In 2016, Oracle launched an India-based accelerator program to support innovation by young companies building cloud services applications.
Just one year later, the tech behemoth expanded the program to seven more locations: Bristol, Delhi, Mumbai, Paris, Sao Paolo, Singapore and Tel Aviv.
Noticeably absent? The United States.
That is, until now.
Today, the company announced the opening of its first U.S.-based accelerator program, which our beloved Austin will play host to.
Austin and the State of Texas are thriving centers of innovation, and we are proud to dive in and support the startup community.”
“Austin and the State of Texas are thriving centers of innovation, and we are proud to dive in and support the startup community,” said JD Weinstein, head of Oracle Startup Ecosystem in Austin, in a statement.
The Oracle Startup Cloud Accelerator, a six-month residential program, will include five to six stateside startups at the seed stage that serve enterprise clients. Participants in the program will become part of Oracle’s Global Startup Ecosystem, which connects promising young companies with Oracle’s huge network of enterprise customers.
“‘Oracle’ and ‘startup’ are rarely in the same sentence unless it’s about Oracle acquiring a startup,” said Weinstein. “We’re not starting from scratch, but we’re starting from an image that people don’t even know that Oracle collaborates with startups.”
But that perception is changing, especially as more startups see immediate success after graduating from the program.
Take for instance 3D Signals, a sound-based predictive maintenance IoT platform that completed Oracle’s Tel Aviv accelerator last year.
CEO Amnon Shenfeld said being a part of the accelerator was “game-changing.” His startup’s participation resulted in Oracle selling 3D Signals technology, and landed the company an invite to the Oracle Modern Supply Chain Experience conference — as the only startup in attendance.
“This is where we won the lottery,” said Shenfeld.
Unlike most accelerators, Oracle does not request equity ownership from the startups in exchange for participation. It’s also unique in that those accepted will have front-row access to more than 430,000 of Oracle’s clients, as well as to Oracle’s technology, mentorship, investor network and free Oracle cloud credits.
Those selected for Austin’s program will cowork out of Capital Factory, where Weinstein previously served as a venture associate.
“We’re excited about our partnership and collaboration with Capital Factory,” said Weinstein. “With all of its different partners, and it being a mecca for entrepreneurship in Austin and the rest of Texas, this will only amplify the connectivity of what we’re trying to accomplish with this program.”
The accelerator marks Oracle’s latest commitment to the Austin tech scene, following the March opening of its new East Austin office, fit for up to 10,000 employees.
Applications for the accelerator are now open through August 7, with the first cohort slated to begin in September.
