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Top Accelerators & Incubators

The definitive list of accelerators, grants, fellowships, and programs for solo founders — with deadlines, investment terms, and equity details.

35 programs34 solo-friendly6 zero-equity

Top-Tier Programs5

accelerator Solo ✓

Y Combinator

Y Combinator

The gold standard. $500K investment ($125K for 7% + $375K uncapped SAFE). 3-month batch in SF. ~60% AI companies now. Acceptance rate ~1-3%.

$500K
Equity: 7%
3 months
San Francisco
Deadline: May 4, 2026Apply
accelerator Solo ✓

a16z Speedrun

Andreessen Horowitz

Up to $1M ($500K for 10% + $500K follow-on) plus $5M+ in AI/cloud credits from OpenAI, Anthropic, NVIDIA, AWS. 12-week in-person program.

Up to $1M + $5M credits
Equity: 10%
12 weeks
San Francisco
Deadline: Apr 30, 2026Apply
accelerator Solo ✓

Sequoia Arc

Sequoia Capital

Sequoia's bi-annual open call for pre-seed/seed founders. $500K-$1M investment. Intensive 5-week company-building immersion.

$500K–$1M
Equity: ~10%
5 weeks
San Francisco
Deadline: Feb 28, 2026Apply
accelerator Solo ✓

Neo Residency

Neo (Ali Partovi)

$750K uncapped SAFE (no valuation cap!) + $450K+ compute credits. 3-month SF workspace + Oregon bootcamp. Student track: $40K no-strings grant.

$750K uncapped SAFE
Equity: ~5% participation rights
3 months
San Francisco
Deadline: RollingApply
fellowship Solo ✓

South Park Commons

SPC

$400K for 7% + $600K guaranteed follow-on + $1M+ in compute credits. Frontier-tech focused. Pre-idea welcome — you don't need an idea to apply.

$400K + $600K follow-on
Equity: 7%
2-month bootcamp + residency
San Francisco / NYC
Deadline: Feb 1, 2026Apply

More Opportunities30

acceleratorSolo ✓

Techstars

Techstars

$220K total ($20K for 5% + $200K uncapped SAFE). Mentorship-driven. Programs across multiple verticals and cities worldwide.

$220K5% equity 13 weeks Multiple cities + remote
Deadline: Rolling by program
MentorshipGlobal
acceleratorSolo ✓

500 Global

500 Global

$150K for 6% (Flagship). Also runs a dedicated Solo Founders Program: $100K MFN SAFE. Alumni include Canva, Grab, Talkdesk.

$100K–$150K6% equity 4 months Silicon Valley
Deadline: Mar 31, 2026
Solo Founders ProgramGlobal
acceleratorSolo ✓

PearX

Pear VC

$250K–$2M per company. Small cohorts with 1:1 partner support. 90% of companies go on to raise from top-tier VCs. Strong AI focus.

$250K–$2MNegotiated equity 12 weeks Bay Area
Deadline: Apr 12, 2026
AIEnterpriseSmall Cohort
acceleratorSolo ✓

LAUNCH Accelerator

Jason Calacanis

$25K–$500K investment, ~6% equity. Free program. Backed Uber, Robinhood, and Calm early. 100+ startups funded per year.

$25K–$500K~6% equity Ongoing Remote-friendly
Deadline: Rolling
High-agency BuildersFlexible
programSolo ✓

Founder University

LAUNCH / Jason Calacanis

Free 10-12 week pre-accelerator. Top graduates get $25K or $125K investment. Pipeline into LAUNCH Accelerator for top performers.

$25K–$125K for top grads 10–12 weeks Remote
Deadline: Rolling
FreePre-acceleratorLearning
acceleratorSolo ✓

Entrepreneur First

EF

Back individuals before they have a team or idea. Co-founder matching for technical founders. Up to $250K. New "The Bridge" Europe-to-SF program.

Up to $250K~8–10% equity Two 12-week sprints London → San Francisco
Deadline: May 1, 2026
Co-founder MatchingPre-ideaTechnical
accelerator

Antler

Antler

Day-zero VC in 27+ cities. Join solo, find a co-founder during the residency, and get funded. $100K–$250K investment.

