In the European version of Monopoly, Riga the capital city of Latvia is always the most expensive and profitable field on the board. Wondering why? It finds its reflection in the fact that in the European startup ecosystem, this country is one the most desirable one to set up and develop a startup thanks to a well-developed community of young entrepreneurs, governmental support and respectable incubators and accelerators. Moreover, it has the conditions for a flourishing startup environment, like convenient coworking spaces.
So now, after the short introduction of Latvian startup ecosystem significance, let’s discover best accelerators and incubators that contributed to its growth!
Commercialization Reactor
You can read a lot about Commercialization Reactor from the name itself. It’s a Latvia-based platform that aims to commercialize technological companies and help them enter the market by transforming innovative, scientific discoveries into profitable businesses.
Their 6-month acceleration program is looking for B2B early-stage startups from the science or deeptech industry. The program consists of two main parts - the first one Entry level offers workshops, one-on-one mentoring, and group meetings with brainstorming sessions. After completing the mentioned level, teams are ready to participate in the Advanced Level which focuses on the individual needs of the startups by providing them with coaching sessions and meeting with industry experts. The good news is that the program is free of charge and additionally, and you can get up to 50k EUR investment.
Buildit
Looking at Buildit’s portfolio is like watching a good sci-fi movie that takes place in the future, except that the developed products are attainable now. Buildit is an accelerator for IoT and hardware startups, turning ideas into attractive, market-worthy businesses.
The program consists of 3 stages: build up, build it and build out. The stages include establishing legal entities, networking, idea validation and workshops that cover all essential topics for a young entrepreneur such as product development, marketing, design thinking, sales and pitch training.
The goal of this acceleration program is to prepare the startups with the necessary skill-set for the fundraising process, as they say, “An idea is worth nothing until it is executed.”
EIT Urban Mobility Incubator
Urban mobility accounts for more than 40% of all CO2 emissions of road transport. The fact that today’s world is facing a climate catastrophe makes those statistics even more horrifying. EIT Urban Mobility Incubator answers that issue having a strong social impact purpose - it supports projects that aim to transform urban mobility, cut avoidable costs and contribute to accomplishing climate targets.
The 10-week program takes place in Riga and is filled with workshops, mentoring sessions, personalized business coaching and industry networking. Moreover, accepted teams have access to R&D infrastructure and can get up to 6000 EUR pilot financing.
What distinguishes Urban Mobility Incubator from other programs is the fact that it enables constant consultation with the City of Riga and fast track to other European cities.
UL Student Business Incubator
Every rose has its thorn and every European University has a program supporting startups development. The University of Latvia runs a Student Business Incubator that offers various startup-related projects for future entrepreneurs.
Twice a year students of the University of Latvia may apply to the incubation program lasting for 24 weeks in total. During the first 8 months, teams develop their ideas, participate in speed dating sessions with experts, slowly shape the project into a possible startup and finally present it in front of the jury at the time of Demo Day. 15 best teams move on to the second round of the program and for the following 16 weeks they continue to gain knowledge through workshops, mentoring and collaboration with other teams. In the second stage, each startup receives a grant of 1800 EUR per team for prototype development, material purchase and consultancy.
Latvian Government Assistance
Possibly the government support does not fall within the scope of an accelerator or an incubator, however, it plays a huge role in the fast development of the Latvian startup ecosystem.
The Latvian government has a special interest and determination in stimulating the development of the startup network, therefore funding is provided at various stages: idea and conceptualization, initiation, development and expansion. What is more, a governmental initiative called Law on Aid for the Activities of Start-up Companies implements a favorable tax system for startups which results in an increased number of Latvian-based firms. It is all about reducing financial risk and operating costs for young entrepreneurs.
Apart from the accelerators and incubators, Latvia can boast a wide range of tech parks such as RTU Design Factory a platform for students that promotes the development of innovative ideas and mutual cooperation providing network of professional contacts with industry leaders, or UL and Microsoft Innovation Centre that aims to strengthen cooperation between industry professionals, the public sector, government, scientists, students and entrepreneurs.
Want to discover more accelerators and incubators from other countries? Check out the list below.
Top Accelerators and Incubators from:
- Round-up Of The Best Accelerators In The CEE Region
- Albania
- Austria
- Belgium
- Bulgaria
- Croatia
- Cyprus
- Czech Republic
- Denmark
- Estonia
- France
- Finland
- Germany
- Greece
- Hungary
- Ireland
- Italy
- Lithuania
- Netherlands
- Norway
- Poland
- Portugal
- Romania
- Slovakia
- Spain
- Switzerland
- Türkiye
- Ukraine
- United Kingdom
- Western Balkans.
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Best Startup Accelerators and Incubators In Slovakia (by Dorota Potępa, Community Builder, Vestbee)
Best Startup Accelerators and Incubators In Romania (by Dorota Potępa, Community Builder, Vestbee)
