Berkeley SkyDeck

Berkeley SkyDeck
IndustrySeed accelerator
Founded2012
Headquarters
Berkeley, California
Key people
Caroline Winnett (Executive Director)
ProductsVenture capital
Websiteskydeck.berkeley.edu

Berkeley SkyDeck (SkyDeck) is an entrepreneurship startup accelerator and incubator program which serves as a joint venture between the Haas School of Business and Berkeley College of Engineering at the University of California, Berkeley.[1] Founded in 2012, SkyDeck promotes research and entrepreneurship in Silicon Valley.[2] It has become a top university incubator in both the United States and also worldwide.[3][4]

Program

Startup companies join the Berkeley SkyDeck accelerator for six months (one university semester).[5] Startups accepted into the highest level cohort track receive $50,000 when they join, and $50,000 three months in—a total of $100,000 to use to build their businesses.[5] In exchange, SkyDeck takes a five percent equity in each cohort startup.[6]

The six-month SkyDeck term finishes with a demo day when startups in the SkyDeck cohort present to hundreds of investors, seeking venture capital financing.[7][8] SkyDeck alumni startups include unicorn Lime, a transportation company with motorized scooters, electric bikes, and carsharing, and Kiwi Campus, a food-delivery service using autonomous robots.[9][10]

In 2018, SkyDeck raised a $24 million, oversubscribed venture fund from investors including Sequoia Capital, Mayfield and Sierra Ventures.[6][8] With this fund SkyDeck is allowed to invest up to ten percent in each cohort startup's first funding round, up to $2 million.[5][6] In 2022, SkyDeck announced it had raised $60 million, in an oversubscribed Fund II.[11]

References

  1. ^ "About the Berkeley SkyDeck". Forbes.
  2. ^ "Berkeley SkyDeck". Berkeley SkyDeck.
  3. ^ "Bay Area universities, MIT, Harvard top startup ranking for grads who raise venture capital". GeekWire. 31 August 2018.
  4. ^ "PitchBook Universities: Top 100 colleges ranked by startup founders". PitchBook. 30 August 2024.
  5. ^ a b c Legatt, Aviva (January 7, 2019). "5 Amazing College Incubators". Forbes. Forbes Media, LLC. Retrieved 27 April 2020.
  6. ^ a b c Said, Carolyn (August 15, 2018). "UC Berkeley startup accelerator gets a boost from venture fund". San Francisco Chronicle. Hearst. Retrieved 27 April 2020.
  7. ^ Rinker, Brian (December 5, 2019). "UC Berkeley's prestigious startup accelerator opens applications". San Francisco Business Times. American City Business Journal. Retrieved 27 April 2020.
  8. ^ a b Sawers, Paul (April 1, 2020). "Startup accelerators forge ahead with new virtual programs". VentureBeat. Retrieved 27 April 2020.
  9. ^ Clark, Kate (November 12, 2018). "20 startups take center stage at Berkeley SkyDeck's demo day". TechCrunch. Verizon Media. Retrieved 7 July 2020.
  10. ^ Knox, Liam (June 13, 2019). "Food-Delivery Robots Are the Next Big Thing for Campus Dining. No, They Don't Accept Tips". The Chronicle of Higher Education. Retrieved 27 April 2020.
  11. ^ "Berkeley SkyDeck Closes $60 Million Fund II". www.businesswire.com. 2022-03-24. Retrieved 2023-03-12.