Ireland’s first talent accelerator Founders creates over 20 new tech startups and selects top 8 for €100k investment

For its inaugural 12-week programme, which captured the attention of over 500 applicants, Founders selected 40 exceptional individuals to partner up and embark on an immersive journey to creating global tech startups. What sets this initiative apart is the fact that these visionary duos, from diverse backgrounds, were complete strangers brought together by their shared passion for driving change.

The results speak for themselves; eight of these outstanding duos have already secured €100k in pre-seed funding. This achievement not only showcases their entrepreneurial edge but also underscores the efficacy of the Founders programme. Operated by Dogpatch Labs and funded by NDRC, Founders is a first-of-its-kind for Ireland and that has attracted some of the top mentors from across the entrepreneurial ecosystem.

Kicking off just over three months ago, a highly diverse first cohort reflected over 30% women, 5 different ethnic backgrounds and 20% international participants. Phase 1 included individuals from a wide range of backgrounds, including tech giants Google, Meta, and Stripe, experts from SpaceX and NASA, PHDs in machine learning and data science, and domain experts in energy, healthcare, gaming and sustainability.

Founders is committed to fostering equal opportunities for women and underrepresented minorities, and serving as a catalyst for entrepreneurial success. This entrepreneurship programme offers more than just mentorship from world-class experts; it tackles the daunting hurdles faced in the startup journey, from finding a suitable co-founder to securing that vital first investment needed to thrive. As it forges a vibrant community, Founders goes beyond merely funding startups and talent scouting; it encourages cross-pollination of ideas, challenges conventions, and nurtures a collective hunger for innovation.

As Heather Morris, Managing Director of Founders, aptly puts it, “Ireland has an abundance of tech talent, one of the best education systems in the world, and has been home to the European HQ of the tech giants for the last decade. The Founders Talent Accelerator creates a new pathway for amazingly talented, outside-the-box thinkers to unleash their entrepreneurial potential and create meaningful change globally”.

An example of one of the startups is GlitchAds co-founded by Aisling Browne, former global expansion and partnerships from Irish Unicorn Wayflyer and Kingsley Kelly, an engineer with decade-long leadership at Google. Browne credits Founders as the driving force behind their rapid progress, emphasising the invaluable support system they found: “I discovered my co-founder and an indispensable community of entrepreneurs who genuinely want to see us succeed.”

Founders Portfolio 2024

• Glitch Ads democratises advertising leveraging the power of Ads & AI.
• Inspeq AI is a low-code platform to improve AI applications faster, cheaper and more reliably.
• Gemell provides software to revolutionise fabric visualisation in the textile industry.
• Coco an AI tender writer with a model trained on individual  business data to optimise success.
• Talio helps content creators collaborate with followers and unlock product insight for brands.
• Shoden unlocks effortless sales message personalisation through integrated composer UI.
• GamesGrid amplifies brands’ reach and engages audiences through the power of games.
• NocoMed is a measurement and reduction platform for carbon emissions.

The programme culminates in an investor showcase of the newly created companies in person at Dogpatch Labs in April 2024.

Applications for the next Founders cohort for September 2024 open in March 2024. For further information or to register your interest, visit joinfounders.co or dogpatchlabs.com/founders, or email hello@joinfounders.co.

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