NEC Corporation, a leader in IT and network technologies; NEC X, the innovation accelerator for NEC’s emerging technologies; and Alchemist Accelerator, a venture-backed initiative focused on accelerating the development of early-stage ventures, today announced a joint partnership between NEC X and Alchemist to provide technology startups with end-to-end support, including NEC R&D technologies and business launch coordination. NEC X provides its Corporate Accelerator Program (CAP) together with AlchemistX, Alchemist’s corporate innovation accelerator, to speed the development of early-stage startups.
“Our CAP has evolved by leveraging the Silicon Valley startup ecosystem,” said Shige Ihara, CEO of NEC X. “From its establishment in 2018 to the present, NEC X has gone from being a new startup itself, to seeding 23 potential new ventures. However, we wanted to enhance the support for startups to succeed through our technology incubation program. We chose to partner with Alchemist because it was a good fit for all parties.”
NEC X has access to Alchemist’s methodology and resources, as well as the Alchemist network of entrepreneurs, venture capitalists, corporations, and mentors. Additionally, NEC X CAP graduates have the option to join Alchemist for further growth and investment opportunity. Alchemist has access to NEC X’s early-stage startups using cutting-edge technologies from NEC R&D.
“We are excited to partner with NEC X–we think the synergies are strong. NEC is pushing the frontiers of technology, and Alchemist bolsters NEC X’s existing support with a structured path to market traction and fundraising as well as mentorship and community for founders,” said Ravi Belani, managing director and founder at Alchemist Accelerator. “Alchemist has built a strong track record of helping startups realize and expand their potential, including accelerating their growth through hands-on coaching and curated access to fundraising. We are excited to now support NEC X’s startups, in which much of the experience is personalized to the needs of each startup to help them build their company in the way that works for them.”
Additionally, NEC X and Alchemist are pleased to announce the graduation of new windowMetabob at the Alchemist 27th Demo Day today. Metabob, which helps Python coders save countless hours by quickly identifying bugs in their code, began in NEC X’s CAP, using technology developed from NEC R&D. After incubation and spin out through NEC X, Metabob joined Alchemist for final acceleration and launch.
The NEC X CAP process begins by introducing prequalified entrepreneurs-in-residence (EIRs), who have the right mix of business acumen and technology aptitude, to technologies from NEC R&D, and then the potential EIRs present and demonstrate business ideas. Those selected as EIRs then drive the CAP process, including customer discovery and customer validation, and go through development activities for incorporation. Since its establishment in 2018, NEC X has already spun out three startups through the CAP process.