$100K–$250K~8.5% equity 8-week residency 27+ cities globally
Deadline: Rolling by city
Co-founder MatchingGlobal
grant No EquitySolo ✓

Thiel Fellowship

Thiel Foundation

$200K grant over 2 years. Zero equity taken. For people under 23 who want to build instead of attending college. Alumni: Vitalik Buterin, Dylan Field (Figma).

$200K grant 2 years Flexible
Deadline: Rolling
GrantNo EquityUnder 23
program No EquitySolo ✓

Google for Startups: AI

Google

Equity-free 10-week program for AI/GenAI startups. Up to $350K in Google Cloud credits. Google mentorship and product access.

$350K credits 10 weeks Global (hybrid)
Deadline: Varies by region
AINo EquityCredits
competition No EquitySolo ✓

MassChallenge

MassChallenge

Zero-equity, zero-fee accelerator with cash prizes up to CHF 1M. Operates in US, UK, Switzerland, Mexico. Impact-focused.

Up to CHF 1M prizes 4 months US, UK, Switzerland, Mexico
Deadline: Apr 15, 2026
No EquityPrizesImpact
program No EquitySolo ✓

NVIDIA Inception

NVIDIA

Free ongoing program for AI startups at any stage. Cloud credits, hardware discounts, DLI training, VC intros. 19,000+ member startups. Apply anytime.

Credits + perks Ongoing Global
Deadline: Rolling (open year-round)
AINo EquityAny Stage
fellowshipSolo ✓

Z Fellows

Z Fellows (Cory Levy)

$10K at a $1B valuation cap — practically free equity. 1-week fellowship connecting young builders with billion-dollar founders. Investment optional.

$10KMinimal ($1B cap) equity 1 week Virtual + SF/NYC
Deadline: Rolling
Young BuildersLow Commitment
grantSolo ✓

1517 Fund

1517 Fund

VC fund backing college dropouts, students, and young scientists. $50K–$1M investments. Also offers $1,000 Medici Grants for young builders.

$50K–$1MNegotiated equity Ongoing relationship Remote
Deadline: No formal deadline
StudentsDropoutsDeep Tech
fellowshipSolo ✓

Soma Capital Fellows

Soma Capital

$100K–$2M on uncapped SAFEs (0% equity at investment). Connect with 30+ unicorn founders. $1B AUM fund, 900+ investments, 34+ unicorns.

$100K–$2M0% (uncapped SAFE) equity Ongoing Remote
Deadline: Rolling
Uncapped SAFENetwork
fellowshipSolo ✓

On Deck Founder Fellowship

On Deck

10-week remote cohort for early-stage founders. No investment, paid program (~$2,990). Up to 80% scholarships available. Strong network.

No investment (paid program) 10 weeks Remote
Deadline: Rolling
CommunityNetworkRemote
programSolo ✓

Founder Institute

Founder Institute

World's largest pre-seed accelerator. 4-month part-time program in 200+ cities. For idea-stage, first-time founders. 8,900+ entrepreneurs globally.

Training program 4 months (part-time) 200+ cities globally
Deadline: Rolling by city
Idea-stageGlobalPart-time
acceleratorSolo ✓

Alchemist Accelerator

Alchemist

Enterprise-focused (B2B) accelerator backed by major VCs and corporates. 6-month program in the Bay Area. Strong network for selling to enterprises.

~$25K~5% equity 6 months San Francisco Bay Area
Deadline: Rolling
B2BEnterprise
grantSolo ✓

AI Grant

Nat Friedman & Daniel Gross

~$250K grant for individuals and small teams working on AI projects. Founded by ex-GitHub CEO Nat Friedman and investor Daniel Gross. Light-touch, community-driven.

~$250KVaries equity Grant-based Remote / SF community
Deadline: Invalid Date
AIGrantResearch
programSolo ✓

Embed

Homebrew (Hunter Walk & Satya Patel)

$500K via SAFE for pre-seed founders. Structured support program by Homebrew, one of the most respected seed funds in SF.

