Startup Tucson
|
Location |
Tucson, AZ |
|
|---|---|---|
|
Build to Scale Program |
Capital Challenge |
|
|
Project Name |
D.R.I.V.E Tucson Program: Diversifying Regional Investment in Venture-Ready Entrepreneurship |
|
|
Award Amount |
Federal Share |
Local Match |
|
$297,990 |
$298,299 |
The D.R.I.V.E Tucson project builds the region’s scalable startups by developing a robust, inclusive, and sustainable pipeline of new investors with its New Investor Pipeline, New Investor Digital Toolkit, and Innovation Network Investor Portal.
The project will provide targeted training for existing investors on emerging investment trends and best practices in supporting diverse founders and will work to recruit, educate, and mentor new upwardly-mobile prospective investors, utilizing crowdfunding as a scaffolded learn-by-doing investment tool. The project is expected to add 30 new accredited angels and 180 first-time crowdfunding investors (50 percent from underrepresented groups) to Tucson’s investment community. The result will be in the support of 10 companies, deployment of $4 million in investment capital, and over 75 jobs.
Startup Tucson will work with diverse partners including the Desert Angels, Community Investment Corporation, UAVenture Capital, Arizona FORGE, UACI, Southern Arizona Leadership Council, and the Arizona Commerce Authority to develop an approach that simultaneously addresses historical inequities and anticipates the rapidly shifting future of investment, successfully expanding capital deployment.