$10 million of funding for the second Google for Startups Ukraine Support Fund to provide $100,000 in non-dilutive funding throughout 2024.
The Google for Startups Women Founders Fund will provide equity-free funding and Google support to women-led AI startups in India, Japan and Korea.
Meet three women founders using AI to rebuild the Ukrainian economy, with support from the Google for Startups Ukraine Support Fund.
Meet three women founders using AI to rebuild the Ukrainian economy, with support from the Google for Startups Ukraine Support Fund.
The ongoing humanitarian crisis in Ukraine has been devastating to witness. Much like the rest of the international community, our response has evolved as the circumstances have developed. In addition to supporting the refugee crisis and fighting misinformation, we’re investing in Ukraine’s people and businesses.
Today, we’re announcing a $5 million Google for Startups Ukraine Support Fund to allocate equity-free cash awards throughout 2022. Selected Ukraine-based startups will be announced on a rolling basis and will receive up to $100,000 in non-dilutive funding as well as ongoing Google mentorship, product support and Cloud credits. This hands-on support is designed to help Ukrainian entrepreneurs maintain and grow their businesses, strengthen their community and build a foundation for post-war economic recovery.
Ukraine has a strong and vibrant startup community. Of the roughly 2000 startups in Ukraine, 126 startups have raised venture capital funding since the beginning of 2021. Yesterday, our CEO Sundar Pichai met with a number of these Ukrainian entrepreneurs at our Google for Startups Campus Warsaw. Through these conversations, we heard practical ways that Google could help the startup community.
Funding is only one element of the support that is required. We’ve invited Ukrainian startups to use Google for Startups Campus Warsaw space as a temporary office. The first few startups — predominantly run by women who have fled the country — are already working from Campus, and we’ve witnessed their determination to succeed.
Support for Ukrainian-led startups will help them succeed and build the tech that their country needs now. And as the region starts to recover, startups and tech companies will be key to rebuilding the Ukrainian economy, creating jobs, and positively impact the cities they make their homes.
The ongoing humanitarian crisis in Ukraine has been devastating to witness. Much like the rest of the international community, our response has evolved as the circumstances have developed. In addition to supporting the refugee crisis and fighting misinformation, we’re investing in Ukraine’s people and businesses.
Today, we’re announcing a $5 million Google for Startups Ukraine Support Fund to allocate equity-free cash awards throughout 2022. Selected Ukraine-based startups will be announced on a rolling basis and will receive up to $100,000 in non-dilutive funding as well as ongoing Google mentorship, product support and Cloud credits. This hands-on support is designed to help Ukrainian entrepreneurs maintain and grow their businesses, strengthen their community and build a foundation for post-war economic recovery.
Ukraine has a strong and vibrant startup community. Of the roughly 2000 startups in Ukraine, 126 startups have raised venture capital funding since the beginning of 2021. Yesterday, our CEO Sundar Pichai met with a number of these Ukrainian entrepreneurs at our Google for Startups Campus Warsaw. Through these conversations, we heard practical ways that Google could help the startup community.
Funding is only one element of the support that is required. We’ve invited Ukrainian startups to use Google for Startups Campus Warsaw space as a temporary office. The first few startups — predominantly run by women who have fled the country — are already working from Campus, and we’ve witnessed their determination to succeed.
Support for Ukrainian-led startups will help them succeed and build the tech that their country needs now. And as the region starts to recover, startups and tech companies will be key to rebuilding the Ukrainian economy, creating jobs, and positively impact the cities they make their homes.
Back in July, we announced Google for Startups Accelerator: Europe, a three-month program designed to help European and Israeli startups access Google’s products and experts to grow their businesses. Today, we’re announcing the nine selected participants, who come from six countries and are solving a variety of challenges—from health and education tech to app development and e-commerce.
CodeBerry (Hungary): An online coding school that teaches coding to non-English speakers in a fun and interactive way.
Deepstash (Romania): AI-powered, personalized hub of articles, stories and ideas presented in a simple, practical and easy-to-remember format.
Infermedica (Poland): Developing a comprehensive solution to collect health intake data, check symptoms and guide patients to the right care.
MilkStrip (Israel): Designing a test strip to check the nutrients and quality of breast milk.
SQIN (Germany): A beauty community app that uses AI to help users match their skin type with the right beauty products.
Sundose (Poland): Manufacturer of data-driven diet supplements that provide an accurately tailored health formula for each customer.
Xeropan (Hungary): Motivating language learners through an intuitive game, powered by advanced AI.
