Startup programs
Accelerators and startup programs for dev-tool and AI startups
| Format | Apply | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
Accelerators 12Cohort programs that invest cash in early startups; most take equity and run a few months. | ||||
Standard deal plus the YC network, partner perks and Demo Day. Focus: Any startup, strong on software and AI.
Catch: In person in San Francisco; 7% for $125k plus an uncapped MFN SAFE. | $500,000 | 7% for $125k + $375k uncapped MFN SAFE | 3-month batch in San Francisco (Winter 2027: January to March) | Winter 2027: apply by Nov 2, 8pm PT; later applications still considered |
Mentor-led program with a worldwide application; the same terms apply to most Techstars programs. Focus: Early-stage startups, any sector, worldwide.
Catch: Terms can differ by program; Techstars also takes equity (5% common plus the SAFE's future share). | $220,000 ($200k uncapped MFN SAFE + $20k) | 5% common stock + whatever the MFN SAFE converts to | 3-month program (starts Mar 8, 2027; Demo Day Jun 3, 2027) | Applications open; final deadline Nov 18, 2026 |
Up to $1M in funding, $10M+ in credits, and hands-on help with sales, hiring and fundraising. Focus: Games, consumer, AI and infrastructure founders.
Catch: Program length and equity terms are not published on the page. | Up to $1M plus $10M+ in credits | — | Cohort with Demo Day; apply from anywhere | Apply form; no deadline stated on the page |
You can apply without a co-founder or idea; EF helps you find one and start. Focus: Talented individuals who want to found a deep-tech or AI company.
Catch: Equity share is not stated; the page itself is inconsistent on SF office duration. | Equity-free grant while ideating; up to $250k once a company is formed | — | Pre-team talent investor; cohorts in London, Bangalore and San Francisco | Apply at apply.joinef.com |
Day-zero investor that helps find co-founders and test ideas. Focus: Pre-seed founders, many cities, with a later-stage Elevate track.
Catch: Cheque size and equity are not on the application page. | — | — | Residency-style program in 20+ cities (see site for cohort dates) | Online form by region and stage |
Free, no-equity residency; first checks come only once a founder is ready. Focus: Technical founders and researchers exploring ideas.
Catch: Funding of $1M to $10M applies only to those who are ready; not every member is funded. | $1M to $10M for members ready to build | — | 6-month residency community | Apply on site |
Mentorship, perks above $450k in aggregate, and a virtual Demo Day; founders can be anywhere. Focus: Enterprise AI-SaaS and deeptech startups with enterprise revenue.
Catch: Tuition fee applies, offset by a small optional investment; most grant 5% equity. | Average net $30,000 (optional investment offsets tuition) | Single-digit common equity, most grant 5% | 6-month rolling cohorts; in-person week in the SF Bay Area, then mostly virtual | Rolling deadlines; replies within 3 weeks |
$210k fund investment for cohort teams, workspace, advisors and Demo Day. Focus: Industry-agnostic; prioritises UC-affiliated and international startups.
Catch: Pad-13 teams get no guaranteed investment; equity terms not stated. | $210,000 (cohort teams) | — | 6-month cohort of 20 to 25 teams in Berkeley, plus a lighter Pad-13 track | Batch 23 closed Aug 21, 2026; Batch 24 opens in January |
Mentoring and a global network; also runs regional programs. Focus: Early-stage tech startups.
Catch: Investment terms and open status not shown on the page; some regional programs are regional only. | — | — | Silicon Valley program | See programs page |
Funding plus personalised support for LatAm founders. Focus: Latin American tech startups.
Catch: Open status and equity are not stated on the page. | US$300,000 | — | Regional program | See programs page |
A residency built for people who have founded companies before. Focus: Repeat founders.
Catch: Investment terms and location are not on the homepage; repeat founders only. | — | — | Residency with batches (September and January starts listed) | Apply at hf0.com/apply |
A grant for young builders who skip or leave college. Focus: Young people building new things.
Catch: Aimed at young people who skip or stop out of college. | $250,000 grant over two years | — | Two-year fellowship | Apply via the site |
AI programs 6Programs from AI and cloud companies that give credits, tools or equity-free support to AI startups. | ||||
Equity-free support with Google and industry mentors and early access to Google AI products. Focus: Technical startups, ideally using AI and machine learning.
Catch: Application windows differ by region and are not listed on this page. | Equity-free | — | Cohorts of 10 to 15; mix of remote and in-person; Americas, EMEA and APAC | Pick a regional accelerator on the site |
Up to $350,000 in Google Cloud credits over two years, plus support credits. Focus: AI-first startups that use Google's AI platform or Gemini.
