World: Orange Unveils Orange Fab , An Accelerator Program for US-based Start-ups
By NewsfromAfrica
In order to leverage more of Silicon Valley’s innovation, Orange is launching « Orange Fab » an accelerator program for start-ups. « Orange Fab » is open to all US-based start-ups that want to change the way people connect and communicate. The program is managed by Orange Silicon Valley, Orange’s development center in San Francisco, California.
Orange Fab aims to help start-ups grow their businesses and develop amazing products and services that benefit Orange and its customers. There will be 4 - 6 start-ups selected to be part of the program that will start in May 2013. Start-ups joining the program will have access to mentoring sessions from notable Silicon Valley entrepreneurs, world-class engineers and experienced designers.
They will also be paired-up with and advised by Orange executives located in Silicon Valley, Europe, Africa and the Middle East. The start-ups will be able to relocate to the offices of Orange Silicon Valley or use their meeting rooms. All the start-ups that are selected for the program will be offered $20,000 in funding.
In addition, two demo days will be organized - one taking place in Paris in June, while the second one will be in Silicon Valley in July.
To join Orange Fab, start-ups must present an existing product, be in advanced beta phase or have already launched. Preferably, they have not yet raised a series-A round of investment from VCs. Start-ups are invited to apply on www.orangefab.com. The applications are open until April 7th 2013.
“With Orange Fab, we join together with the next wave of Silicon Valley innovators to reimagine the future of communications," noted Georges Nahon, CEO of Orange Silicon Valley and President of Orange Institute. "We are optimistic that opening up our world-class innovation center in San Francisco, and providing start-ups privileged access to decision-makers on the front lines of our business operations will be a win-win for all participants."
The selected start-ups will benefit from Orange Fab unique positioning: deeply rooted in Silicon Valley and widely known within France Telecom-Orange group, which has operations in 33 countries.
“Orange Fab will help us take to the next level the relationships we have been building with our ecosystem of startups and develop new ones. We look forward to watching them thrive through new connections within our company. » explained Pascale Diaine, Orange Fab lead.
With Orange Fab, entrepreneurs are able to focus on their growth, on distributing their service globally and on building and scaling products and services that will dramatically change telecommunications as we know it.
To make this possible, Orange is combining its deep knowledge of the telecommunications industry with the invaluable expertise of Silicon Valley mentors, while offering qualified startups funding and logistics support.