Roux Institute shuts down the Techstars accelerator
❄️ Good morning. This is the 265th edition of Maine Startups Insider and, unfortunately, is the bearer of sad news: the Roux Institute Techstars Accelerator is no more. I’ll get right to the news, but will take this opportunity for a quick disclosure: I worked for the accelerator in its first year in 2021.
-Whit
/ News
The Roux Institute shuts down the Techstars accelerator
After a successful two-year run that brought more than a dozen early-stage technology companies to Portland, as well as global awareness to the city's startup ecosystem, the Roux Institute at Northeastern University is shutting down the Techstars accelerator.
The Roux last week informed Techstars, which it contracted to market and manage the program, that it was using an early-cancellation clause in its three-year contract to terminate the relationship after two years.
Questions directed to the Roux Institute's entrepreneurship and venture creation team were directed to a spokesperson for Northeastern University.
Marirose Sartoretto, Northeastern's assistant media relations manager, sent Maine Startups Insider a statement that said the Roux Institute shut down the Techstars accelerator to focus on its own internal entrepreneurship programs, including its Founder Residency programs.
Lars Perkins, who led the Techstars accelerator for its first and only two years, said he was “disappointed” in the decision, but looked forward to staying involved in Maine’s startup community.
Over the course of two years, the Techstars accelerator hosted 20 startups. Three Maine companies—Omnic Data, Hey Freya, and Torque—went through the program, but the majority came from outside the state, including as far away as California, Washington, and Chile. Several companies, including Circa, Eskuad, Popsixle, and CICLA, relocated to Maine as a result of the program.
Read more on the MSI website »
🙏 MSI is sponsored by Eaton Peabody, a Maine law firm with particular expertise in structuring startup investment transactions—from early seed investment, friends/family and angel investors, through later stage venture capital funding. Meet Jen, a member of the team.
Northern Light Health investing $1.5M in Roux’s healthtech accelerator
This story takes on new meaning given the big news announced above, but I still want to address the fact that I left out an important piece of info in my last newsletter.
I had shared the news that MaineHealth had committed $500,000 over the next three years in the Roux Institute’s Future of Healthcare Founder Residency. I had mentioned that Northern Light Health was also a partner in the program, but that I was unable to track down specifics because of the holidays.
After I published my newsletter, I was directed to a brief news release from March 2022 published in the Bangor Daily News, and which I’d missed, that announced Northern Light Health was investing $1.5 million over the next three years in the Roux’s healthtech accelerator.
As a refresher, the Roux program plans to bring 30 early-stage, health-tech companies to Maine over the next three years, providing them with funds, expert advice, and clinical environments to test their ideas. Selected companies are expected to accept a $50,000 investment in return for 5% equity in the business, according to the Roux’s website. The program is scheduled to welcome its first cohort in March 2023.
The Future of Healthcare Founder Residency is the Roux’s first accelerator program that will involve it taking equity in the startups it incubates, a fact I discuss in the article about the Roux shutting down the Techstars accelerator.
/ Briefly Mentioned
🐣 Biddeford-based Prapela Inc. recently announced the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has granted Breakthrough Device Designation to its proprietary mattress pad, which produces a unique vibration that boosts the brain's control of breathing, to treat sleep apnea among preterm infants.
📚 Brian Rahill, CEO and co-founder of Orono-based CourseStorm, which provides course-registration software, sat down for an interview with Mainebiz.
💸 Sixteen Maine organizations that support startups and entrepreneurship, including the Roux Institute and Fork Food Lab, have received $5.6 million in state funding. Mainebiz has more.
/ ICYMI
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/ Jobs
If you apply for a job you see here, let them know you saw the opportunity in Maine Startups Insider.
+ Theory and Principle, a legal-tech product design and development startup in Portland, is hiring a Software Project Manager and a Product Manager.
+ KinoTek, a Portland-based digital health startup, is hiring a business development rep.
+ Nearpeer, a Portland-based edtech startup that aims to improve student retention and graduation, is hiring a Director of Marketing and a Sales Director.
+ The Roux Institute at Northeastern University is hiring a Director of its new Future of Healthcare Founder Residency program.
+ MedRhythms, a Portland-based digital therapeutics startup, is hiring for several engineering positions, including a Senior Audio Software Engineer, Senior Backend Engineer, Frontend Engineer, and a React Native Developer.
+ Constant, a Portland-based fintech SaaS startup, is hiring a Full-Stack Developer and a Junior QA Engineer.
+ HighByte, an industrial software startup, is hiring an Account Executive and a Sales Development Rep.
+ ElleVet Sciences, which sells CBD products for pets, is hiring for several roles.
+ Defendify, a cybersecurity startup in Portland, is hiring a Senior Software Engineer.
+ VETRO Inc., a SaaS company in Portland, is looking for a Director of HR and a Senior Software Engineer, among other roles.
+ Guideline, the fintech company with offices in California, Texas, and Portland, is hiring a Senior Product Designer and a Full-Stack Software Engineer.
+ AskGMS, a Portland-based company that provides benchmarking and data analysis tools to the insurance industry, is hiring a full-stack developer.
+ Arkatechture, a Portland-based company that provides business intelligence and data analytics services, is hiring an Account Executive.
Seeking a full-stack engineer? A technical co-founder? A sales or biz dev superstar? Send me your job postings to make this a great resource!
/ Calendar
Startup Maine January 2023 networking happy hour
Wed., Jan. 25, 5-7 p.m. — Gulf of Maine Ventures (w/in GMRI) in Portland
Join Startup Maine for January's happy hour at Gulf of Maine Ventures, sponsored by the Eaton Peabody law firm. More info and to RSVP.