Catch: Needs seed to Series A VC funding, founded in the last 10 years; third-party models are billed. | Up to $350,000 in credits | — | Credits over two years | Apply on cloud.google.com/startup |
Free training, cloud credits from NVIDIA and partners, hardware pricing, and VC introductions. Focus: AI and data-science startups.
Catch: No set credit amount; needs incorporation, a website and a developer; under 10 years old. | Free membership | — | Ongoing membership; no cohorts or deadlines | Rolling via the Inception portal |
Azure credits for AI models and developer tools. Focus: Startups building on AI, models and developer tools.
Catch: Eligibility criteria are not listed on this page. | Up to $150,000 in Azure credits | — | Credits and tools | Apply via the Get started page |
API credits, a year of Claude Team, and partner offers. Focus: Startups building on the Claude API.
Catch: Credits expire after six months; first-party API only; founded within 5 years or funded within 2. | $1,000 API credits; up to $45K partner offers; up to $100K more via partner VCs | — | Credits and perks | Apply in Claude Console; most decided within minutes |
 Founders tier for bootstrapped teams; Portfolio tier for funded ones. Focus: Startups on AWS, including AI.
Catch: Pre-series B, founded in last 10 years; the AI tier is invite-only. | Founders up to $5,000; Portfolio up to $200,000; AI $200,000+ | — | Credit tiers by funding stage | Apply directly (Founders) or via a provider org ID (Portfolio) |
Dev-tool and infra perks 4Cloud, payments and tooling credits that cut early-stage costs for software startups. | ||||
Cloud credits plus enterprise-tier services (WAF, CDN, DDoS) free. Focus: Early-stage tech startups.
Catch: One-time per startup; credits last a year; higher tiers need a partner funder. | $10k, $100k or $350k credit tiers by funding raised | — | Credits for one year | Apply online; review up to 48 hours |
Credits for DigitalOcean cloud services. Focus: AI-native and software startups raised $10M or less.
Catch: Core credits exclude GPU, serverless inference and third-party models; unused credits are forfeited. | — | — | Credits for about 12 months | Apply via form; choose Other if no partner |
Credits against Stripe fees, capped invoicing fee, and founder community; Atlas forms a Delaware C corp. Focus: Venture-backed startups.
Catch: Credit amount and duration not on the page; aimed at venture-backed startups. | — | — | Fee credits and perks | Apply on site |
50% off IDE, team tool and JetBrains AI subscriptions. Focus: Privately owned software startups.
Catch: Company must be under 5 years old; one use per organisation; not combinable with other discounts. | 50% off up to 10 seats per product group | — | Discount for five years | Reviewed within 48 hours |
Open-source programs and grants 5Non-dilutive programs that fund open-source work. | ||||
Cash, security training, Security Lab office hours and Azure credits. Focus: Open-source maintainers improving security.
Catch: Roughly 20 hours of commitment; selected applicants are interviewed. | $10,000 per project plus $10,000 Azure credits | — | 3-week security program with 6 and 12 month check-ins | Rolling; apply by Microsoft form |
Grants for open-licence technical work. Focus: Open-source software, hardware and content, mainly European.
Catch: Needs a European dimension; AI-generated proposals not accepted. | First grants EUR 5,000 to 50,000 | — | Grants | Next deadline Nov 3, 2026, 12:00 CET |
Funds development and maintenance of widely used open-source infrastructure. Focus: Open digital base technologies.
Catch: Costs must exceed EUR 50,000; contract start about 6 months after submission; no prototypes. | Minimum project cost EUR 50,000 | — | Financing or work commissions | Apply at apply.sovereign.tech; page does not say if open now |
Funds include Internet Freedom, Rapid Response and FOSS Sustainability. Focus: Internet freedom and censorship-circumvention tools.
Catch: Limited to internet-freedom technology; amounts not shown on the page. | — | — | Several funds | Apply at apply.opentech.fund; open status per fund |
Non-dilutive government R&D funding. Focus: US small businesses with R&D-heavy technology.
Catch: US small businesses only; each agency sets its own deadlines and topics. | Phase I up to $323,090; Phase II up to $2,153,927 (without waiver) | — | Phase I and Phase II awards through federal agencies | Agency solicitations; see sbir.gov/apply |
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FAQ
Which accelerator is best for a developer-tool startup?+
Y Combinator and Techstars take the most dev-tool companies and give the broadest network; a16z speedrun suits consumer-leaning and AI products. If you want to keep equity, start with the equity-free programs (Google for Startups, cloud credit tiers) and open-source grants.
Are there equity-free programs?+
Yes. The AI programs and dev-tool perks on this page are equity-free (credits, mentoring, go-to-market help), and the open-source programs are grants. Accelerators that invest cash take equity; the exact terms are listed per program.
How current is this list?+
Every program was checked on its official page on 2026-10-08. Deadlines and terms change, so confirm on the program's site before applying.