SDS Africa Venture Studio Programme
Application Closed
Powered by
Application
SDS Africa Venture Studio Program
Startup Discovery School Africa is on a mission to tackle the African climate crisis by raising diverse leaders within the west African corridor through its various programmes. In collaboration with Autodesk Foundation and Sahara Impact Ventures, the Venture Studio was set up. The inaugural venture studio programme is a 9- month program designed to enable ambitious local founders with capital, dedicated support from a team of international and local operators, and access to a state of the art hardware facility and specialist Autodesk tools.
Key Benefits
Strategic Roadmap Execution
Access to cutting edge Software tools.
Tailored
Mentorship
Technical support for Product Development
Commercial Strategy Enhancement
Impact Strategy Development
FAQs
What is a venture studio?
A venture studio is a unique type of investment support that actively helps build and accelerate early-stage companies. Unlike traditional venture capital firms that primarily invest in existing scaling companies, our Venture Studio takes a more hands-on approach, providing resources like access to funding, mentorship, and operational support to help your new business get off the ground across our 9-month programme.
What sectors does Startup Discovery Africa focus on?
We are particularly interested in startups operating in the following sectors:
- Food Systems & Agriculture: innovation driving sustainable agriculture practices and food security
- Clean Energy: Exploring the transformative power of clean and renewable energy and reducing our dependence on fossil fuels
- Climate Adaptation: Technologies enabling communities and businesses to build resilience and adapt to the impacts of climate change
While we believe the above sectors are a primary focus to drive change, we are open to hearing from any climate-innovations accelerating the Just Transition in Africa.
What stage companies are you looking to support through the Venture Studio?
We are looking for businesses with strong founding teams, innovative ideas, and significant market potential. Applying startups must:
- Have an African Founder operating in Ghana
- Have a validated MVP that is tackling Climate Change
- Have a registered or pending legal business entity
Preference will be given scalable innovative solutions with potential for impact
What kind of support do you provide during the Venture Studio Programme?
The SDS Africa Venture Studio is a 9-month programme of hands-on support giving you access to leading software tools and tailored mentorship across technical, commercial and impact to execute your strategic roadmap. The programme will amplify ventures and support with access to customers, partners and a global investor network.
Key to the Venture Studio’s support is our ecosystem partners. We have partnered with Autodesk Foundation to give all ventures on the programme access to Autodesk tools and technical experts to support them to build and scale. Our investment partner, Sahara Impact Ventures provides critical capital to allow us to invest catalytic capital into our cohorts and support them to drive impact into rural communities and MSMEs.
What is the application process for Startup Discovery Africa?
Interested startups can submit their applications online through our website. We review all submissions carefully and select the most promising companies for further consideration.
Shortlisted applicants will be invited to a 2-stage interview process to allow the Venture Studio team to better understand your businesses, goals, and challenges.
What documents should I include in my application?
The application form will ask you all relevant questions on your business and founding team.
This includes short answer questions on your venture and it’s impact, milestones and goals. We will also ask you to attach a copy of your pitch deck.
What are the key dates for the upcoming program?
Applications for our first Venture Studio cohort close on November 5th, 2024. Shortlisted candidates will then be invited for interviews. Please note we will be reviewing applications on a rolling basis, so encourage you to apply earlier.
We will start the onboarding of the final cohort in December 2024, with the 9-month programme kicking-off in January 2025.
Can I apply to the program if my startup is already funded?
Yes, we are open to considering startups that have already received some funding. However, we will evaluate each application on a case-by-case basis, to ensure our offered support is most relevant to your business.
Does my participation in the Venture Studio cost anything? Or does Startup Discovery Africa take equity?
No – we do not have a fee or take any equity for your participation in our programme. If your company is selected for further Sahara Impact Ventures investment, we will discuss these terms in detail with each selected startup.