Through an agreement with government agencies, an intensive six-week program called 500 Accelerator Montevideo was developed, through which more than twenty entrepreneurs will be able to improve their projects to get seed capital investment and internationalize.
On Wednesday 21st, the Technological Laboratory of Uruguay (LATU), together with the National Agency for Research and Innovation (ANII), the National Development Agency (ANDE) and the Uruguay XXI Institute presented the first pre-acceleration program for entrepreneurs in Uruguay, with the support of the Silicon Valley project accelerator, 500 Startups.
500 Startups is an accelerator of projects based in Silicon Valley, explained the president of the Technological Laboratory of Uruguay (LATU), Fernando Fontán, which supports startups to develop lines of business to connect with potential investors and work in different countries.
The initiative involves three types of activities: an intensive six-week training program for proposals with a high level of embedded technology, in order to prepare their managers to commercialize internationally, including regulation, intellectual property and product presentation. This stage culminates with a "Demo day" in which entrepreneurs present their projects to potential investors. It is estimated that investments could be between 100,000 and 200,000 dollars. Both the National Agency for Research and Innovation (ANII) and the 500 Startups program will be able to select projects for funding.
The second activity will be aimed at 50 entrepreneurs with early stage projects. These 50 entrepreneurs will not have the opportunity to facilitate contact with investors, but they will have the opportunity to enter entrepreneurship accelerators. Thirdly, there will be several events with Sillicon Valley referents, who will share their experiences with entrepreneurs.
To access the pre-acceleration program, those interested must apply on the website 500montevideo.com. Registrations will be open until August 3 and the program will begin in October 2017. Fontán added that, although there are many companies assisted by incubators, when they complete the process they conceive a product, but they lack "the big leap". "That's where this pre-acceleration program comes in to connect these companies with potential investors," he said.
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