Flint business accelerator to host two free programs for local entrepreneurs

Flint, MI—XLerateHealth, a national healthcare and life-sciences start-up accelerator, will be hosting two free programs for Flint, Mich. entrepreneurs in the coming months.

The first, a pre-accelerator program designed to support idea-stage entrepreneurs in any field, will run from June 1 to July 20, 2022, on Wednesdays from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.

The second, an innovation accelerator bootcamp, is designed to help healthcare and life science innovators commercialize their business and secure funding. It will run from July 12 to Sept. 30 on Thursdays from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Both programs will be held virtually over Zoom.

XLerateHealth (XLH) came to Flint in 2018 after six years of success at its base in Louisville, Kentucky. The organization launched its first healthcare accelerator program in Flint in 2019 and has been building up the area’s healthcare and life sciences entrepreneurial ecosystem ever since.

“Over time, and to nurture healthcare innovation in the Flint region, we added two new programs: a pre-accelerator for idea-stage innovators to help them evaluate commercialization viability and a Healthcare Design Thinking course that is being offered to students at UM-Flint,” said XLerate Flint’s Managing Director, Sebastian Alvim in an email. “We believe in a collaborative approach, and we are working with our local partners to establish Flint as the epicenter of a Mid-Michigan Med-Tech corridor.”

The 18 Flint-area companies that have gone through XLH’s programming thus far have collectively raised $5.2 million, and 15 of them remain operational. XLH is also part of Flint’s Community Navigator Pilot Program, a Small Business Administration-funded effort geared toward connecting small businesses to resources in underserved communities.

The deadline for XLerate Health’s accelerator bootcamp is Tuesday, May 31, and the application and more information on that program can be found here.

While the deadline has passed for its June pre-accelerator program, XLH accepts pre-accelerator applications on a rolling basis, and interested entrepreneurs are encouraged to apply here.

“Flint has a warm and welcoming community that embraces entrepreneurs,” Alvim added, noting that the area has a rich group of natural talent pools from local universities and hospitals. “We are grateful for having established solid relationships with the local entrepreneurship champions on a collaborative process between health systems, universities, and local government.”