Enterprise Ireland today announced the launch of the Startup Ireland AI Accelerator Programme, the first specialist accelerator to be delivered under Startup Ireland’s €21 million National Accelerator Programme.
The initiative forms part of Enterprise Ireland’s Delivering for Ireland, Leading Globally strategy. Its development has been informed by national and international research, including OECD recommendations for strengthening Ireland’s start-up ecosystem.
The Startup Ireland AI Accelerator will bring together more than 30 partners and be delivered by Dogpatch Labs.
Its initial goals up to 2030 are the supporting of 1,000 new start-ups; ensuring 35% of supported startups are female-led; and increasing the number of start-ups reaching €1 million turnover by 20%.
The accelerator also includes a two-day international trip to Paris, another of Europe’s leading AI hubs, to connect with investors, customers and AI founders, including attending F/ai Deal Day at Station F.
The selected companies will benefit from 12 weeks of direct access to technical expertise, customers and investors to help them develop and scale internationally. Eligible startups will also have access to over €1 million in potential technology and cloud credits
Enterprise Ireland and IDA Ireland will also collaborate to connect participating startups with multinational companies both in Ireland and in international markets, opening up opportunities to access potential customers, technical expertise and commercial partnerships.
Conor O’Donovan, head of Startup Ireland at Enterprise Ireland, said: “The new Startup Ireland AI Accelerator – the first programme from Startup Ireland – is the first of its kind in Ireland and brings Ireland’s startup and multinational sectors together to provide our most promising AI-native startups with direct access to the world’s leading AI infrastructure providers, tools and investors. Our goal is to accelerate the development of AI Irish start-ups by providing access to the technology, connections and mentorship to help them grow faster and scale internationally from Ireland.”
Michael Lohan, CEO, IDA Ireland, said: “The Startup Ireland AI Accelerator is an important initiative that will strengthen Ireland’s AI ecosystem. By connecting participating start-ups with IDA’s network of leading multinational companies, the programme will open up valuable opportunities to access technical expertise, potential customers and commercial partnerships. We look forward to working with Enterprise Ireland and the wider partner network to help the next generation of AI innovators compete on the global stage.”
Patrick Walsh, CEO & Founder, Dogpatch Labs said, “80% of the world’s top technology companies are already here. Ireland has the ingredients to build globally competitive AI companies. Our job is to put them within reach of founders.”
Startup Ireland AI Accelerator’s partners include private investors and companies such as Analog Devices, Anthropic, Amazon, ElevenLabs, Google, Microsoft, Nvidia, OpenAI, Stripe, and Vanta.
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