’s startup scene as Techstars drops Stockholm program
Techstars’ decided to end its Swedish accelerator program. Let’s dig into the country’s startup scene to understand how the smaller venture market is adapting to a changed investing climate.
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Rising interest rates are putting VCs back in their lanes
Perhaps most of the move to multistage venture was simply predicated on interest rates being zero for so long.
Information is power, especially when you’re just beginning your startup journey. Whether you’re in the idea stage or building on the friends-and-family plan or preparing to pitch investors, it’s imperative…
Brex is acting more and more like a venture capitalist over time
Brex has been steadily increasing its partnerships with startup aggregators over time, such as Y Combinator and AngelList. Today, as per its latest announcement, it inked a new deal with…
The best badge of honor is creating a great startup, solving an important problem, having delighted customers, making revenue and scaling.
Techstars unveils sustainability-focused acceleration program in Paris
Techstars, a network of startup accelerators and an investment company, is launching a new accelerator in Paris called Techstars Sustainability Paris. This isn’t the first time that Techstars is running…
Why this Californian founder moved to Minneapolis to build a B2B fintech
Minneapolis-based Branch was founded in 2015, and it’s now one of the fastest-growing companies in the Midwest. Its founder, Atif Siddiqi, is a Southern California transplant who first relocated to…
Y Combinator alumni raise $80 million for DAO to back crypto startups
Groups of people seeking to invest together have been turning to the crypto-native DAO (decentralized autonomous organization) structure for a collective decision-making framework. While an investment DAO typically can only…
These 5 investors are betting on helping you live longer and better
“Longevity tech is only getting started now and will infiltrate all aspects of our life in the next five to 10 years.”
Announcing the first tranche of Startup Battlefield judges
The Startup Battlefield at TechCrunch Disrupt on October 18–20 is set to be our most epic yet. This year’s competitors, selected from our handpicked cohort, the Startup Battlefield 200, are…
Say hello to the kick-ass final agenda for the TechCrunch+ stage at Disrupt 2022
TechCrunch is bringing our flagship event, Disrupt, back to the real world this year, which means we’re hard at work on our big October 18-20 shindig. Founders, investors, tech denizens,…
24 hours left to save $1,300 on early-bird passes to Disrupt
We’re T-minus 24 hours until the TechCrunch Disrupt early bird flies south and takes up to $1,300 in savings with it. If you’re serious about realizing your startup dreams, you…
Techstars CEO Maëlle Gavet outlines the accelerator’s newest program in Africa
In April, startup accelerator Techstars, in partnership with ARM Labs, a Lagos-based innovation program focusing on fintech startups, announced the launch of ARM Labs Lagos Techstars Accelerator Program. As Techstars’ newest…
Equity crowdfunding appears immune to market volatility, on track for its best year yet
With the fundraising climate now showing cloudy skies, equity crowdfunding is getting ready for a field day.
Audience Choice: Vote for the roundtable sessions you want to see most at Disrupt
Ever hear a great idea that’s so obvious — like wheels on luggage, for example — that you can’t help but wonder why someone didn’t think of it sooner? Welcome…
Startups are on track to acquire more VC-backed companies than ever in 2022. Here’s why
Startups acquiring other VC-backed companies is nothing new. But up until the last few years, these transactions were mainly large and infrequent. Now, they are getting smaller and more frequent.
Our startup will be sponsoring my co-founders and me for O-1A visas. How do we qualify for each of the O-1A criteria?
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Afore’s fresh $150 million fund includes a plan to standardize the pre-seed world
Venture firm Afore Capital first splashed on the scene with the aim to institutionalize that angels, friends and family round. Now, after investing in over 80 companies over five years, the eight-person team has landed on a more specific way to do so: Offer a standard deal and raise what it claims is the largest…
