500 Global and Alberta Innovates unveil batch 2 of the Alberta accelerator by 500
Alberta Innovates and 500 Global, a global venture capital firm, are unveiling a Batch 2 of the Alberta Accelerator by 500.
500 Global selected 18 startups from around the world for Batch 2 of the Alberta Accelerator by 500. They attended a rigorous 12-week program, which included mentorship on segments ranging from customer discovery to foundations of growth.
The program culminates in Demo Day on October 20th, 2022 in Calgary. It will be held in-person for a curated audience of industry leaders, ecosystem players, and 500 Global network partners. They will hear presentations from a diverse group of startups hailing from Canada, Nigeria, and India, among other countries, that are building B2B and B2C applications in logistics, real estate, construction, healthcare, education, business automation and e-commerce.
Bedy Yang, Managing Partner, 500 Global: “Given the strong momentum of our inaugural cohort in Edmonton earlier this year, we were pleased to bring our programming to Calgary for Batch 2. The vitality of the participants has been inspiring, with strong collaboration among ecosystem partners, such as Platform Calgary, and a strong group of founders in this second cohort. We believe that these entrepreneurs have the potential to create high quality jobs and promote growth.”
One year ago, 500 Global teamed up with Alberta Innovates to develop a bespoke world-class startup program and source promising founders in and around Alberta, with the goal of powering growth and development.
Alberta Accelerator by 500 is part of the Alberta Scaleup and Growth Accelerator Program (Scaleup GAP) run by a consortium led by Alberta Innovates. The consortium, which also includes the Ministry of Jobs, Economy and Innovation; Edmonton Unlimited; and Prairies Economic Development Canada (PrairiesCan), allocated $35 million over three years to retain business accelerators.
Laura Kilcrease, CEO, Alberta Innovates: “Through 500 Global and Scaleup GAP, entrepreneurs, innovators and early-startup businesses are getting the guidance, training and coaching they need to grow and prosper. These 18 graduating companies are helping to create a critical mass of entrepreneurial activity that will help put Alberta on the global stage as a technology leader. I’m looking forward to seeing what these companies will do next.”
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