$500KVia SAFE equity ~3 months San Francisco
Deadline: Rolling
Pre-seedOperator Support
fellowshipSolo ✓

HF0 (Hacker Fellowship)

HF0

$500K uncapped SAFE for exceptional technical founders. Residency with housing in SF. Strong community from top CS programs.

$500K uncapped SAFEVia SAFE equity 8–12 weeks San Francisco
Deadline: Rolling
TechnicalHousingCommunity
program No EquitySolo ✓

Morgan Stanley Inclusive Ventures Lab

Morgan Stanley

Non-dilutive (0% equity) 5-month program for startups led by diverse founders. Mentorship, resources, and investor access from Morgan Stanley network.

Non-dilutive support 5 months New York City
Deadline: Invalid Date
No EquityDiversityFinance Network
acceleratorSolo ✓

Entrepreneurs Roundtable Accelerator

ERA

$100K for ~8% equity. NYC-based, one of the top-ranked US accelerators. Strong focus on company building and investor access.

$100K~8% equity 4 months New York City
Deadline: Invalid Date
NYCInvestor Access
acceleratorSolo ✓

MuckerLab

Mucker Capital

$150K–$200K for ~6-8% (SAFE). LA-based accelerator from former operators. Hands-on operational support for seed-stage startups.

$150K–$200K~6–8% equity 6 months Los Angeles
Deadline: Rolling
LAOperatorsSeed
program No EquitySolo ✓

AWS Generative AI Accelerator

Amazon Web Services

Up to $1M in AWS credits for generative AI startups. Zero equity. Mentorship and access to Amazon's AI/ML resources. 10-week program.

Up to $1M credits 10 weeks Virtual / hybrid
Deadline: Invalid Date
AINo EquityCloud Credits
programSolo ✓

NFX Fast

NFX

$100K–$250K via SAFE. Rapid-decision pre-seed investment from the network-effects VC. Signal platform for founder discovery. Remote-friendly.

$100K–$250KVia SAFE equity Ongoing support San Francisco / Remote
Deadline: Rolling
Pre-seedNetwork EffectsFast Decision
acceleratorSolo ✓

Boost VC

Boost VC (Adam Draper)

$500K via SAFE (~7% target). Pre-seed fund for frontier tech — AI, VR/AR, and sci-fi-inspired tech. 3-month program in San Mateo.

$500K~7% equity 3 months San Mateo, CA
Deadline: Invalid Date
Frontier TechAISci-fi
acceleratorSolo ✓

AI2 Incubator

Allen Institute for AI

$500K–$1M for AI-focused startups. Spun out of Paul Allen's AI research institute. Deep technical resources and research talent access in Seattle.

$500K–$1M~5–15% equity ~6 months Seattle, WA
Deadline: Rolling
AIResearchDeep Tech
acceleratorSolo ✓

Plug and Play Tech Center

Plug and Play

One of the world's largest accelerator platforms. 20+ industry verticals, 40+ global locations. Connects startups with major corporations. Many programs are non-dilutive.

$25K–$500K (varies)0–5% (varies) equity 3 months Sunnyvale, CA + 40 global locations
Deadline: Rolling by program
Corporate PartnersGlobalMulti-vertical
acceleratorSolo ✓

AlphaLab

Innovation Works

$25K–$50K for ~5% equity. Pittsburgh-based, one of the longest-running US accelerators. Software and hardware startups. 20-week program.

$25K–$50K~5% equity 20 weeks Pittsburgh, PA
Deadline: Invalid Date
PittsburghHardwareSoftware
programSolo ✓

Afore Capital Founders in Residence

Afore Capital

~$750K pre-seed check for founders before they've started building. Specifically targets people still exploring ideas. The ultimate pre-idea investment.

~$750KVia SAFE equity Ongoing relationship San Francisco / Remote
Deadline: Rolling
Pre-ideaPre-seedExploration

Know a great program?

We're always curating programs relevant to solo founders. Email us to suggest one.

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