Nova, a startup builder focusing on the “co-foundery” model, has made a call for its second cohort in Southeast Asia, after successfully launching and scaling 80 startups in the United Kingdom.
According to Pedro Uria-Recio, Startup Programme Co-Ordinator at Nova, the first Southeast Asia cohort ran through October and November 2020, during which Nova received 320 applications from founders across Malaysia, Singapore, and Indonesia. The cofoundery worked with them over a six-week period culminating in a Demo Day, wherein the strongest of the cohort were invited to pitch to Nova’s investment panel.
The startup program targets pre-Seed and Seed-stage startups. It provides mentorship, investments, as well as a full technical or non-technical team to partner startups. These can be small founding teams or founders with an MVP or prototype. The co-foundery model can also be applied to startups that are already on their way to traction.
According to Nova’s website, the co-foundery model will involve the startup consultants assisting in the development of a market and pitching to investors. The partnership will also include prototyping, validation, and product/market scaling.
“We are looking for people who are passionate about the problem they’re trying to solve. We can then work alongside them, through our proven process to accelerate their development into successful tech startups,” says Andy Davidson, Chief Executive Officer of Nova.
With the co-foundery model, Nova takes an equity stake in the startups in its portfolio and actively works with founding teams one day per week for 12 months. According to Nova, this is designed so that founders can continue to develop their startup ideas alongside existing business or work commitments.
Startups that successfully pitch to Nova’s investors can get up to $408,200 (GBP300,000) in Seed capital toward launch. Startups with existing markets or traction can still be part of the cohort and participate in Nova’s validation process and Lean strategies.
Nova says it employs a team of over 140 developers, designers, mentors, product managers, and financiers who have experience in building and launching tech startups. It is thus looking to partner with founders who may or may not have technical capabilities, but should have a strong understanding and expertise in their own domain.
Applications for the second Southeast Asia cohort started on January 11, 2021, and interested parties may submit their application online.
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