Your Ideas…
You’ve discovered a real business-to-business problem; now’s the time to build a solution and take it to market.
You’ve discovered a real business-to-business problem; now’s the time to build a solution and take it to market.
You need a little assist to make it happen, we provide high-impact mentors, funding, and inspiring workspace.
Your passion, initiative and commitment combined with the support from 9Mile Labs will power your idea to the next level
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FundingA $20,000 investment in exchange for between 4-8% of the startup’s equity. |
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MentoringA network of mentors who can help provide advice and connections to the startups. |
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EnvironmentState-of-the-art workspace within walking distance of coffee shops and restaurants. |
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ConnectionNetworking and social events run by 9Mile during the 3 month program. |
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AudienceAn opportunity to present to VCs, angel investors, and mentors during the 9Mile Labs Demo Day |
 Tom Casey, PartnerTom is an experienced executive, entrepreneur, and active investor and advisor for technology companies. He has experience developing global products and businesses focused on enterprise applications and systems software. Tom has deep experience in Business Intelligence, Database Management Systems, Business Process Management, and Payment Systems through various startups and more than 16 years at Microsoft. In 2013, Tom co-founded CERULEAN VENTURES LLC as a consulting, investment, and advisory firm focused on socially responsible technology engagements. Tom holds a Bachelor’s degree in Management Information Systems from the University of Arizona. |
 Kevin Croy, PartnerKevin is the consummate serial entrepreneur who has co-founded five startups, two of which (Lostpedia, Jupiter Hosting) have had successful exits. Kevin is a technologist and enterprise architect with hands-on experience in a broad range of Internet technologies, data center infrastructure, and development tools. Kevin holds an MBA. |
 Enrique Godreau III, Venture PartnerEnrique has been active in the information technology industry for 30 years. He’s worked with great people at leading technology-based companies including Adobe, Gartner, and Xerox PARC. In 1996, he cofounded Voyager Capital, an early-stage tech venture capital firm. And in 2012, he cofounded GSharp Ventures, a consulting, investment, and advisory firm. Enrique holds a BS in Computer Science. |
 Sanjay Puri, PartnerSanjay started his career building database applications at Oracle. Sanjay co-founded thinkIndia.com in 1999 which exited successfully in 2001. As a products executive at startups (iConclude, Opsware, Edifecs) and large companies (Microsoft and HP), Sanjay has helped companies achieve successful exits and exceptional revenue growth. Sanjay holds a B.S. in Electrical Engineering and an MBA. |
 Sandy Sharma, PartnerSandy is a serial entrepreneur and passionate angel investor. Sandy has co-founded and successfully led 4 technology companies. He currently serves as CEO of Advaiya a firm that helps technology companies with their strategy and business development. Sandy is also an active advisor for multiple startups in the NW and CA. Sandy holds a BS in Computer Science and an MBA. |
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March 19, 2013 |
Big turnout for business startup accelerator 9Mile Labs |
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March 19, 2013 |
Meet the 9 startups joining the new 9Mile Labs accelerator |
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March 19, 2013 |
Accelerator 9Mile Labs Names Initial Class of B2B Startups |
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February 14, 2013 |
9Mile Labs sets up new accelerator at SURF Incubator |
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February 14, 2013 |
Press Release: 9Mile Labs and SURF Incubator Join Hands to Boost Ecosystem |
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January 31, 2013 |
B2B startup accelerator 9Mile Labs taps Microsoft VP, veteran VC to lead the charge |
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January 31, 2013 |
Casey, Godreau join startup accelerator 9Mile Labs |
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January 31, 2013 |
Press Release: 9Mile Labs Steps up Momentum by Expanding Partner Team |
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January 2, 2013 |
New accelerator 9Mile looks to help jumpstart B2B startups |
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January 2, 2013 |
New Seattle Accelerator 9Mile Labs Wants To Build On TechStars Model |
If you have an idea for a business-to-business (B2B) product, complete an application. What does B2B mean? It means that your primary customer is another company, not an individual consumer.
Once we receive your application, we’ll evaluate it based on the 9Mile Success Framework. We will ping you if we have questions and call you in for a face-to-face meeting where feasible.
After you join the program, you’ll interact with a network of mentors and with other co-founders who will serve as your community of peers. We will guide you on a daily basis through the customer development process.
Once you’re accepted into the program, we’ll set you up with a place to work, a small stipend to pay your bills, and introduce you to some people who will help you get your idea off the ground.
On graduation day you get the opportunity to demonstrate your product at the 9Mile Labs Demo Day. Here you get to present your idea to an audience of venture capitalists, angel investors, and mentors.
