Founder Fellowship is returning for a second program year. Innovation Studio, in collaboration with the New York City Economic Development Corporation (NYCEDC)’s Venture Access NYC initiative, will be supporting a cohort of 28 urban tech founders from underrepresented backgrounds with the resources they need to scale their companies.
Innovation Studio next Founder Fellowship cohort will mainly engage companies from the mobility, energy and materials sectors, but will also consider companies whose technological solutions can be applied to the fight against climate change. The program consists of a series of skills building workshops, inspiring fireside chats with business leaders, as well as one-on-one mentoring sessions to support founders with their specific challenges. Founders will also benefit from membership at Innovation Studio Brooklyn for one year, as well as introductions to investors for current or future fundraising rounds.
Venture Access NYC is an NYCEDC initiative building a more inclusive tech startup ecosystem in New York City by bringing together investors, founders, and industry leaders.
Innovation Studio is also partnering with Bank of America, whose contribution will enable us to deliver a program through Fall 2023. With Bank of America’s focus on transformative technology and technology enabled companies, combined with local advisory expertise and global reach, they help us to further scale these companies’ growth in a meaningful way.
The selection committee is comprised of the following representatives:
- Liz Keen, Chief Business Officer, Innovation Studio
- Chloe Langevin, Vice-president, Network Strategy, Innovation Studio
- Fernando Montejo, Assistant Vice President, New York City Economic Development Corporation
- Dzung Nguyen, Market Executive, Bank of America
- Lydia Nikolic, Market Leader, Bank of America Private Bank
Applications are open now through December 16th, 2022 and the program activities will start in the new year.
About Founder Fellowship
Innovation Studio Founder Fellowship will provide sponsored Innovation Studio memberships and tailored founder support to twenty-eight companies led by founders from underrepresented backgrounds to support diversity and inclusiveness in race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, thought, culture, and economic experience. Each company will be awarded a 12-month Flex II membership (valid for two individuals), which offers access to Innovation Studio 84,000 square foot space in the Brooklyn Navy Yard, Innovation Studio extensive network, and resources that support business growth, including:
- Business Development, Pilot & Investment Opportunities: Innovation Studio collaborates with and invests alongside top-tier funds with deep domain expertise—with an investor and partner network of over 400 organizations, including AlleyCorp, Google X, and New York Angels. Innovation Studio frequently connects member companies with corporate and civic partners for business development opportunities and offers pilot opportunities through our Applied Innovation Studios.
- Collaboration & Community: With a peer community of 200+ companies scaling transformative technology, Innovation Studio fosters an environment of cross-functional collaboration and knowledge-sharing, with members regularly collaborating on new products. Innovation Studio also helps members navigate legal, marketing, fundraising, and offers skills-building events and workshops.
- Prototyping & Product Realization: Innovation Studio provides extensive facilities for prototyping and product realization. Members have 24-hour access and each shop contains state-of-the-art equipment designed to facilitate the product development workflow—from idea to design to a working prototype. Onsite prototyping resources include 3D printing, CNC milling, wood and metal shops, casting and finishing, textiles, electronics, and more.
We encourage early-stage companies founded by entrepreneurs from underrepresented backgrounds that are working on urban tech solutions to apply. Examples of urban tech solutions include transformative technologies applied to Climate Change, Energy, Circular Economy, GovTech, Public Health, Safety, Mobility, Transportation, Agriculture, Water, Infrastructure, and Accessibility.
Those wishing to learn more about applying to Founder Fellowship can register for an info session hosted by NYCEDC on November 30th at 11 am ET.
About Innovation Studio
Innovation Studio is a community of experts and innovators applying transformative technology to solve the world’s biggest challenges. Our membership and studios bring together entrepreneurs, engineers, inventors, and industry leaders to create sustainable solutions and enterprises. We employ technologies, including robotics, A.I., and material science, to transform what matters most—health, environment, media, cities, and infrastructure
About New York City Economic Development Corporation
New York City Economic Development Corporation is a mission-driven, nonprofit organization that creates shared prosperity across New York City. Our work is organized around four main areas of focus—investing in neighborhoods to address long-standing community needs, building a more sustainable city to meet the challenges of climate change, creating workforce development opportunities to help New Yorkers succeed in 21st century industries, and advancing the growth of both startups and established companies to ensure New York City’s competitive edge.
About Bank of America
Bank of America is one of the world’s leading financial institutions, serving individual consumers, small and middle-market businesses and large corporations with a full range of banking, investing, asset management and other financial and risk management products and services. Bank of America is focused on building financial security and wealth across diverse communities through a comprehensive approach that includes delivering products and services that meet the needs of all clients and investing resources to support our communities and the issues that affect them.
