Entrepreneur and investor Chris DeVore had an inside view of Techstars Seattle as one of the original leaders of the local startup accelerator in 2010, serving as its managing director from 2014 to 2019.
His Feb. 21 post "What went wrong at Techstars," looked closely at the organization's evolution — including its increased focus on corporate sponsorships and shift to centralized fundraising — as the backdrop for the news last week that Techstars is closing its Seattle accelerator as part of a broader reset.
So where should Seattle's tech community go from here? And what role do startup accelerators serve in the age of AI and remote work? Devore, the founding managing director of the Founders Co-op venture fund, joins us on this bonus episode of the GeekWire Podcast to share his thoughts about what happened, and his optimism about what's next. "I think Seattle is setting itself up for a great moment in its entrepreneurial journey," he says.
RELATED LINKS AND STORIES
- David Cohen: Techstars is evolving and growing
- Techstars: Techstars 2.0: Supercharging Founder Success
- Chris DeVore: What went wrong at Techstars
- GeekWire: Techstars Seattle is shutting down as accelerator shifts focus to cities with more VC activity
- Marcelo Calbucci: The most successful accelerator cohort ever: How this Techstars Seattle class produced 3 unicorns
- GeekWire Podcast: Techstars Seattle’s demise leaves a gap in the startup market
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