Chile, LATAM, United Kingdom, Spain, Germany, Ecuador and Brazil: 64 Startups will join the BIG 11 Generation
64 startups were selected by the Corfo public accelerator, which will receive funds of up to $75 million. 32% of them are foreign and more than half use Artificial Intelligence; focusing on innovative solutions for agriculture and natural resources.
After a record call of 1,337 applications from technological startups worldwide, Start-Up Chile, the public accelerator of Corfo, selected 64 startups that will be part of BIG 11, the new generation of Build, Ignite and Growth acceleration programs.
The selected startups will begin an acceleration process starting from March of this year and will receive co-financing of up to $75 million, in addition to free co-work space, mentorships, and connections with investors and corporations.
Of the 64 startups that will make up the Generation BIG 11, 68% are of Chilean origin and 32% are foreign, mainly from Peru, Mexico, Argentina, and Colombia. There are also representatives from the United Kingdom, Spain, Germany, Ecuador, and Brazil.
Foreign ventures receive a support process upon their arrival in Chile, through which a two-year work visa is issued.
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As for the industries of BIG 11 start-ups, most of the generation is aimed at agriculture and natural resources (18%). Among them are Vacavision (Colombia) and MIIDO (Chile). They are followed by IT Tools (11%), Retail (9%), Education (9%), and Health and Biotechnology (7%).
Moreover, almost half of the selected ones are based on Artificial Intelligence (45%), establishing itself as the main technology for current innovative solutions. Others added to the portfolio are cloud computing, digital payments and blockchain.
On the other hand, only in the Build program - aimed at early-stage startups - women have 52% of representation, with startups such as Kuidda (Peru) and Geo2mill (Chile). Generally, 24% of the projects are led by a woman, who receive special support, exclusive networking opportunities and even an additional percentage of co-financing in the Ignite and Growth stages, through the Female Founder Factor initiative, which aims to reduce the gender gap in technological entrepreneurship.
Distribution by Program
In Build, focused on startups from idea stage until they have an MVP (Minimum Viable Product), 17 projects were selected, which will receive co-financing of $15 million. Among them are Localy (Peru) and PawZone (Chile).
Ignite is the largest program, with 31 startups. It is aimed at projects that already have a functional product and are seeking to achieve product-market fit. Some of them are Tintte (Argentina) and Kunzapp (Mexico), to whom a fund of $30 million will be given.
The most advanced stage is Growth, which aims to support startups in expansion, capital raising and team growth. Among the 16 projects that will receive this co-financing of $75 million are Suncast (Chile) and Localshop (Chile).
"The public policy of Start-Up Chile has been able to transcend administrations thanks to its contribution to positioning our country as a relevant market, not only for doing business, but especially for entrepreneurship and innovation. In addition to the economic impact this acceleration program has generated, through job creation and tax payments, it also stands out for the cultural exchange that takes place between entrepreneurs from different parts of the world and from various industries, sharing this intensive growth experience, which can be very transformative," affirms the Executive Vice President of Corfo, Jos茅 Miguel Benavente.
"Every time we choose a new generation, we see reflected some of the most pressing needs that various industries have. Among the startups selected for BIG 11, we are excited to see so many projects related to mining and agriculture, two tremendously important sectors for the productivity of our country. Also to be able to know more female founders who are developing startups in the biotechnology and energy world, for example, which undoubtedly open new opportunities to advance towards more innovative and sustainable solutions for future challenges," comments the executive director of Start-Up Chile, Javiera Araneda.