OceanHub Africa Accelerator 2020

OceanHub Africa is launching the first cohort of its six-month acceleration program to support six of South-Africa’s most promising impact for-profit startups focused on preserving and restoring the health of the ocean.

The accelerator is on a mission to support ocean-minded start-ups with the express aim of nurturing an environmentally conscious and profitable economy that effectively mitigates the effects of global warming as well as the overexploitation and pollution of the oceans. Leveraging its highly qualified network of stakeholders and facilitators, it will deliver to the accelerated start-ups a program that seeks out sustainable pathways yielding stable profits (ROIs) and avenues for scalable growth throughout Africa.

What you can expect

Become part of OceanHub Africa portfolio will allow you to:

• Unlock a network of leading ocean experts, mentors (entrepreneurs, investors, innovation experts, impact experts, scientists, lawyers, etc.), impact investors and potential clients
• Get support to fast-track your growth by acquiring new customers or running your first Proof of Concept, and scaling your business through commercial contracts and fundraises.

What we offer

Service Package

• Up to $15k worth of cloud service thanks to our partner AWS Activate
• Free access to IoT prototyping thanks to our partner SigFox
• Over $20k worth of licences for mechanical engineering design software for virtual testing and prototyping thanks to our partner 3DExperience Lab
• Access to international marketplace thanks to the above partners
• but also free advisory sessions with: Cullinans&Associates (international environmental law firm), BVPG (commercial and transactional law), Blue Ocean Partners (ocean impact Venture Capitalist fund), Ocean14 Capital (ocean impact Private Equity fund), WWF-SA, Dept of Oceanography University of Cape Town, EuroSIMA (oceantech experts) and more!

A Space

• Access to a co-working space at the V&A Waterfront, at the heart of the City, by the ocean

Mentorship & Support

• Hands-on mentorship from our team of mentors
• Tailored business skills and personal development 1 to 1 training
• Sales, administrative and HR support
• Access to our network of scientific and business experts

Network

• Access to networking events and conferences
• Access to potential clients (market leads) for local expansion
• Access to key external partners

Fund-Raising Support

• Access to a large portfolio of impact investors part of our ecosystems (inc. Blue Ocean Partners, Ocean14
• Capital, Finca Ventures, HAVAIC, Sky Ventures, AquaSpark, …) as well as corporate venture capitalist funds
• Support in preparing and running investor pitches, including training sessions with investors directly
• Support in structuring deals, including reviews by transactional and commercial lawyers

Eligibility

• Your start-up is ocean-minded: it has a direct or indirect positive impact on the oceans (addressing climate change, pollution or overexploitation of the ocean)
• You are a for-profit and operate in Africa
• You have a scalable service or product available on the market or soon to be available on the market
• Your product or service is clearly innovative and/or your business model is disruptive
• You are looking for investments or new markets

Our selection criteria

Impact & vision – Positive impact on the oceans, Aligned vision with OceanHub Africa, Business model

Market & traction – Commercial value of your product/service, Strategy for growth & scalability, Team

Technology – Innovation (differentiation, sustainable, etc.), Reliability, Adaptability, Scalability

Timeline

21 Feb – 20 March: application period
16 – 20 March: screening of the applications
20 March: Announce short-listed for Bootcamp and share program
23 & 24 March: Bootcamp (8 am – 12 pm) – pitch training, personality tests, logic reasoning, analytical skills, mentors speed dating, etc.
27 March: Final selection committee
31 March: Start-ups selected announcement
31 March – 14 April: Induction remote exercise for the selected start-ups in preparation of the program
20 April: Program starts