Yosh.AI(Poland): Automating customer service communication between companies and their users through AI voice and text assistants.
The fully online program, which kicks off at the beginning of November, will help startups take their business to the next level. We’re bringing a diverse group of Google engineers and experts from across the ecosystem who will support each startup through 18 mentoring sessions and a number of virtual workshops. They’ll cover topics like the use of machine learning and Google Cloud, the importance of leadership and development of soft skills, as well as setting up frameworks for defining and delivering on company objectives.
To understand what this opportunity means for the participants, we asked Piotr Orzechowski, CEO and Founder of Infermedica and an alumnus of a previous Google for Startups program, to share what he’s looking forward to.
Piotr Orzechowski, CEO and Founder of Infermedica
What is the problem you’re trying to solve at Infermedica?
Our mission is to guide patients to the right care. We make it easier to pre-diagnose, triage, and direct people to the appropriate services by partnering with insurance, healthcare, and pharmaceutical companies to increase efficiency, improve patient flow, and reduce costs. Our technology combines the power of algorithms and AI with the experience of doctors. Infermedica's solution is available in 18 languages and has been trusted by 60 B2B partners.
How did you get started—where did the idea come from?
In 2011 I saw Akinator, a computer version of 20 Questions. The game asks the player a set of questions and guesses what fictional or real-life character the player is thinking of. I thought it would be great to create an app that would use similar concepts to determine possible diagnoses. This was how Infermedica was born. We started as a team of three developers, and now, in 2020, we are still working together, along with over 100 other employees.
Infermedica’s team
What was the other Google for Startups program you participated in, and what did you learn there?
I took part in a leadership program called Founders Academy. It has been one of the most meaningful events in my development as a leader. World-class coaches, amazing founders and the fantastic Google team helped me discover new approaches to problems and allowed me to learn more about myself.
Why did you decide to apply for the Google for Startups Accelerator program?
Google is known for the quality of its programs and the support it provides to both companies and founders. We feel privileged to be a part of this program. We hope to learn how to recognize new paths and see unobvious possibilities to increase business efficiency.
What do you hope will come out of the program?
We look forward to learning more about Google’s tools, including Google Cloud and marketing toolset, which we already use in our activities. It’s also an excellent opportunity to observe world-class leadership experts and gain inspiration from them. We’ll be able to meet wonderful people and become a member of a community of the most prominent European tech companies.
Back in July, we announced Google for Startups Accelerator: Europe, a three-month program designed to help European and Israeli startups access Google’s products and experts to grow their businesses. Today, we’re announcing the nine selected participants, who come from six countries and are solving a variety of challenges—from health and education tech to app development and e-commerce.
CodeBerry (Hungary): An online coding school that teaches coding to non-English speakers in a fun and interactive way.
Deepstash (Romania): AI-powered, personalized hub of articles, stories and ideas presented in a simple, practical and easy-to-remember format.
Infermedica (Poland): Developing a comprehensive solution to collect health intake data, check symptoms and guide patients to the right care.
MilkStrip (Israel): Designing a test strip to check the nutrients and quality of breast milk.
SQIN (Germany): A beauty community app that uses AI to help users match their skin type with the right beauty products.
Sundose (Poland): Manufacturer of data-driven diet supplements that provide an accurately tailored health formula for each customer.
Xeropan (Hungary): Motivating language learners through an intuitive game, powered by advanced AI.
Yosh.AI(Poland): Automating customer service communication between companies and their users through AI voice and text assistants.
The fully online program, which kicks off at the beginning of November, will help startups take their business to the next level. We’re bringing a diverse group of Google engineers and experts from across the ecosystem who will support each startup through 18 mentoring sessions and a number of virtual workshops. They’ll cover topics like the use of machine learning and Google Cloud, the importance of leadership and development of soft skills, as well as setting up frameworks for defining and delivering on company objectives.
To understand what this opportunity means for the participants, we asked Piotr Orzechowski, CEO and Founder of Infermedica and an alumnus of a previous Google for Startups program, to share what he’s looking forward to.
Piotr Orzechowski, CEO and Founder of Infermedica
What is the problem you’re trying to solve at Infermedica?
Our mission is to guide patients to the right care. We make it easier to pre-diagnose, triage, and direct people to the appropriate services by partnering with insurance, healthcare, and pharmaceutical companies to increase efficiency, improve patient flow, and reduce costs. Our technology combines the power of algorithms and AI with the experience of doctors. Infermedica's solution is available in 18 languages and has been trusted by 60 B2B partners.
