Massachusetts and California startup incubators partner to connect the country’s hottest hubs for cleantech innovation
Somerville, Mass. and San Jose, CA – June 8, 2016 – For years, Massachusetts and California have pioneered the United States’ cleantech innovation efforts to address the global climate crisis. Now two organizations in Boston and Silicon Valley have decided it’s time to come together to support cleantech innovation on both coasts. Recognizing society can go further, faster when innovation communities collaborate, Greentown Labs and Prospect Silicon Valley (ProspectSV) are launching a Network Expansion Program to provide entrepreneurs easy access to resources, strategic partners and investors in new markets, ultimately helping them scale their businesses.
The partnership brings together two of the country’s leading organizations that provide the resources cleantech entrepreneurs need to thrive. Greentown Labs is the nation’s largest cleantech incubator, based in Somerville, Mass., and ProspectSV is the Silicon Valley-based urbantech innovation hub working with industry and government innovators to launch smarter, cleaner solutions in energy, transportation and the built environment. The reciprocal Network Expansion Program will assist startups in market entry and provide access to potential customers and investors.
“Our main mission is to help startups overcome barriers they face in developing their technologies and companies, and we’ve found that entering new markets is often one of the biggest challenges they encounter,” shared Emily Reichert, CEO of Greentown Labs. “Based on data we’ve gathered from our current and alumni member companies, we know our startups frequently travel to California for business so developing this relationship with ProspectSV, in addition to our relationship with the Los Angeles Cleantech Incubator, is a natural fit and extends our strong network in California. Members of our community have already taken advantage of the great resources ProspectSV has to offer and we’re eager to do the same for their startups!”
“We’re excited about our partnership with Greentown Labs. We share a vision when it comes to helping startups, and it’s so important that our respective clients have a landing space on the other coast,” shared Doug Davenport, Founder and CEO of ProspectSV. “As we build out a network of resources and partners across the U.S., we know Greentown Labs is a leading organization helping startups commercialize high-impact technology. We hope to find more ways to collaborate coast to coast.”
The Network Expansion Program: Support, Insights and Participation
The program aims to reduce the friction and barriers startups encounter as they break into the Massachusetts and California cleantech markets. Startups from both organizations will have:
- Free access to temporary desk space when visiting the reciprocal location
- Connections with the host market’s local ecosystem
- Ability to participate in the host location’s events
- Sharing of best practices for commercialization of clean technologies and intellectual property strategy
Greentown Labs has established similar programs with the Los Angeles Cleantech Incubator (LACI) in Los Angeles, Oregon BEST in Portland, Ore., and most recently, NYC ACRE in New York City. Greentown Labs, LACI, Oregon BEST, NYC ACRE and ProspectSV are members of the Incubatenergy Network which provides nationwide coordination of clean energy incubators and stakeholders to share best practices, support of clean energy entrepreneurs and ultimately help facilitate a smoother transition to a more sustainable clean energy economy. Additionally, Greentown Labs has a comparable, independent relationship with the Mid-West Energy Research Consortium in Milwaukee, WI, that’s focused on the growth and economic competitiveness of the Energy, Power & Control Industry cluster across the Midwest Region.