Applications are open for the Techstars Iowa Accelerator! Techstars has partnered with Grinnell College and other top universities in Iowa to offer early stage startups coaching, mentoring, connecting, initial funding and further support with fundraising.  

The Techstars Iowa Accelerator will accept startups from a broad array of industries that are looking to scale rapidly and make a big impact in the world.  The Techstars worldwide network includes mentors from global corporations, former and current founders of startups and investors. Experts from Grinnell College, University of Iowa, Iowa State University and other university networks, in addition to mentors based in Iowa and beyond, are looking forward to engaging with the first Techstars Iowa class.

Iowa is home to multiple global corporations including Principal Financial Group, Vermeer Manufacturing, Corteva, John Deere, as well as successful ventures such as Workiva and Dwolla, many of who will provide mentors to startups participating in Techstars Iowa. In addition, over the last decade, cities in Iowa have surged to the top of National Best lists like “Best Cities to Work In Tech” – SmartAsset, “Up-and-Coming Tech Hotspots” – Liveability, and “America’s Top 5 Under-the-Radar Tech Hubs” – Squarefoot. 

During the fall of 2020 ten startups will engage with experts who are industry leaders, researchers, and professors stretching multiple disciplines such as automation, general engineering, material science, augmented and virtual reality spanning multiple vertical markets including energy, sustainability, education, agriculture, finance and healthcare.

Kerty Levy, Managing Director (MD) of Techstars Iowa, brings 30 years of experience working in leadership roles across both startups and global corporations in business development, product management, strategic marketing and general management (www.linkedin.com/in/kertylevy).  TJ Salyars, Program Manager of Techstars Iowa, is an Iowa native with a background in education. He’s worked in multiple venture backed startups scaling operations and teams across industries including healthtech and agtech (https://www.linkedin.com/in/tjsalyars/).  Both are ready to welcome a class of passionate founders who want to make a difference, work well with others, welcome diversity and are driven to take on the hard work required to scale their businesses and make an impact.

The accelerator will stretch from early September to early December 2020 and will be held primarily in Des Moines with visits to networks and communities throughout Iowa.

The application window will is open from February 17 until May 10.  Click here to apply! 

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