How did you get started—where did the idea come from?
In 2011 I saw Akinator, a computer version of 20 Questions. The game asks the player a set of questions and guesses what fictional or real-life character the player is thinking of. I thought it would be great to create an app that would use similar concepts to determine possible diagnoses. This was how Infermedica was born. We started as a team of three developers, and now, in 2020, we are still working together, along with over 100 other employees.
Infermedica’s team
What was the other Google for Startups program you participated in, and what did you learn there?
I took part in a leadership program called Founders Academy. It has been one of the most meaningful events in my development as a leader. World-class coaches, amazing founders and the fantastic Google team helped me discover new approaches to problems and allowed me to learn more about myself.
Why did you decide to apply for the Google for Startups Accelerator program?
Google is known for the quality of its programs and the support it provides to both companies and founders. We feel privileged to be a part of this program. We hope to learn how to recognize new paths and see unobvious possibilities to increase business efficiency.
What do you hope will come out of the program?
We look forward to learning more about Google’s tools, including Google Cloud and marketing toolset, which we already use in our activities. It’s also an excellent opportunity to observe world-class leadership experts and gain inspiration from them. We’ll be able to meet wonderful people and become a member of a community of the most prominent European tech companies.
With 99 unicorns (startups valued at over $1B) and $34.3B of startup funding just last year, it’s clear that Europe is filled with talented entrepreneurs who can help solve some of the world’s biggest challenges. This autumn, Google for Startups welcomes two new cohorts of Black and Women founders from across Europe and Israel who are driving change in their industries.
The founders of these 23 high-potential companies will spend 12 weeks in one of two Immersions: Black Founders or Women Founders, where they’ll have access to the best of Google’s people, products and connections.
If we want technology to work for everyone, it needs to be built by everyone—and that's why we're supporting founders from under-represented groups to help with a faster recovery and better technology and tools for all.
Jewel Burks Solomon, Head of Google for Startups US and herself a former founder, opened for the Black Founders program
The Black Founders Immersion is a 12-week program for high-potential startups with at least one Black founder. The twelve selected startups from the UK, France and the Netherlands will be partnering with experienced Google mentors, specialists and investors to help them grow and give them better access to fundraising opportunities while further advancing their leadership skills.
During the recent opening session, founders had the opportunity to hear from Jewel Burks, Head of Google for Startups US, former Founder & CEO of Partpic, and Managing Partner at Collab Capital.
The 2020 program cohort includes:
Rachael Corson, Co-Founder & Managing Director of Afrocenchix (UK):Vegan beauty brand changing the world of Black hair and beauty by putting the health of their community first.
Christian Facey, Co-Founder & CEO of AudioMob (UK): Enabling game developers to monetize games with non-intrusive audio ads.
Christina Caljé, Co-Founder & CEO of Autheos (NL):Using machine learning to help businesses improve and personalize video content for their consumers.
Tomide Adesanmi, Co-Founder & CEO of Circuit Mind (UK):Building AI software that designs electronics in minutes or even seconds.
Osamudiamen Omoigiade, Co-Founder & CEO of Deep.Meta (UK):Software harnessing production data to create products, limit wastage and cut CO2 emissions.
Shirley Billot, Founder & CEO of Kadalys (FR):Upcycling banana agri-waste into patented organic skincare that gives back to the local community and nature.
Jermaine Craig, Co-Founder & CEO of Kwanda (UK):A solution for nonprofits to finance the development of Black communities with accountability and transparency.
Elizabeth Nyeko, Founder & CEO of Modularity Grid (UK): Equipping low carbon electrical energy providers with AI that combines deep learning with bleeding-edge electronics.
Charles Sekwalor, Co-Founder & CEO of MoveMeBack (UK):Enabling professionals and organizations to discover and access opportunities and talent anywhere, with a focus on Africa.
Joel Akwenuke, Co-Founder & CEO of NewFade (UK): Direct-to-consumer hair loss solution, solving hair loss for men safely and effectively.
Richard Robinson, Founder & CEO of Robin AI (UK):Using machine learning and human intelligence to automate the reading and editing of legal contracts.
Ivan Beckley, Co-Founder & CEO of Suvera (UK):Creating a virtual healthcare experience that allows doctors to care for patients with long-term conditions with fewer appointments.
