TAMPA, FL (January 9, 2018) – Tampa Bay Wave, Inc., a nonprofit dedicated to building, launching, and growing tech companies in Tampa Bay, is now officially a member of GAN, a highly curated community of independent accelerators, partners, and investors that create opportunities for startups around the world to access the human and financial capital they need. Membership in GAN means Tampa Bay Wave is among the more than 90 industry-best accelerators in the GAN community—which span more than 120 cities and six continents across the globe—including TechStars, Microsoft Accelerator, Sprint Accelerator, Telluride Venture Accelerator, AlphaLab, gener8tor, and MuckerLab. Accelerator programs must meet strict criteria in order to be eligible for membership and Tampa Bay Wave will be the first GAN member in the state of Florida.
“For seven years, GAN Accelerators have given more than 4,700 startups the power to create and grow their businesses, wherever they are. As we’ve watched Tampa Bay Wave’s accelerator program grow over the past few years, it’s evident they are supporting companies in meaningful ways,” said Patrick Riley, CEO of GAN. “Because of that track record and their overall ethos, we’re thrilled to have Tampa Bay Wave be a part of GAN, and look forward to all they will bring to the community, both in the United States and across the world.”
Joining GAN will allow Tampa Bay Wave to work with leading industry players and to offer its startups international opportunities of training and networking. With the strength of this powerful network, GAN supports accelerators by collecting useful industry data and best practices to attract the best deal flow and investors to support accelerators internationally.
All accelerators inside GAN offer short-term acceleration programs based on mentorship, with significantly favorable terms and conditions for entrepreneurs and excellent results. Tampa Bay Wave organizes a 90-day Accelerator Program for tech startups in Tampa Bay. Graduating companies can continue to receive support from Wave, including peer mastermind groups, investment readiness preparation, ongoing access to the mentor network, and various partner perks, as well as connections to customers and investors.
As one of Florida’s top tech business accelerator programs, Wave launched its accelerator program in March 2013, which has supported a total of 112 startups in less than five years, including 13 startups in its current accelerator cohort and another 38 startups being supported with post-accelerator services. To date, the startups supported by Tampa Bay Wave’s accelerator program have raised over $94 million and have created and retained 871 jobs (including 601 W2 jobs and 270 1099 jobs).
“For us, joining GAN is not only a recognition of the quality of program we have built, but also will help us to provide even more value and critical support to the startups in our program,” remarked Linda Olson, President of Tampa Bay Wave. “Ultimately, joining GAN is another big step for our community and our mission so that we can foster a greater critical mass of exciting and fundable tech startups right here in Tampa Bay.”
To learn more about Tampa Bay Wave’s accelerator program, visit tampabaywave.org/accelerator
ABOUT TAMPA BAY WAVE:
Tampa Bay Wave, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit providing local entrepreneurs with facilitated access to the resources, expertise and capital they need to grow vibrant technology-based companies in Tampa Bay and create high wage tech jobs, thus fostering an innovation-based economy for the region. Since March 2013, Tampa Bay Wave has supported more than 200 tech startups in Tampa Bay thanks to grant funding from the U.S. Economic Development Administration (EDA) and the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA), plus support from its economic development partners Hillsborough County and the City of Tampa. Tampa Bay Wave also receives support from corporate partners such as Bank of America, Florida Blue, Foley & Lardner, Sourcetoad, Spectrum, Sykes Enterprises, Tampa Bay Rays, TECO, Trenam Law, and Tribridge. For more information, visit www.tampabaywave.org.