Female founders receive just a portion of the funding that male founders do (some of the highest estimates say that just 18% of VC funding goes to startups with women and men on their founding teams, with only 2.8% and dropping to teams of only women founders). Even when women-led startups are funded, their battle is uphill compared to male founders, as they face challenges including a lack of available mentors and sponsors, biased sampling from early adopters, and the constant toll of microaggressions in a white and male-dominated space. 

That’s not just bad news for women who want to build a startup – it’s bad news for everybody. Women are the driving force behind a thriving economy. AWS recognises the immense need for an increase in inclusivity in the startup ecosystem. That’s why we are excited to be launching applications for the second cohort of our Impact Accelerator, exclusively focused on women-led businesses. 

What Is the Impact Accelerator?

The AWS Impact Accelerator is a $30 million fund that provides Black, Latino, women, and LGBTQIA+ founders with equitable access to training, mentorship, tools, and resources. Over the course of eight weeks, 25 startups accelerate growth by developing their ventures alongside AWS technology experts, investors, and partners. From customer discovery and retention to architectural deep dives and Amazon learnings such as Working Backwards, founders participate in workshops, roundtable discussions, 1:1 mentoring, peer learning, and inspirational leadership chats from executive leaders. To further their growth, startups receive a $125,000 cash grant and $100,000 in AWS service credits – all at zero cost and for zero equity.

Focus on Women Founders

Throughout the programme, women founders will learn from well-established experts from across the startup business and technical spectrum. Speakers and special guests for the Impact Accelerator for Women Founders will speak from their own lived experiences as overlooked and underestimated founders. Participants in the Women Founders program will learn from partners like Advancing Women in Tech, Visible Hands, and AWS partners like DocSend, Hubspot, Carta, and Brex. They’ll also benefit from sessions and modules curated specifically to address the challenges of women-led startups – each led by experts that have been through similar struggles and can help them accomplish their goals. 

“The amount of tangible, measurable support that this Impact Accelerator has provided to my startup has far exceeded my expectations. My technical advisor helped me and my tech lead solve a problem that we had been toiling away on for weeks. My business advisor introduced me to marketing experts, people in my target market who I could conduct user interviews with, and others who have provided immense value. The entire accelerator has been a phenomenal experience.” Said Alyse Nicole Dunn, CareCopilot, Cohort Member of Impact Accelerator for Black Founders 

How to Apply – Five Key Requirements 

Are you interested in applying to the AWS Impact Accelerator for Women Founders? Don’t wait! Applications are open 8th to 26th August 2022, with limited space available for only 25 women-led startups. Submit your application, and don’t forget to review the FAQ and terms and conditions for the full list of qualifying criteria. 

Want tips to make your application stand out? Join this webinar from the Impact Accelerator Program Team to hear more about the application process, understand timelines and expectations for the interview process, and gain key insights. Plus, submit your questions in the chat—the team will be answering all of your remaining questions, live. 

Top Five Criteria Reminders 

1. Women-led – You must have one (1) or more CEO co-founder(s) who, alone or in the aggregate, own a majority (more than 51%) of the Company and identify as a woman. 
2. CTO in place – You should have your CTO or technical lead in place and be sure to include all founders in your video submission. 
3. Based in the US – Your founder(s) and company must be US based – international startups will not be considered at this time. 
4. Early funding stage – Your company hasn’t raised more than $500,000 in institutional funds and is no more than five-years-old. 
5. Launched or fully developed product – To get the most from the program, founders need to be beyond the ideation stage – that means having a fully developed minimum viable product (MVP) or launched product. 

Apply Today 

The AWS Impact Accelerator gives high-potential, pre-seed startups the tools and knowledge to reach key milestones such as raising funds or acceptance into a seed-stage accelerator programme, while creating powerful solutions in the cloud. 

Applications are open for Women Founders seeking to accelerate their startup’s growth from 0 to 60 in eight weeks. Apply online.