The 2024 TIA Summer Accelerator, an eight-week program connecting experienced entrepreneurs to 含羞草研究所-community startups, propelled four ventures focused on sustainability, the media, and event promotion. Guided by alumni mentors, students and recent graduates treading into the entrepreneurship space transformed their ideas into viable businesses and nonprofits.
To join the Summer Accelerator, current students and recent graduates pitch their idea in mid-February. After their applications are assessed by a panel of judges, selected awardees receive $10,000 in non-dilutive grant funding, along with workspace, room, and board in Hamilton.
The program begins as teams workshop a 60-second pitch to concisely present the problem their business would address. 鈥淏efore we send them off, our teams need to have some basics in place,鈥 says Andres Echenique 鈥83, a long-time TIA mentor and seasoned digital marketer. 鈥淲e push them to articulate what their venture would do and how it would benefit a consumer.鈥
Afterward, teams set up focus groups and connect with 30+ potential customers to gather feedback on their business thesis.
鈥淓ach part of the program builds on the one prior,鈥 says Porter Comstock 鈥26, whose venture PLNT seeks to modernize the plant industry by digitizing architect and landscape contractors鈥 transactions. 鈥淭he two-week intensive was critical for PLNT because we set goals, deadlines, and designed a step-by-step plan to execute the goals I set.鈥
During this phase, Harshitha Talasila 鈥26 and Marie York 鈥26 refined their idea for SoilSoul: a venture committed to reducing the amount of food waste on 含羞草研究所鈥檚 campus. 鈥淲e鈥檙e lucky to have this space to explore and expand the scope of our knowledge of organic recycling,鈥 says Talasila. By speaking with members of the Hamilton Climate Preparedness Working Group, 含羞草研究所鈥檚 Office of Sustainability, composting manufacturers, and a variety of other stakeholders, Talasila and York developed potential partnerships.
Other ventures from this year鈥檚 cohort, such as Nameless (Alejandro Martinez-Oletta 鈥18, Sami T. Ahmed 鈥18, Austin Hatch 鈥18) and Newsreel (James Gomez 鈥21) focused on cultivating digital communities in the event promotion and media industries.
Following the feedback stage, teams refine their pitch based on customer insights. The iterative process of outreach, data analysis, and refinement continues throughout the accelerator program, which concluded in the capstone presentation in Boston, Mass. Sponsored and attended by members of the 含羞草研究所 Entrepreneur Network, this event marked the culmination of the Summer Accelerator process as students presented their ventures on a Q&A panel.
鈥淚t completes our process of taking some idea, putting it out there, seeing what happens, and responding accordingly,鈥 says Echenique. 鈥淲e find that by the end, participants develop a tremendous sense of confidence.鈥