Challenge format
During the 2-month fast-track program, we match startup solutions with enterprise challenges. Startups tackle a challenge presented by a market-leading enterprise and explore potential pilot or market alliances in target technologies and industries. Our enterprise-startup matchmaking approach will enable you access to enterprises to build a pathway to sustainable partnerships.
How does it work?
Future Hub is joined by a corporate with a sustainability challenge. Our team scouts for the best matched and startup-corporate matchmaking takes place for each challenge. Startups will be introduced to specific challenges of enterprises and given an opportunity to learn more about them. Then teams will enter ten weeks of acceleration along the explore-build-test-refine pathway.
Explore
Gaining in depth insights on the challenge from the enterprise presenting the challenge
Build
Defining a solution for the challenge, developing its critical functionality
Test
Undergoing initial validation of the proposed solution with the enterprise
Refine
Iterate and fine-tune the solution further
What support to expect?
To ensure successful co-creation throughout the explore-build-test-refine pathway, startups will undergo various co-creation activities to strengthen the knowledge and understanding of each week's collaboration phase. The main focus and goal of the program is the startup-corporate collaboration.
1
Weekly co-creation
sessions with the enterprise presenting the challenge
1
Kick-off - goal setting sessions & weekly deliverables
4
Joined batch Progress,
Problems, Plans checkpoints
2
Demo Day preparation - pitch drills, workshop, dry run
5
1on1 mentoring
with Lead Mentors
3
Open and scheduled
Q&A sessions and 24/7 support
6
Lead Mentors
We have two Lead Mentors that are a bill part of the Future Hub programs and startup experience in the program. The experts meet with startups weekly to discuss the progress, assist, and advice, all to make sure the cooperation is going smoothly and the pilot product and sustainability goals are clear and taken into consideration.
Lead Mentor,
Product
Viesturs Sosārs
Seasoned entrepreneur,
Board member at TechHub Riga
Viesturs has been active in the Latvian startup ecosystem since 2003. He has founded companies, been a venture capital fund manager, and made early private investments in a number of technology startups. He is also one of the founders of TechHub Riga, the biggest and leading startup hub in Latvia. As a mentor at various start-up bootcamps, hackathons, and accelerator programs in Europe, he advises corporate customers on innovation while teaching entrepreneurship practice at several universities in Latvia.
Lead Mentor,
Sustainability
Dr. Johanna Braun
Innovation, Venture
and Sustainability Consultant
An an Innovation, Venture & Sustainability Consultant Johanna mentors corporates and startups with an exclusive focus on sustainability topics in some of Europe's leading accelerators. Startup coach at RESPOND accelerator and TechFounders, mentor at Copernicus Accelerator are just some of her recent roles. She has also spent nine years at Telefónica Deutschland where undertook various responsibilities, including building a Youth Social Entrepreneur program, a Digital Transformation Program, and working in the internal accelerator.
Program timeline
AUG
Startup
Applications
SEP
Pre-acceleration for Hosts
SEP-DEC
Acceleration weeks
AUG
Selected startups announced
SEP
Kick-off week
DEC
Demo Day
Who are we looking for?
#GreenTech
Startups that operate in either Food and AgroTech, Mobility, Energy and Smart Cities, Supply Chain, and Logistics, or Sustainable Business and Circular Economy.
Early traction
We look for game-changing startups with confirmed market traction and product-market validation. There is no better proof of product-market fit than your solution having customers and providing your team with valuable feedback.
Interested in Future Hub?
Team is everything
B2B, B2C, and B2B2C startups with a vision in mind, flexible business model, and a balanced skill-set among co-founders. The average time commitment for a startup is about 4 hours per week in addition to the time spent developing the solution.
