MASSCHALLENGE

What Is MassChallenge?

MassChallenge is a non-profit organization dedicated to supporting innovation and entrepreneurship through collaboration and development. We have more than a decade of experience accelerating startups, industry, and innovation ecosystems. We work across sectors to drive a stronger future through collaborative innovation. 

FOR STARTUPS

Through our partners and experts, we bring together some of the leading teams in corporate innovation, industry knowledge, and government leadership to our promising, high-impact startups. Startups admitted into MassChallenge go through a 4-month period of curriculum, mentorship, and exhibition events designed to produce avenues of growth, funding, and 3rd-party collaboration.

We have several locations across the North America and Europe. While the majority of our accelerators are industry agnostic and early-stage, we also have strategic focus on high impact, emerging categories including:

• FinTech
• HealthTech
• Blue Tech
• Enterprise Technology
• Safety and Security
• Space Commercialization
• Sports Tech
• Sustainable Food Systems
• The US Air Force Lab

Additionally, we offer a program for exploring and developing accelerators in new locations. This is our Bridge to MassChallenge (B2MC) program where you can find more information on here. 

FOR CORPORATES 

The relationship between Corporations and Startups has changed dramatically since 2008. In fact, the number of corporate investments in startups tripled from 980 in 2013 to 2,795 in 2018, with their total value growing from $19 billion to $180 billion. It is now an imperative for corporations to engage with startups to identify the teams and technologies that will advance their business.

“70% of our participants will launch a pilot with one our partners within a year of the program,” stated Managing Director of MassChallenge FinTech Devon Sherman, at the 2020 Global Summit.

MassChallenge works with Corporate and Industry partners to build and accelerate their innovation strategies. We leverage our global network and nine accelerator programs to drive meaningful relationships with startups, connect corporations into the startup ecosystems, and support cultural transformations. Learn more about how we help fuel business growth here.

FOR GOVERNMENTS AND ECOSYSTEMS

MassChallenge’s mission and model is designed to drive increased connectivity and density across all key innovation stakeholders : Government (federal, state, and municipal), Corporations, Academia, Media, Venture Capitalists, and Entrepreneurs. Connectivity and density attracts and support startups who seek access to resources (talent, expertise, capital, customers) in order to learn and grow quickly. Connectivity and density also benefit industry who also need to be proximate to the teams and technologies that will drive future innovation.

Intentional investment in innovation ecosystems is a critical pillar of 21st century economic development strategies.  

“My ultimate goal was to show every community they can build their own ecosystem,” said Robert Pieroni, Director of Economic Development at Central Houston Inc. “We are creating something right now in Houston that can change on a foundational level the entire landscape. I truly believe that you’ll see these vertical villages everywhere. It might not be to the same scale as a downtown Houston. You don’t have to build it at a mega scale, you just need to be thoughtful to make sure you are creating an ecosystem and not just one component of an ecosystem.”

MassChallenge works actively with the public and private sector to support the growth of innovation economies in the regions in which we work. MassChallenge also consults with emerging innovation Hubs in the U.S and internationally. To learn more about our Ecosystem work contact Clara Scheinmann: clara@masschallenge.org. 

MASSCHALLENGE