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scale your innovation

Is your start-up ready for new markets?

Validate.Global is a free business development program for entrepreneurs who create innovative solutions and want to scale to fast-growing markets in Africa.

Why

how

what

The African continent is home to over 1 billion people, with a very young population of 75% under 30 years old and made up of 54 different countries and cultures. Each country has its own unique challenges and opportunities that can be addressed by technology and innovation.

Going the way of scaling to fast-growing markets alone can be daunting. Market validation requires both in-depth knowledge and local expertise. This is where Validate.global comes into play. We truly believe in the power of innovation through entrepreneurship – and want to help you realise that potential.

Validate.global is a free 6-month business development program that aims to scale the business and impact of international startups.

The goal is to scale the impact of international entrepreneurs creating innovative products and services in agriculture, health and food by helping them to explore and validate new markets in Ghana, Nigeria or Rwanda.

The program is led by Impact Hub Vienna and INiTS, with funding support from the Austrian Development Agency.

 

 

Validate.global combines the forces of international entrepreneurial ecosystems to provide comprehensive entrepreneurial support and access to an international network of potential co-creation partners.

Together with our international partners we provide a soft landing infrastructure, services and expertise (valued at over € 26.000,-) for the startups to expand their solutions to the new markets.

15 startups tackling global challenges with innovative solutions will have the chance to join the program.

 

 

Why

The African continent is home to over 1 billion people, with a very young population of 75% under 30 years old and made up of 54 different countries and cultures. Each country has its own unique challenges and opportunities that can be addressed by technology and innovation.

Going the way of scaling to fast-growing markets alone can be daunting. Market validation requires both in-depth knowledge and local expertise. This is where Validate.global comes into play. We truly believe in the power of innovation through entrepreneurship – and want to help you realise that potential.

how

Validate.global is a free 6-month business development program that aims to scale the business and impact of international startups.

The goal is to scale the impact of international entrepreneurs creating innovative products and services in agriculture, health and food by helping them to explore and validate new markets in Ghana, Nigeria or Rwanda.

The program is led by Impact Hub Vienna and INiTS, with funding support from the Austrian Development Agency.



what

Validate.global combines the forces of international entrepreneurial ecosystems to provide comprehensive entrepreneurial support and access to an international network of potential co-creation partners.

Together with our international partners we provide a soft landing infrastructure, services and expertise (valued at over € 26.000,-) for the startups to expand their solutions to the new markets.

15 startups tackling global challenges with innovative solutions will have the chance to join the program.

 

 

POWERED BY

why join Validate.global?

15 selected startups will receive a grant that is valued at over € 26.000,- and is structured as a combination of in-kind services and financial support, incl. the following:

M A R K E T  I N T E L L I G E N C E  S U P P O R T :

  • Deep dive into doing business in the target countries, including industry-specific insights and legal requirements targeted to the individual needs of the startup.
  • Overview and exploration of the ecosystem landscape and mapping the relevant partners.

P I L O T  S U P P O R T :

  • Comprehensive support in structuring and setting up the pilot project in the target country (Proof of Concept)
  • Creating a working business and impact strategy
  • Identification and connection to the relevant stakeholders and partners

T R A V E L  S U P P O R T :

  • Facilitation of business trip to the target country to boost the pilot implementation and strengthen the relationships with local partners
  • Up to € 3.500,- reimbursement for travel to the target country and extra travel budget for your trip to Vienna (program home-base).

N E T W O R K  S U P P O R T :

  • You will benefit from INiTS expertise in innovation management and Impact Hub Local Networks while being part of an international community of innovators.

V I S I B I L I T Y :

  • Validate.global will provide opportunities to promote your business in several international events and social media and link your business with hand-picked local and international partners.

who should apply

Validate.global aims to support entrepreneurs and start-ups with the following profile:

You are offering solutions in either the food, health or agriculture industry

You make a difference with an innovative and technology-driven product/service

You are incorporated in Europe or considering to be incorporated in Europe in the future

You developed an operational product or service (at least a functional prototype) and are willing step into one of our target markets

You seek the right partners to run a pilot in the target markets

how can you apply?

application is Closed 

I know for sure that WisR would not exist if I hadn’t found the Impact Hub two years ago. I found a community of other founders, friends, and mentors, and learned a lot about how to develop a product, build a sustainable business model, and how to measure the impact of our service.

Klaudia Bachinger – Founder & CEO of WisR https://www.growwisr.com/

In the beginning, Impact Hub was a workspace in order to separate my different projects. Quickly though, it turned into much more with the community becoming my anchor which helped me to not lose faith and encouraged me during difficult times.

Stefan Steinberger – Founder & CEO of refugeescode http://www.refugeescode.at/

We received a 360-degree support from INiTS right from the start. The team is incomparable supportive, internationally very well connected and highly experienced in all aspects of founding, funding and growing a business. The program was perfectly tailored to our needs, no question left open – this was absolutely crucial for our success!”

Isabell Claus – Managing Director of thinkers.ai https://www.thinkers.ai/

I burn for topics where I see the world burn. With the support of Impact Hub Vienna, I could learn how to make a living with it, too.

David Brunmayr – Founder & CEO of Obstraupe https://www.obstraupe.at/

“We at SidekickHealth made great progress with the support of the Health Hub Vienna [INiTS’ spinoff] team. The program is very well organized, professional, and time-efficient. I would advise every health startup with international ambitions to apply. The Health Hub Vienna team did an amazing job and during the program, we accelerated our business significantly. It is highly recommended!”

Sam Oddsson – Founder, SidekickHealth

Who we are

Impact Hub Vienna and INiTS bring over 25 years of experience in fostering success of impact- and technology-driven startups. Together we aim at building a strong international network of co-creation partners innovating for global goals.

Since 2002 INiTS supports technology-driven startups with high growth potential in various stages of development. We have a strong track record of boosting the performance of early stage ventures achieving a 30 percentage points higher survival rate and three times higher export success rate than average. Health Hub Vienna, the spin-off of INiTS, has fostered collaboration between international growth stage ventures and corporations in the areas of healthcare and life sciences, resulting in numerous pilots and long-term partnerships.

Impact Hub is a diverse community of founders, creatives, investors, established companies and NGOs who have one thing in common–we believe bold, entrepreneurial ideas can change society for the better. At Impact Hub, people innovate with heart, balancing social responsibility with profitability to build a world that works for all.

mustafa ozer

content & Program Director

Rozaliia
Pait

Program lead

Peter Tschuchnig

partnerships & Program Manager

Diego Heatherman

Venture Manager

thomas mayerhofer

program Manager

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