Austin, Texas, May 15, 2019 MassChallenge Texas, part of MassChallenge’s global network of zero-equity startup accelerators, today announced the 74 early-stage startups invited to participate in the MassChallenge Texas in Austin 2019 accelerator program. The 74 startups range in discipline from high tech to medical devices to consumer packaged goods and from sustainable energy to agriculture. The public is invited to meet this year’s cohort at the MassChallenge Texas in Austin 2019 Startup Showcase on Thursday, June 20, 2019 at Native Hostel.
The Austin-based cohort represents the top 10.7% of the applicant pool from around the world who will compete for up to $500,000 in equity free cash prizes – the largest, singular, equity-free cash prize pot for startups in Texas this year.
“Coming from an extremely competitive application pool, the startups in our second Austin-based cohort represent an incredibly high bar of creativity and talent, all of who are poised to make an impact,” said Mike Millard, Managing Director of MassChallenge Texas. “This year’s program will offer the Finalists innovation at scale with direct access to resources through our programs in Houston and Austin, and our community around the state. Through these channels, startups will have more opportunities to test and validate their ideas with partners while creating meaningful engagements to help them get to pilot or pivot as fast as possible.”
The 74 startups represent:
- 5 countries
- 14 U.S. states
- 5 industries
- 42% High Tech
- 26% General
- 19% Healthcare & Life Sciences
- 8% Social Impact
- 5% Energy/Clean Tech
- And are 56% female founded
The 74 startups will join MassChallenge’s four-month accelerator program in Austin, Texas where they will receive world-class mentoring from industry experts, tailored programming, a complimentary 6-month WeWork community membership for WeWork locations across the World, more than $250K in deals and discounts, and unrivaled access to corporate partners. The accelerator will kick off on June 10 and culminates in October 2019 at the MassChallenge Texas in Austin Awards Ceremony, where the program’s top startups will win portions of $500K in equity-free cash prizes.
MassChallenge Texas in Austin will host a series of public events throughout the accelerator to directly connect the startups with the Texas community. Visit the MassChallenge Texas Facebook events page for more information about upcoming events and opportunities to meet the 2019 cohort.
In 2018, MassChallenge Texas ran its first program in Austin and accelerated 84 companies that have raised more than $30M in funding, generated $20M in revenue, and created 524 jobs. In 2019, MassChallenge Texas expanded to Houston where they named Jon Nordby the local managing director.
MassChallenge Texas is supported by a public-private partnership that includes founding corporate partners Southwest Airlines, TMAC, WeWork, USAA, and Upstream. Civic and corporate partners include Central Houston, the City of Houston, Lionstone, Midway, BAE Systems, BHP, Ingram Micro, 3 Feet from Gold Corporation, the San Antonio Spurs, and the Houston Texans. Together, MassChallenge Texas and its partners will strengthen and grow the innovation ecosystem across the state and connect the ecosystem to MassChallenge’s global network of programs in Boston, Israel, Mexico, Rhode Island, and Switzerland.