On a Chilean freeway, being transported by bus from Santiago to Santa Cruz, Geeks on a Plane hears startup pitches from companies being accelerated by Endeavor, a global nonprofit accelerator for entrepreneurs with a social purpose. These entrepreneurs are trying to turn Chile solar, purify water, design solar cars. Endeavor is active throughout Latin America; in Brazil, I met an Endeavor-sponsored entrepreneur whose company brings copper-wire broadband solutions to small communities,
But here is the heart of the story We had already breakfasted with Chilean president Sebastian Pinera (@SebastianPinera on Twitter).
Last night, we attended First Tuesday Santiago to see startups and hear pitches. There are startups everywhere, which is why we’re on the bus heading for a lunchtime wine tasting and a talk by the founder of Vertical, an adventure tour company that has partnered with National Geographic to guide groups up Mount Everest and down to Antartica.
That’s because the Chilean government, under President Pinera, has taken a bold step: It has started an accelerator called Startup Chile, which will bring 100 entrepreneurs with big ideas to Chile to start companies. The founders get a stipend, expenses, and the attention of the Chilean government. Last night I met a member of the first cohort, Georges Cadena, who is trying to build a plant in Chile for holographic technology that can be used in windows to cut the cost of solar installations in half. He moved to Chile from California. And a Chilean woman from the Bay Area who moved back to co-found a private equity firm for Chilean wineries. Of 23 companies in the initial cohort, 8 will be remaining in Chile.
The people I meet think it’s a lousy time to be in the States, with its stagnant economy, group depression, and loss of focus on what immigrants brought to America.
Many of them believed in America, they went to America for college or jobs, but they didn’t see the American dream or the promised land that previous generations saw. So they turned around and came home. Over half the first "class" of Startup Chile are Americans
They are being treated like royalty. President Pinera told his audience this morning that Chile may have been late to the industrial revolution, but it won’t be late to the information revolution. He plans to do everything in his power to change the culture to one tolerant of risk, not afraid to fail and learn from mistakes. He told us Adam and Eve may have been the first entrepreneurs when they ate the forbidden fruit.
For a politician, he "gets it," and he is putting his money where his
mouth is by funding these young companies. Chile may yet produce the first solar car.
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There is already an initiative in the USA similar to Start-Up Chile called Startup America. It’s at http://www.startupamericapartnership.org.
The Startup America program is better than Startup Chile because it has attracted private participation from prominent investors such as Steve Case, founder of AOL, while Chilean investors believe that Start-Up Chile is a waste of taxpayer money. Both Chile and USA have erected enormous barriers to business success, but only the USA has recognized this as a problem that should be fixed. Here’s what Startup America says on their site:
One of the big issues that the White House initiative is looking at is
how to reduce barriers to entry for startups. Like us, they’re in
listening mode right now too and want to hear from you. Go to this website to give your feedback on how the government could help reduce barriers and help your company succeed.
There is already an initiative in the USA similar to Start-Up Chile called Startup America. It’s at http://www.startupamericapartnership.org.
The Startup America program is better than Startup Chile because it has attracted private participation from prominent investors such as Steve Case, founder of AOL, while Chilean investors believe that Start-Up Chile is a waste of taxpayer money. Both Chile and USA have erected enormous barriers to business success, but only the USA has recognized this as a problem that should be fixed. Here’s what Startup America says on their site:
One of the big issues that the White House initiative is looking at is
how to reduce barriers to entry for startups. Like us, they’re in
listening mode right now too and want to hear from you. Go to this website to give your feedback on how the government could help reduce barriers and help your company succeed.