Twin Cities Startup Resources

Twin Cities Startup Resources

Minneapolis St. Paul has a growing list of resources, opportunities, and programs dedicated to supporting a more thriving business and startup community. In the words of #ForgeNorth, making our region the problem solving capital of the new economy. Below is a sample of the resources available. 

Capital and Funding

  • Capita3 - an early stage venture capital group focused on companies founded or led by women.

  • Gopher Angels - a network of accredited investors seeking to invest capital and expertise in early stage Minnesota businesses.

  • Minnesota Innovation Loans for Entrepreneurs (MILE): The Minnesota Innovation Loans for Entrepreneurs (MILE) program provides interest-free loans to early stage businesses developing or producing high-tech products or services in Minnesota. This program is an initiative of the Minnesota Investment Fund.

  • Pipeline Angels -  is changing the face of angel investing and creating capital for women and non-binary femme social entrepreneurs.

  • Rise of the Rest - seed capital fund investing in the most promising seed stage companies located outside of Silicon Valley, New York City and Boston.

  • The Syndicate Fund - Providing exceptional early stage startups the capital and network needed to build great businesses.

Programs (some offer funding)

  • Bunker Labs - Launch Lab Program: 12 week course for veteran entrepreneurs

  • Co-starters - a 9-week program that equips entrepreneurs of all kinds with the insights, relationships, and tools needed to turn ideas into action.

  • FINNOVATION Lab - a social business incubator and accelerator offering a robust set of venture service programs designed to achieve and launch high impact businesses. They offer a $50,000 stipend for the 9 month program. Application deadline is July 15th and webinar for more info on July 2nd from 12:30pm-1:30pm. Sign up by emailing andrea@finn-lab.com with the subject line "Invite me to the webinar" and you'll be sent you a calendar invite with more details. 

  • Gener8tor - a nationally ranked accelerator that invests in high-growth startups. Three times a year they invest $90K in each of five startups.

  • Techstars - a worldwide network of accelerators helping entrepreneurs succeed.

Showcases and Pitch Opportunities

  • 1 Million Cups- pitch practices with feedback for startups

  • Beta.mn provides showcase opportunities to connect with the broader entrepreneurial ecosystem. Now also offering free space to select startups at WeWork MSP. Let us know if you want a warm intro.

  • Minnedemo - a showcase for working technology products made in Minnesota. Demos are 7 minutes long and PowerPoint IS NOT ALLOWED.

  • Minnesota Cup - the largest statewide business competition in the country.

  • Muster by Bunker Labs - Pitch competition, showcase, and networking for veteran owned startups

Other Resources & Events

  • Blacks in Tech Twin Cities - started to share experiences and support each other in professional growth and development. Their events range from social to educational.

  • Forge North - a movement of entrepreneurs, investors, collaborators, and allies from all industries and sectors working together to grow Minnesota's entrepreneurial ecosystem.

  • Full Stack - a public/private sector collaboration, co-led by the City of Saint Paul and the Saint Paul Area Chamber of Commerce, that provides a full range of services to help tech and innovation sector businesses start up and scale up in Saint Paul.

  • Hack the Gap - Minnesota's all-women hackathon. They are hacking the diversity gap, one hackathon at a time.

  • James J Hill - offers research, programs, and networking for each stage of business development.

  • Legal Corps - provides free non-litigation legal assistance to small nonprofits and businesses.

  • Prime digital academy - a digital boot-camp offering probono development services to startups and nonprofits.  

  • Twin Cities Startup Week - a week long celebration of the local startup community, October 8th - 12th, 2018. 

Economic Development Organizations

This is a sample of the resources in our community. Want to add something? Fill out the form below.

Danielle Steer