// When the user wants to apply to startup accelerators, incubators, or fellowship programs. Also use when the user mentions "YC application", "Techstars", "accelerator", or "apply to programs".
When the user needs to design or evaluate system architecture — service boundaries, data models, API contracts, infrastructure topology, database selection, or dependency analysis. Also activate for "design the system", "how should I architect this", "monolith vs microservices", or architecture decision records.
When the user needs to write a monthly or quarterly investor update, prepare a board deck, or communicate company progress to stakeholders.
When the user needs to identify at-risk accounts, understand why customers are leaving, reduce churn rate, build health scores, design save plays, or create win-back campaigns.
When the user needs to set up or improve CI/CD pipelines — GitHub Actions, GitLab CI, deployment automation, or says "set up CI", "automate deployment", "add tests to pipeline", "fix my build".
When the user asks for a code review, shares code for feedback, or says "review this", "check my code", "what's wrong with this". Also activate when reviewing a pull request or diff.
When a founder needs to write cold emails or LinkedIn messages to prospects, partners, or investors. Activate when the user mentions cold email, outbound, prospecting, LinkedIn outreach, or needs help getting replies from people who don't know them.
| name | accelerator-application |
| description | When the user wants to apply to startup accelerators, incubators, or fellowship programs. Also use when the user mentions "YC application", "Techstars", "accelerator", or "apply to programs". |
| related | ["pitch-deck","fundraising-email","investor-research"] |
| reads | ["startup-context"] |
| Program | Website | Investment | Equity | Duration | Location | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Y Combinator | ycombinator.com | $500K ($125K for 7% + $375K uncapped MFN SAFE) | 7% (on $125K portion) | 3 months | San Francisco | Technical founders, fast-growing startups at any stage |
| Techstars | techstars.com | $120K | 6% | 3 months | Multiple cities | Coachable founders, strong mentor network needs |
| 500 Global | 500.co | $150K | 5% | 4 months | San Francisco | International founders, diverse backgrounds |
| Antler | antler.co | $250K | 8-10% | 6 months | NYC, Austin | Pre-team / pre-idea founders looking for co-founders |
| Launch Accelerator | launchaccelerator.co | $100K | 6% | 3 months | San Francisco | Consumer and SaaS, media exposure via TWIST network |
| Entrepreneur First | joinef.com | $80-125K | ~10% | 6 months | NYC, London, global | Pre-team, build with a co-founder from the cohort |
| South Park Commons | southparkcommons.com | Fellowship | No equity | Ongoing | San Francisco | Experienced operators exploring what to build next |
| Pioneer | pioneer.app | $20K | 1% | Remote | Rolling (weekly) | Very early stage, global, remote-first |
| HF0 | hf0.com | Fellowship + community | No equity | Ongoing | San Francisco | Deeply technical founders, hacker community, ex-FAANG builders |
| Program | Website | Focus | Investment | Location |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| a16z Speedrun | a16z.com/speedrun | Consumer tech | $750K | San Francisco |
| Neo | neo.com | Enterprise / deep tech | Varies | San Francisco |
| Alchemist Accelerator | alchemistaccelerator.com | Enterprise sales | $36K | San Francisco |
| Dreamit Ventures | dreamit.com | HealthTech, UrbanTech | $50-100K | Philadelphia / NYC |
| Plug and Play | plugandplaytechcenter.com | Industry verticals | Varies (no equity) | Sunnyvale |
| ERA (Entrepreneur Roundtable) | era.co | NYC ecosystem | $100K | New York |
| Gener8tor | gener8tor.com | Midwest / emerging markets | $100K | Milwaukee, multiple |
| Founders Factory | foundersfactory.com | Corporate-backed verticals | Varies | NYC, London |
| Boomtown Accelerator | boomtownaccelerators.com | Media, tech, sustainability | $50K | Boulder, CO |
| Mucker Capital | muckercapital.com | B2B SaaS, consumer | $150K | Los Angeles |
| Indie Bio | indiebio.co | Biotech / life sciences | $250K | San Francisco |
| HAX | hax.co | Hardware / deep tech | $250K | Newark, NJ |
| Techstars AI | techstars.com | AI-native startups | $120K | Multiple |
| Google for Startups Accelerator | startup.google.com | AI, Cloud, various | $0 (no equity) | Multiple |
| Microsoft for Startups | microsoft.com/startups | Cloud / AI | Credits (no equity) | Remote |
| AWS Activate | aws.amazon.com/activate | Cloud infrastructure | Credits (no equity) | Remote |
| Program | Website | Focus | Location |
|---|---|---|---|
| MassChallenge | masschallenge.org | Social impact, any sector ($0, no equity) | Boston, multiple |
| StartX (Stanford) | startx.com | Stanford-affiliated | Palo Alto |
| Creative Destruction Lab | creativedestructionlab.com | Science-based ventures | Multiple |
| NSF I-Corps | icorps.nsf.gov | Deep tech commercialization | National |
| SBIR/STTR | sbir.gov | Government R&D grants | National |
| Lassonde Entrepreneur Institute | lassonde.utah.edu | Student founders | Salt Lake City |
| Berkeley SkyDeck | skydeck.berkeley.edu | UC Berkeley-affiliated | Berkeley |
| MIT delta v | entrepreneurship.mit.edu | MIT-affiliated | Cambridge |
| Columbia Startup Lab | startup.columbia.edu | Columbia-affiliated | New York |
| Carnegie Mellon Swartz Center | cmu.edu/swartz-center | CMU-affiliated | Pittsburgh |
Note: Terms, investment amounts, and equity percentages change frequently. Verify current terms on each program's website before applying.
## Accelerator Application Plan
### Recommended Programs (ranked by fit)
1. **[Program]** — [why it's a fit] | Deadline: [date] | Apply: [link]
2. ...
### Core Narrative
- **One-liner:** [what you do in one sentence]
- **Problem:** [2-3 sentences]
- **Solution:** [2-3 sentences]
- **Why now:** [1-2 sentences]
- **Traction:** [key metrics]
- **Team:** [why you're the right people]
- **Unique insight:** [what you know that others don't]
### [Program Name] Application Draft
**Q: [Question from application]**
A: [Draft answer within word limit]
...
### Interview Prep
**30-second pitch:** [draft]
**Common questions and answers:**
- "What do you understand that others don't?" — [answer]
- "How do you acquire users/customers?" — [answer]
- "What's the biggest risk?" — [answer]
- "Why hasn't this been done before?" — [answer]
- "What will you do if this doesn't work?" — [answer]
What top accelerators look for:
Application writing principles:
Common mistakes:
pitch-deck — accelerator interviews often involve a short pitchfundraising-email — for follow-up communication with program partnersinvestor-research — accelerator partners are also investorsPrompt: "Help me apply to YC for the next batch. We're a developer tools startup with 500 users."
Good output includes: Tailored YC application draft with concise answers to each question, emphasis on technical depth and growth rate, a 60-second video script, and interview prep focused on YC's known question patterns.
Prompt: "What accelerators should I apply to for my healthtech startup? We're pre-revenue but have LOIs from 3 hospitals."
Good output includes: Filtered list prioritizing Dreamit (HealthTech focus), YC (strong health portfolio), and relevant sector programs. Application strategy emphasizing LOIs as traction signal.