NEW YORK and PHILADELPHIA, March 24, 2016 /PRNewswire/ — Leading global startup accelerator Dreamit announced today the new cohort of companies accepted to its inaugural 2016 cycle. The 25 accepted companies, representing twice the number Dreamit has accelerated in previous cycles, will be the first class to participate in the newly evolved program.
The selected startups were chosen from an applicant pool of nearly 1,000 companies from over 40 countries based on metrics including the strength of the team, uniqueness of insights into the problems they are solving, and their capacity to revolutionize the industries in which they operate: healthcare and education.
“Dreamit set out to reimagine acceleration in a way that would create greater value for our startups, partners, and investors by breaking down barriers to innovation and attracting a broader range of entrepreneurs,” said Dreamit CEO Avi Savar. “The 25 companies we are announcing, who are based all around the world and represent different stages of the startup lifecycle, are proof that we have succeeded. We are honored to welcome these incredibly talented and passionate founders into the Dreamit network.”
Dreamit last year announced significant changes to its model to attract a more diverse cohort of startups, including later stage companies that have already received funding and would not typically consider an accelerator. Key upgrades include introducing a “Zero/Zero” offer to allow entrepreneurs to participate without giving up equity, removing the relocation requirement, and adding more customer touch points to allow startups to receive commercial validation and build out their pipelines earlier in the four month program. Additionally, instead of a traditional accelerator Demo Day, Dreamit will now curate targeted investor meetings for companies during a two week bi-coastal investor roadshow at the conclusion of the 16 weeks.
For the first time this year, accepted companies will begin their immersion into startup methodology at Destination Dreamit, a summit bringing together top VCs, Dreamit alumni, and industry thought leaders. The companies will then spend 16 weeks testing their assumptions, iterating their products, growing their pipelines, meeting customers, and interacting with their assigned mentors and advisors.
Dreamit Health, now entering its 4th year of partnership with Penn Medicine and Independence Blue Cross, has added a new partnership with Zimmer Biomet this year as well as increased the number of startups in its cohort thanks to a prestigious Blackstone Innovation Grant. Dreamit EdTech, a new vertical leveraging the demonstrated success of an industry-focused model, is launching this year in partnership with Penn State University.
Dreamit Health and Dreamit EdTech will run simultaneously in New York and Philadelphia with companies participating remotely from Israel, Canada and Mexico. Dreamit is planning to roll out more verticals and innovation hubs later this year.
Dreamit Health 2016 Cycle I Companies
Dreamit EdTech 2016 Cycle I Companies
About Dreamit
Ranked one of the top 10 accelerators in the world by Forbes and a top 20 most active venture investor by the National Venture Capital Association and PricewaterhouseCoopers, Dreamit focuses on bringing the right people together to drive progressive innovation and real business velocity. Dreamit has launched over 220 startups that have gone on to raise in excess of $275M and are collectively worth in excess of$1B including LevelUp, SeatGeek, BioBots, Biomeme, Adaptly, Meerkat, and more.
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