Techstars unveils sustainability-focused acceleration program in Paris

  • 09.10.2022
  • Yahoo

Techstars, a network of startup accelerators and an investment company, is launching a new accelerator in Paris called Techstars Sustainability Paris. This isn’t the first time that Techstars is running an accelerator in France, as the company originally launched Techstars Paris in 2017.

With this sustainability-focused accelerator, Techstars is hitting the reboot button. Going forward, the Paris team will focus exclusively on impact startups, with Raphaele Leyendecker acting as the managing director.

Every year, Techstars Sustainability Paris plans to accept 24 startups across two batches. Companies receive $120,000 and hand out 6% of their equity. They also go through an intense acceleration program that should help them scale and reach the next level.

I talked with Baptiste Fradin, who currently acts as entrepreneur in residence for this accelerator. He believes that the tech ecosystem has matured quite a lot in France over the past 10 years. But impact companies could still benefit from new processes, better network effects and more ambition in general. According to him, Techstars could bridge the gap between these two worlds.