Startup Incubator TV

categories: Incubators and CoWorking Spaces, internet, Venture Capital

Published June 10, 2009 @ 07:53PM PT

Every time I watch a TED Talk or discover new information on Wikipedia, I'm once again reminded of the power of the internet for sharing information and democratizing education. Today I discovered that the Boulder (and now Boston) based TechStars incubator has started their very own behind the scenes reality show.

TechStars has really great mojo. It's a summer education and mentorship program for (generally) software/web tech startups through which 70% of the participating companies have either received funding or left the program profitable already. Similar to Y-Combinator, they provide $6,000 per founder for 6% equity, but the real value is in their unique mentorship program, and the access to institutional investors they provide.

Maybe their most impressive accomplishment though is that everytime someone talks about the program - from the founder and executive director David Cohen to their participants - there's a big smile on their face. Today, co-founder (not to mention one of my favorite venture bloggers) Brad Feld posted about their new, once a week five-minute segment about the program.

The videos (two of which have been released so far) are an incredibly cool behind the scenes look at the program. What's more, they led me to TechStars.tv where the group has just tons of awesome videos and content from their educational section. The absurd amount of information could keep any entrepreneur busy for weeks and that gives the program and the community around it even bigger ups in my book.

I'm going to be watching the TechStars show weekly, particularly since the very first company they feature in the very first video is the super-cool Northwestern University-started The Next Big Sound, which makes it easy for anyone to become a mogul and discover new musical talent.

For all the aspiring entrepreneurs out there, get over to TechStars.tv and soak up the knowledge.

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Comments (2)

Nathaniel -
Great post! Thank you for noticing all the special things going on in Boulder and through TechStars. As a participant (company: Everlater - also highlighted in the video series), I can vouche that we are having a great time, meeting with amazing people and learning more than we could have ever imagined. If you ever have any questions or would like more information, please let me know. Thanks again for the great post. Cheers.
-Natty

Posted by Natty Zola on 06/10/2009 @ 09:37PM PT
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Nice post. Entrepreneurs share a set of unique qualities. It is great when a community can be formed. I am new to Tech Stars myself this year and I am serving as a mentor. I am very impressed with the approach that David Cohen and Brad Feld have implemented...and now Shawn Broderick in Boston. Always great to share ideas with another entrepreneur. Rock on Tech Stars.

Posted by Jeff Bennett on 06/11/2009 @ 08:15AM PT
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Author

Nathaniel is the founding Director of the Center for Global Engagement at Northwestern University, which works annually with hundreds of students in dozens of countries around the world through curricular programs and student project incubation.