Arizona State University and SparkLabs Group, a network of accelerators and venture capital funds, has launched a new startup accelerator program for students and alumni.
SparkLabs Frontier-ASU will provide training, mentors and investment funding for participants in the university’s schools and programs, including the engineering, business and global management schools.
“SparkLabs Frontier-ASU’s mission is to identify, nurture and scale the development and growth of outstanding startup founders from ASU’s world-leading blend of engineering, business and management talent and technology,” Frank Meehan, co-founder and partner at SparkLabs Group, said in a statement.
The accelerator program will start in July with applications opening May 13. The four-month program will accept six to eight startups.
The program will be managed by ASU’s Entrepreneurship + Innovation as a complement to existing university entrepreneur programs.
ASU is not investing any money into the program or paying anything to host the program since SparkLabs is funding it through investors, said Bernard Moon, SparkLabs Group co-founder.
“This is structured like a standard venture capital fund where ASU is part of the general partnership,” Moon said.
SparkLabs Frontier-ASU also will offer a pre-accelerator component to help develop individual students and their startup ideas over three to four months. This is designed to improve their chances to be accepted into the primary accelerator program.
The SparkLabs Group, headquartered in Palo Alto, California, is starting a new requirement for 30 percent stock options in the startup, versus the standard 10 to 20 percent for seed-stage startups.
SparkLabs Group includes a number of well-known investors, business leaders and entrepreneurs, including serial entrepreneur and Dallas Mavericks’ owner Mark Cuban; ASU President Michael Crow; and Vizio CEO and founder William Wang.
Source: ASU launches new accelerator – Phoenix Business Journal
