Techstars Seattle, one of the first accelerators to emerge from the Techstars program and a longstanding institution within Seattle’s tech ecosystem, is shutting down.
Techstars will focus on markets “with the most robust venture capital communities,” according to a memo sent Wednesday by Techstars Seattle, obtained independently by GeekWire.
“As of Fall of 2024, Techstars will be doubling down on accelerators in cities with the highest concentration of VC activity and other startups to maximize our impact (SF, NY, Boston, LA),” the memo reads (see in full below).
A spokesperson for Techstars confirmed the shutdown.
“We’ve found that entrepreneurs want to attend accelerators in the most robust venture ecosystems with the greatest access to venture dollars and talent, surrounded by other startups, and where they are most likely to succeed, which is why Techstars is refocusing its footprint to those hubs with the highest concentration of VC activity,” the spokesperson said in a statement.
The news came as a shock to the Seattle tech community, where Techstars planted its flag in 2010. The latest cohort just held its Demo Day in January.
“It’s fair to say that the Seattle startup community would not be where it is today without Techstars,” former Techstars Seattle managing director Chris DeVore wrote in a blog post.
More than 200 companies have gone through Techstars-related accelerators in Seattle, including the core program and others operated with corporate partners such as Amazon, Microsoft, and Filecoin.
They have collectively gone on to raise more than $2.8 billion in private capital.
“Techstars Seattle played an important role in helping build and invigorate Seattle’s startup ecosystem,” said Andy Sack, the accelerator’s first managing director. “Sad the chapter is ending.”
Techstars Seattle was one of the highest-performing accelerators among Techstars programs. The 2011 class alone produced three unicorns: Remitly, Outreach, Zipline.
DeVore said he was “caught off guard by the decision … to cancel the flagship Seattle Techstars program.”
“Not just because we created and led it for many years, but because Techstars Seattle is also the source of many of Techstars’ most successful and celebrated successes; Seattle program alumni like Remitly, Outreach and Zipline are regularly held up as evidence that Techstars can produce billion-dollar outcomes for both founders and investors, something that has happened less and less often in recent years,” he wrote in the blog post.
The Techstars spokesperson noted that less than half of Techstars Seattle companies were based in Washington state.
“We will continue to seek out and support founders from across the Pacific Northwest and encourage them to apply to our core city programs in San Francisco, New York, Boston and Los Angeles, the Techstars Anywhere program, or one of our more focused partner programs around the country,” the spokesperson said.
Seattle-area companies raised $3.5 billion in venture capital last year, according to PitchBook — which pales in comparison to Silicon Valley ($63 billion) and lower than New York ($24.5 billion); Boston ($15.3 billion); and Los Angeles ($11.2 billion).
[Editor’s Note: The numbers above were corrected to reflect the total amount raised by startups in each region. A previous version of this story incorrectly used fundraising by venture capital firms.]
But DeVore points out in his blog post that Seattle is the only Techstars city that is home to two of the Magnificent Seven tech giants (Microsoft and Amazon).
“These companies are global magnets for technical talent eager to work on the most advanced and highest-impact technology products in the world,” he wrote. “Not coincidentally, they also serve as training grounds for some of the world’s most successful startup founders.”
Techstars CEO Maëlle Gavet published a blog post Wednesday about “Techstars 2.0,” outlining the company’s new focus and its headquarters relocation from Boulder, Colo. — where Techstars is also shutting down an accelerator — to New York City. The post does not mention Seattle.
“We know that founders are more likely to succeed when they are plugged into a thriving ecosystem — because no one succeeds alone,” Gavet wrote. “So we’re doubling-down on running in-person programs in the largest tech ecosystems so entrepreneurs can be surrounded by the highest concentration of VCs, startups, talent, mentors, and support.”
Speaking to GeekWire in 2022, Gavet said, “Seattle has a super vibrant ecosystem.”
“It is hard to find a more welcoming ecosystem for entrepreneurs, both in terms of people and infrastructure and a genuine interest toward innovation,” she said at the time.
Techstars laid off 20 people, or 7% of its staff, last month, according to The Information. Techstars, founded in 2006, is also pausing operations in Austin, TechCrunch reported in December.
DeVore, who later launched and now runs Seattle venture capital firm Founders’ Co-op, explained in his blog post the reasons he believes led to the recent struggles at Techstars as it leaned more heavily on corporate partners and competed with Y Combinator, which itself announced layoffs last year.
“Techstars offers an object lesson in the strategic cost of losing sight of your core customer in the relentless pursuit of growth,” he wrote. “Techstars was and is an organization founded by great humans, and its current struggles are shared with many once-promising startups that flew too close to the sun in an era when wings were cheap.”
Techstars Seattle managing director Marius Ciocirlan will now serve as a managing director for the remote-first Techstars Anywhere program, according to the memo.
Sarah Studer, director of platform for Techstars Seattle, and Jacob Laes, program manager, were offered new positions within Techstars.
“Without the energy, commitment and belief of the Seattle startup community, Techstars would not be the world’s most active pre-seed investor,” Techstars said in a statement. “We are profoundly appreciative of all of the Seattle-based team members, mentors, investors, partners and alumni who over the last 14 years have helped build Techstars into the company it is today.”
Read the memo from Studer below.
The Techstars ecosystem we’ve built together with you over the past 14 years in Seattle is nothing short of phenomenal. Your energy and commitment to the startup community has propelled Techstars to become the world’s most active pre-seed investor, and the Seattle-based programs have played a significant part in this success. Not only have 3 of Techstars unicorns come from this program, but we’ve also consistently remained among the top in the industry for companies raising further capital – which is particularly notable over the recent years. It’s a testament to you and our community.
We are deeply appreciative of all of the Seattle program mentors, investors, partners, alumni and of course, team members, who have helped build Techstars into the company it is today. You have positively and significantly impacted the trajectory of 236 companies that have graduated from Seattle-based programs since the first class in 2010.
Our team has some news to share about the future of Techstars Seattle, and as a supporter of our program and our founders, we wanted you to be one of the first to know that Techstars will be discontinuing the operations of the Seattle program.
Having run nearly 400 accelerators across the globe, Techstars will be focusing on a core set of markets with the most robust Venture Capital communities. As of Fall of 2024, Techstars will be doubling down on accelerators in cities with the highest concentration of VC activity and other startups to maximize our impact (SF, NY, Boston, LA).
Of course we will continue to seek out and support founders from Seattle and across the Pacific Northwest and we strongly encourage them to apply to one of our core city programs, the Techstars Anywhere program, or one of our more sector-focused partner programs around the country.
What’s Next For The Techstars Seattle Team?
Marius has been tapped to serve as one of the Managing Directors for the Techstars Anywhere program, where he plans to implement the best of what we’ve learned in Seattle into the remote-first program later this year. Techstars has offered me and Jake, our program manager, new roles at the company, and Carson has taken a position with former Techstars Seattle MD Isaac Kato’s new venture.
What Does This Mean For You?
As a Techstars Seattle alumni, I am always an email away and available to you for support. I’m also available on Techstars Seattle’s Slack.
Additionally, I encourage you to stay connected and leverage the Techstars global network and support available to you such as Techstars Universe and Portfolio Services. If you have any questions on how you can best be supported and what Techstars resources are available to you, reach out to portfolioservices@techstars.com.
If you have any questions or would like to discuss this news in more detail, please don’t hesitate to let me know. I’m always available for a conversation.