Participants from the 2019 German edition of the Women Founders program
This first pan-European Google for Startups cohort follows the success of Women Founders programs in Germany and the UK. Supported by findings of the Female Founders Monitor, which pointed out particular challenges encountered by women founders, this program will support the 11 companies with unparalleled access to Google specialists, products and connections.
The program kicked off on September 7th with an opening talk by Marta Krupinska, Head of Google for Startups UK, and former Co-Founder of Azimo and FreeUp, and a pitch session where all founders had the opportunity to learn more about each others’ businesses and challenges.
Get to know the cohort:
Blanca Vidal, Co-Founder & CMO of Deplace (Spain):Improving the homebuying and -selling experience, making it more transparent, safe and economical.
Lee Butz, Founder & CEO, District Technology (UK/Germany):Empowering workplaces with a digital platform where users can engage with and have access to the latest news, amenities, community features and more.
Nina Julie Lepique, Co-Founder & CEO, Femtasy (Germany): The first platform for sensual audio content for women, taking a mind-first approach to sexuality based on data-driven research.
Francesca Hodgson, Co-Founder & MD, GoodBox (UK):Changing the world of philanthropy by connecting donors with the causes they care about.
Pavlina Zychova, Co-Founder & CEO, MyStay (Czech Republic):Simplifying hotel management and improving guests’ experience with a digital platform that automates all the guest-hotel interactions, from check-in to customer review.
Sarah Henley, Co-Founder & COO, NextUpComedy (UK):Transforming the market of live comedy by bringing acts to a global audience of comedy fans via high-quality apps.
Kinga Jentetics, Co-Founder & CEO, Publish Drive (Hungary):The best digital publishing platform to publish, market, and manage royalties for ebooks, print, and audiobooks.
Zahra Shah, Co-Founder & CEO, Seers (UK):The UK's leading privacy & consent management platform to help companies protect themselves and become compliant worldwide.
Maria-Liisa Bruckert, Co-Founder & CMO, SQIN (Germany):Beauty tech company changing the world of beauty retail by creating the world’s number 1 beauty community app.
Yael Shemer, Co-Founder & CEO, Tulu (Israel):Setting up smart rooms in apartment buildings that are filled with household and lifestyle products that can be rented by the hour, day or longer.
Zuzanna Sielicka Kalczyńska, Co-Founder & CEO, Whisbear (Poland):Helping babies sleep healthier and better by introducing smart solutions and innovation to baby sleep aids.
For updates on these cohorts and for other Google for Startups news (including applications for future programs), connect with us on social media: Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn.
Starting a successful company is a difficult job for anyone. But because the startup playing field isn’t level, some entrepreneurs have a tougher time than others. Many women and BIPOC founders have comparatively limited access to capital, mentorship, talent and networking opportunities. More than 7 in 8 people working for European startups identify as Caucasian or White, but only 20 percent of founders are women; and 92 percent of funding in 2019 went to all-male teams. Particularly in times of economic downturn like the current crisis, startups facing these challenges could use even more support.
Founders from the Google for Startups Germany community
Google for Startups aims to empower startups and equip founders with the resources they need to solve today's biggest challenges. Today, we’re announcing three new programs that will help European and Israeli startups access Google’s products and experts to grow their businesses, including two programs for founders from underrepresented groups.
This program will pair ten Black founders from Europe and Israel with international Google experts to identify and solve their most pressing technical and business challenges, such as implementing machine learning and improving user experience design. The program will provide connections to venture capital funding and investor networks, and offer workshops focused on fundraising, hiring and sales. Apply here.
Applications are open for this mentoring and acceleration program that will offer the 12 participating female founders access to a dedicated Google Advisor, in addition to ongoing weekly workshops and skill-building sessions over the course of 12 weeks. In the words of Charlotte Guzzo, founder of Sano Genetics and a Google for Startups UK Residency alumna, “It's a rare opportunity to work with a world-class team of like-minded entrepreneurs and experts from Google and it can really get you places you would not reach on your own.”
Google for Startups Accelerator: Cybersecurity in Malaga, Spain, 2019
We’re looking for 10-12 startups from Europe and Israel that are using technology to solve the challenges we face today, whether in healthcare, education, news reporting, remote working, finance, wellness, food delivery, or B2B/B2C services. The participants will have access to three months of intensive remote support from Google, including workshops and mentoring sessions with Google engineers and external experts, giving them access to Google products and technical expertise. You can find more info and applications here.
With these programs, we’re committed to helping underrepresented founders access a wide range of resources and opportunities, especially during this global crisis. You can learn more and apply on our site.
