“Newchip was a very "cookie cutter" experience, not a true accelerator. I'm pretty sure the graduation ceremony was pre-recorded and the "homework" was never checked. Lots of confusion around connections and their investor network was weak at best. I participated in 3 demo days and most investors contacted me through LinkedIn, so it's hard to know if they did anything proactive to encourage investment or actual introductions. Our company is definitely investable as proved by us raising $450k in one month on StartEngine, but not a dollar was from Newchip or an intro from NewChip. The best part of NewChip was getting to try Sofos.ai.”
“I started the program in Spring 2020. The staff of Newchip is knowledgeable and friendly to work with, but it felt like I may have started the program while they went through significant (non-COVID) organizational and program changes. The program went through considerable system changes that were confusing and created technical challenges and UX adjustments for end-users; some of the metrics requested did not apply to our stage.
One of the key elements I was most excited about was the opportunity to have a mentor. Over the program's course, we were assigned three different mentors, causing us to restart a relationship each time. In the end, I never had a mentor that lasted through the entire length of the program, which was a waste of our time and effort, and it could have been worth so much more.
Another aspect of the program is the live cohort sessions with the Newchip advisor. This was an important part of the program, but more interaction and sessions would be beneficial. We started the program with two meetings a month and then decreased to one meeting a month after our first advisor's departure. Online learning has its advantages, but I find in-person, traditional class style sessions more meaningful. In the last few months of the program, Newchip offered a weekly session that allowed founders to discuss any topic. Unfortunately for us, we are bootstrapping our company and work other jobs, which was always in conflict with these midday sessions.
The "connect" program (Sofos) through LinkedIn can be an impactful part of the program. It allowed us to connect and network with people as I searched for people interested in our work. This tool can be overwhelming at times and requires several hours a week to manage responses and meetings; that's neither good nor bad, just an aspect to know upfront so you can plan to address the additional time commitment.
I found the course content helpful in many ways. I recommend that pre-seed, pre-revenue companies focus on family/friends fundraising. Looking back, I don't know that I would have started the program had I known all the changes Newchip seemed to undergo. Based on what I now see on the platform, I suspect companies going through the program now have a very different experience.”
“The biggest change, I would say going through Newchip, is being more conscious of the many options we have. The accelerator helped guide how I should prepare HUGS for fundraising.
If you're serious about scaling and fundraising, the information is there, the support is there, everything you need is there! So if you're really serious about it, I would heavily consider Newchip.”
“I really like how NewChip is aligning IR Showcase 5min pitches with VC investment thesis and interest (EdTech, Data & Analytics, Underrepresented Founders, Female Founders, etc).”
“We've had a really good run last couple of years, and I think the Newchip edge gave us the power to be able to get to this place. It's definitely brought us more than what we've paid and put our company in a place where people could understand what we're doing very quickly and they could say, yes, we're interested or no.
I will say that the video and the one-page executive summary, along with a little bit of education that I was lacking before the course, has put us in a position to have just received a hundred million dollar commitment from global emerging markets.
I highly recommend the Newchip experience, whether you're seasoned or not seasoned, you're going to learn a few things.”
“Hi,
Our mentor works really hard to support us (5/5)
I learned a lot from mastermind sessions (5/5)
The total number of meeting we got is not what we expected (3/5)
I believe Newchip needs to work more on the matching of investors and stratups ... we are at the seed round and almost all investors have been connected to us are looking for series A round! (2/5)
The content on the website can be customized based on the stage of the startups. I gave up following the content actively because many of them needed for pre-seed stage, (3/5)
I totally understand nothing is perfect from the beginning and you continue improving Newchip
Thank you,
Babak”
“The Newchip accelerator was great for our business because we are a virtual business. When you look at Newchip and the investment that is required there, the return on investment is significant for any startup founder.
There were a number of changes that we experienced through the Newchip accelerator and we're happy to say that we have an investor network that we engage with thanks to Newchip.”
“It has been close to a year since I last enrolled at Newchip. The information via the curriculum was helpful because it prepared my company to be ready for funding. The many meetings that were facilitated through investor relations department was an eye opener. Meeting so many people and sharing my vision of the company became easier after the first dozen meetings. I knew what to ask for and what I could share to spotlight to highlight my MVP. I appreciate the interaction with Mastermind meetings and all the avaiable tutoring sessions fro pitch deck and reviews along with webinars on financials scheduled by Newchip. Thank you for an excellent program. My Best, Ana Jones founder Phlext65 (connecting directly to caregivers for seniors).”
“Since becoming a mentor at Newchip, I have had very little communication with the Newchip staff. I have submitted reports, following mentor sessions, but have not received feedback.
MedVector recently graduated. Would Newchip like to hear my feedback? This mentee was less than fully invested in the program and I had to invite him to meet with me. 7 sessions was suboptimal.
In contrast, WokoLoco and GYMPerfume are enthusiastic founders who are taking full advantage of the program.
I have referred one mentor and one startup to Newchip. I have not heard if this effort was appreciated. If you prefer that I not do this, let me know.
I was told when I joined Newchip that compensation in the form of equity in Newchip would be given in return for the time spent mentoring. I would like a more detailed description of how this will be done.
I am a full-time consultant, with over 12 years of experience as an investor, advisor. coach and mentor in several programs in Austin and internationally.”
“My focus was primarily to raise for the company, so I felt Newchip was the perfect accelerator.
Going through Newchip, I've gained the skills, confidence, peer mentorship, and advice from their advisors and mentors to help me build a better pitch. I now have the confidence to go out and raise funding and the number of introductions to investors has been very helpful.
You should join the Newchip accelerator because their leadership offers access to resources and training on raising investment for your company and gives you access to their network of investors.”
“The mastermind sessions at Newchip helped keep us on track with our monthly KPIs and encouraged us to achieve and discuss our problems and possible solutions with other entrepreneurs from around the world. The program is very in-depth, especially the reading modules on almost any topic related to entrepreneurship and starting up.
We got to review and improve our pitch deck with multiple experts that helped us cover all the important aspects investors would want to see and how to manage the data and information in one place. We were able to access one-on-one meetings with 10 investors.”
“As an entrepreneur, Newchip’s flexibility was extremely handy with my busy schedule and daily routine, it worked very well for me. Newchip aligned with the DNA of Sketshare, how we support remote work, and how people like to collaborate and do things regardless of the time or the place they are.
Newchip prepared us and helped us become more structured for the fundraising that we were going through. The Newchip Mastermind sessions were very helpful to me and my team also. I have to say, I really enjoyed it.”
“At Newchip, you get to be around like-minded ambitious people who are really good at what they do and it really prepares you for the investor landscape. The program was really good because I got to update my progress on a monthly basis and with like-minded entrepreneurs, which over time definitely improved my progress, my confidence, and also some other changes.”
