Accelerate VI: Empowering Technology Firms in the US Virgin Islands

About ACCELERATE VI

The University of Virgin Islands Research and Technology Park (RTPark) is excited to introduce ACCELERATE VI, a three-month, intensive business acceleration program designed to help local high-growth startup founders scale their companies. The program provides early-stage companies with the tools they need to grow and develop in the US Virgin Islands.

About the Program

The Accelerate VI program is designed to help technology firms grow and scale by providing:

* Access to capital
* Mentorship
* Office space
* Partnership credits
* Curriculum/education
* Export promotion and technical assistance
* Legal office hours

The program’s goal is to focus on growing and expanding local VI technology firms, which will lead to tangible benefits for the local economy.

Meet the 2019 Cohort

The RTPark is proud to announce the first cohort of ACCELERATE VI, consisting of eight companies – six of which are local firms. The companies include GRIND Basketball, Harbor Shoppers, Qore, Promo Juice, ShoreIQ, OFT Labs, FarmPod, and Avera.

The program will conclude with a Demo Day event open to the community, where cohort members will pitch their companies in a “Shark Tank” style format. The event will take place on October 24, 2019, at 5:30 pm in the Conference Room of the Company House Hotel.

“We believe Accelerate VI will have an outsized impact on the Virgin Islands entrepreneurial ecosystem due to the comprehensive array of services we’re providing,” said Peter H. Chapman, Executive Director of the RTPark. “We can now confidently and legitimately describe the RTPark as a holistic tech-based economic development organization.”

“For us, ACCELERATE VI’s work to develop local tech firms and cultivate local talent provides a crucial foundation to diversify our economy, while making us more resilient,” said Eric Sonnier, Director of Business Attraction and Entrepreneurship.

Technology firms represent the future of our national and international economy. They spur innovative industries and a knowledge-based economy that will position the territory as a competitive leader in the Caribbean, as communities compete for the world’s top tech firms and talent,” Sonnier said.

Conclusion

Accelerate VI represents a paradigm shift for the RTPark, demonstrating a more aggressive business model and implementing a signature program to help promising local and non-local tech firms fulfill their potential to move to the next level.