Founder Institute (FI), the world’s largest pre-seed startup accelerator, has released today its 10 Year Impact Report, highlighting Bogota insurtech company ComparaMejor alongside its efforts in Latin America.
ComparaMejor, a startup based in Colombia’s capital that was acquired in September of 2018, had earlier raised $10M in funding.
Additional Latin American startups featured include GoPlaceIt, a real estate search platform for Spanish-speaking markets, and Polen, a platform to facilitate connections between waste creators and those that can use the materials.
The report includes insights from more than 15,000 founders across 180 cities. FI estimates that its 4000 alumni have raised over $900 million in funding.
Said Jonathan Greechen, Co-Founder at Founder Institute, “It’s been a whirlwind 10 years, with a lot of hard work and sleepless nights, but we’re incredibly proud of what we have been able to accomplish. In particular, we’re proud to be helping entrepreneurs not only in the US and other global startup hubs, but across 65 countries and all corners of the planet. Over the next 10 years we plan to leverage this global network for the greater good, and help entrepreneurs build businesses that can positively impact society.”
Insights from the report include:
- The most conductive personality traits for success based on a decade of data
- Across FI companies, a higher percentage of pet startups reaching initial traction than startups in any other sector
- By next year, 1/3 of FI alumni expecting to create products in line with UN Sustainable Dev Goals
- FI’s growth across the globe, including emerging markets
- Startups offering crowdfunding and investment services were found to have the highest rate of funding
- Investors appearing to be wary of startups selling to governments
Many of the fastest-growing companies have gone through the Founder Institute. One of the organization’s aims is to ‘Globalize Silicon Valley’ and empower entrepreneurs to build companies that will create jobs.
The capital of Colombia’s startup scene continues to grow following Softbank’s $1 billion investment into Rappi, a technology company based in the city. As the herald of Colombia’s startup ecosystem, Bogotá was the first city in the country to gain the attention of international investors.
According to a study by the government organization responsible for the country’s entrepreneurial growth, iNNpulsa, in 2017 there were 2,696 startups in Colombia in the first stages of development that had already generated 7,933 jobs.
Founder Institute’s Director in Colombia, Mads Petersen, was earlier named one of 2019’s European Innovation Leaders in Colombia.
This article includes a client of an Espacio portfolio company
