Application Deadline: May 31, 2022
Regardless of your industry, data protection, privacy, security, and compliance are critical to a startup’s success. No startup founder or CTO wants to put its customer data and information at risk, and no one wants their intellectual property in the hands of nefarious characters.
If your startup is in the digital assets space or collects, stores, and/or transmits medical records, financial transactions, insurance histories, or other sensitive client data, you have found the right program to help you build, scale, and thrive.
For a third year in a row, IBM has teamed up with Village Capital to empower startups with business acceleration expertise and technical mentorship. With leadership from Black Innovation Alliance and a team of Village Capital diversity, equity, and inclusion leaders, the program continues its heritage of enabling a more equitable startup ecosystem.
Program Benefits
- Over the first year of our accelerator program, IBM provides selected startups with access to $120,000 in technology credits to go toward enabling confidential computing so that startups protect sensitive client data via IBM’s flagship offering known as IBM Cloud Hyper Protect Services.
- Hyper Protect enables our startups to keep its most sensitive data safe, private, secure, and compliant with regulatory requirements. Startups can also leverage the technology credits to go toward IBM’s broader set of products and services, including machine learning, artificial intelligence, and/or blockchain.
- Selected startups can expect access to one-on-one, hands-on technical leaders, cloud solution architects, and an experienced network of business leaders. Village Capital empowers each early-stage founder and their team with curated curriculum specifically designed for early-stage startups on topics such as perfecting their pitch, pitch deck, value proposition, business model, and investment readiness.
Timeline:
Phase I – Startup Selection
Once applications close on May 31, IBM and Village Capital will work with our panel of expert judges and program collaborators to review startup applications and select 45 startups based on scoring criteria that includes evaluation of each startup’s fit for purpose, including its industry vertical, use case(s), problem statement, mission, vision, value proposition, architecture, business model, competitive set, solution, and team structure.
Phase II – Business & Technical Workshops
Starting in Q3, IBM and Village Capital will host a series of business and technical acceleration workshops. Each startup will be expected to attend all virtual workshops over the 3-month, formal programming. Details on how these workshops will be conducted will be shared when cohort selections occur.
Phase III – Ongoing Mentorship
To create a long-term, successful accelerator, IBM will provide virtual mentorship to our cohort of entrepreneurs, consisting of monthly one-on-one engagement for IBM Hyper Protect Accelerator startups and quarterly engagement for Friends of Hyper Protect startups. Programming will occur over a two-year period.
Diversity & Inclusion
IBM recognizes that diversity and inclusion are integral to a company’s strategic and profitability objectives—solidifying the connection between customer satisfaction and winning in the marketplace. IBM values opportunities for businesses owned and operated by minorities, women, LGBT+, disabled veterans, and other disabled persons.
For More Information:
Visit the Official Webpage of the IBM Hyper Protect Accelerator 2022