John Sechrest is the co-organizer for the Lean Startup Seattle group and the founder of the Seattle Angel Conference as well as the Willamette Angel Conference. John wrote code at HP for the first networked calculator. As an entrepreneur, John founded an Internet Service Provider in Oregon. John is currently active in the Seattle Open Coffee and Eastside Open Coffee.
9Mile will accept applications for B2B-focused businesses. What does B2B mean? It implies that your primary customer is another company, not an individual consumer.
Each startup receives $20,000 in funding for the 3 months of the program.
Startups receive access to our wide network of mentors and advisors who have extensive startup, technology, business, and functional experience. Startups also get great perks such as free workspace, internet access, and hosting.
At the end of the 9Mile Labs program, the startups in the program have the opportunity to pitch their businesses to angel investors, venture capitalists, industry influencers and executives during the 9Mile Labs Demo Day. This is an opportunity for the startups to raise the next level of funding they’ll need to scale and grow their business.
In exchange for admission into the program and the seed funding, 9Mile Labs receives 4-8% equity in the form of common stock. Common stock implies that no board seats, unusual voting rights, veto rights, or other controls are granted to 9Mile Labs.
A complete list of 9Mile Labs mentors with short bios can be found on the Mentors page.
The 9Mile Labs mentors come from a cross-section of the high-tech industry. A majority of the mentors are successful entrepreneurs, CEOs, and business veterans from the startup world. Many are executives from the high-tech business world who have excelled in an executive or functional capacity. Yet others are VCs and angel investors who have worked extensively with startups.
After the Spring 2013 mentors are selected and announced, 9Mile will circulate startup abstracts and co-founder bios to all mentors. Following a networking event to allow mentors and entrepreneurs to mingle on an informal basis, 9Mile will orchestrate a “speed-dating”-style event between mentors and entrepreneurs. These interactions will allow both mentors and entrepreneurs to discover each other for a productive relationship.
9Mile Labs provides you a stipend that will sustain you for the three months of the program. The 9Mile Labs Demo Day at the end of the program will be an opportunity for you to pitch your startup to angel investors, venture capitalists, mentors, and industry executives. To prepare you for Demo Day, 9Mile Labs, along with the mentors, will coach you to help you secure your next round of funding.
Your startup is not too late to apply if you believe you can benefit from:
Yes, we expect all startups in the program to work from the 9Mile Labs facilities for the 3 months of the program. After the 9Mile Labs Demo Day, startups are free to move where they wish.
We believe that one of the greatest benefits from the 9Mile Labs program is the cross-pollination of ideas and strategies among the startups in the program. In addition, the value of the daily mentoring and coaching from the experienced 9Mile team further improves your odds of success.
No. It’s your company, so you can run it from the location that best suits your needs.
While you’re no longer required to work out of the 9Mile Labs workspace after Demo Day, we offer the option to our startups to continue to use our facilities for an additional 3 months while they make other arrangements. During those 3 months, you may continue to consult with the 9Mile partner team and mentor network for advice and feedback.
A few times per week, we will organize dinners and networking events and invite our mentors to speak on a relevant topic. These will be presented as appropriate by highly-successful entrepreneurs, angel investors, legal experts, venture capitalists, investment bankers, etc. Sometimes, we’ll just organize a brief talk with Q&A by a CEO or CTO of a well-known local startup. We’ll even venture out to some of these companies and do the session there. All of these sessions will be very informal and give you plenty of time to interact with the mentors personally.
Entrepreneurship is a marathon, not a sprint. Remember, raising the next round of funding at Demo Day is not a guarantee of a successful exit. Similarly, failure to raise the next funding round does not mean that you will never succeed at getting an exit. We promise you that the sheer learning you will gain and the number of doors this program will open for you will be well worth the effort.
You’ve probably heard that only 1 in 10 startups ever get an exit. All we’re trying to do is systematically improve those odds of success through right coaching and mentoring in the formative stages of your startup.
We look for few things in the startups we work with:
No. Just fill out our online application.
Applications for the 9Mile Labs program can be submitted starting Jan 14, 2013. Application deadline is Feb 22, 2013.
After we receive your application, we run it through a very well-defined 9Mile success framework. This framework allows us to conduct our assessment in a fair and rational manner.
If we like your application, we’ll invite you for a face-to-face meeting regarding your startup. After we conduct this face-to-face meeting, we will let you know on or before Mar 8, 2013 if you were accepted into the program or not.
Before the program starts on Apr 8, 2013, we will organize a few networking and social events for you to interact with the rest of your cohort and with mentors.