MAP has transformed over 120+ startup founders into elite operators.
A home for brilliant minds, where world-changing ideas become a reality.
For over a decade, Melbourne Accelerator Program has been the catalyst for extraordinary success, transforming startups into industry leaders. Our commitment to excellence has yielded remarkable outcomes.
At MAP, we don't just cultivate startups; we cultivate high-performance environments. The magic happens when founders come together with our dedicated staff, mentors, Entrepreneurs in Residence (EIRs), and alumni.
We’ve seen the impact of our program time and time again. We'll provide you with the support you need, at the moment you need it.
To build our high-performance environment, we need you to be committed to your startup, cohort and the broader MAP community.
The commitment:
- One founder to be working full-time from the office for 5 months (every Tuesday and Thursday, plus one additional work-week day) from March - August.
- To be in attendance of each MAP milestone event during the 5-month period (dates TBA)
To build our high-performance environment, we need you to be committed to your startup, cohort and the broader MAP community.
The commitment:
- One founder to be working full-time from the office for 5 months (every Tuesday and Thursday, plus one additional work-week day) from March - August.
- To be in attendance of each MAP milestone event during the 5-month period (dates TBA)
To remain aligned with our values and purpose, MAP does not accept startups in industries that cause direct harm to humanity or the planet, such as gambling, tobacco, alcohol, weapons or any environmental destruction.
That’s ok, there still may be a way to connect with us. In the first instance, we recommend that you check out the Velocity Program- it does not have any university affiliation or full-time eligibility requirements to take part. In addition, you can get involved at MAP via the numerous events we host and get connected with our community that way.
Yes, It is a requirement of participation in the accelerator that you work from our office for the duration of the program. This is because we believe in building strong network and connections in our cohort by encouraging regular in-person interactions.
For startups that are already too large (in terms of employee count) or need to work from dedicated offsite facilities due to the nature of their work, we are flexible, but active participation is still required to be eligible.
Whilst we certainly like to see startups led by teams with strong technical talent, it is not a requirement to be accepted into the accelerator. If you do not have a technical co-founder, we look at a team’s immediate network to see if this talent is within reach e.g. an employee, advisor or supporting organisation.
Absolutely! Plenty of our alumni startups entered MAP just before earning their first dollar in revenue. Participating in an accelerator program like MAP helps pre-revenue startups develop and refine their product/service and prepare for sales once they come in. Whilst our judges look highly on market traction (sales), it is certainly not a requirement for entry into the program.
Absolutely. We are agnostic about business model and strongly encourage not-for-profit startups to apply. We look closely at a not for profit startup’s potential to set up a sustainable revenue stream that does not heavily rely on government or philanthropic grants and funding for its success.
MAP programs require in-person participation. You can certainly apply for the program if you are currently based overseas and meet the eligibility requirements. However, for the duration of the program (June-October), you will be required to relocate to Melbourne, Australia. The reason we do this is because you will receive the greatest value from the program if you’re a part of our cohort.
You can, and office hours is probably the best way. You can book Office Hours with our team once you’ve expressed your interest on our website.
Our online application process involves you submitting a 3 minute video and answering simple questions about your startup and founding team. If you'd like to see the questions asked and to help you prepare, please have a look at this document for details.
We do not have an investment mandate and we consider companies from a broad range of industries. We look for startups which have the potential for high growth, high impact and the team has the capability to build and scale the company.
Starting a business is a big undertaking. Conversations between you and your co-founders about a shareholders agreement needs to happen as early as possible. We do ask for a cap table, a shareholders agreement, and other documents during the selection process and strongly advise that these are in place before you begin any accelerator program.
No you don’t. We advise against it as demos are notoriously difficult to set up, don’t perform well, and take too much time in a high pressure situation. It also depends on the stage of the selection process, as to whether or not it is an appropriate thing to include (we’d be willing to entertain it in stage 3 and/or 4). If you’re confident your product or service will perform, please reach out to the MAP team to assess whether it is appropriate to do so.
You can certainly apply and we can accomodate remote presentations, however we would encourage you to find a way to be present at each part of selection process to give yourself the best possible chance of engaging with the key stakeholders who form part of this process. Historically it’s proven more challenging for those who’ve tried to achieve the same impact remotely.
At each stage of the process we will endeavour to inform all applicants of whether they’ve been successful in progressing to the next stage, so you will be notified within a few days of those key stage dates. Review the application timeline for more details.
To ensure you don’t miss any communication please be sure to keep an eye on your inbox (and junk mail folder) and put info@themap.com your safe list.
We make every effort to provide each unsuccessful candidate with feedback about their application. Unfortunately due to the volume of applications, we can’t guarantee your startup will receive feedback before stage 3 of the selection process. If we are able to, feedback may come in the form of a follow-up phone call, or a meeting in person with one of the team.
MAP is rather unique amongst the Australian startup accelerators, for the following reasons.
A startup accelerator program is a short time bound experience designed to help early-stage startup businesses find their feet and pursue explosive growth.
Our program involves a mix of mentoring, equity-free funding, office space, and access to some of the most brilliant business minds in Australia to help accelerate your growth. We also put teams on the biggest startup stages in the country to share their vision and gain support for how to get there.
No. Unlike many other accelerator programs, MAP does not take any equity or ownership in your company.
However, we do expect a cultural return. The best way you can do this is to support the next generation of startups in our program by becoming a great ambassador and mentor for MAP. This could mean running a workshop, mentoring a startup in the next cohort or even making a helpful introduction to a budding founder in the program.
No. You retain full ownership of all intellectual property (IP) your startup creates.
A typical week for a MAP founder is spent working on your business with support from the MAP team, mentors and founder cohort. The objective is to surround you with the knowledge, support, expertise and networks to help you make decisions for your business as quickly as possible.
You will kick off the week by sharing your goals and challenges for the week with your fellow founders, and attend a meeting with the MAP team and Entrepreneurs in Residence to review your wins, discuss tactics, or analyse issues you foresee in the coming week. As you’ll be running your business out of the MAP office you’ll quickly find that your proximity to founders will be invaluable as they will help you understand how they’ve approached and overcome obstacles you’re now facing.
In addition you will attend tailored workshops with your cohort that cover topics such as legal essentials, fundraising, hiring etc. You’ll probably catch up with a MAP mentor or two for coffee (or over the phone) to get their industry specific guidance and feedback on your business. You might spend an afternoon with your cohort at a lunch hosted by one of our community partners to find out about how they can support your startup’s growth e.g. Microsoft, IBM, Stripe etc. We’ll spend quality time with you at a mentor dinner for a candid, strictly off the record insight into the entrepreneurial journey of a mentor in our network and invite them to share their advice with you.
Within reason, yes. We have space for light prototyping work, however any work that produces significant noise or smells will have to be done offsite. We have access to production facilities in the university which may be of use to you. If you’d like to discuss a specific example our team is best suited to explore what you’re looking for.
Yes, it is a requirement that at least one of your founding team work from our office for the duration of the program. We do make exceptions from time to time for startups who are already too large (in terms of employee count) or need to work from dedicated offsite facilities due to the nature of their work.
Absolutely. Each startup founder will be issued with an access card which grants 24/7 access to the MAP office. Please note we are big advocates of work-life balance, and have a wellness program that we run here - so will encourage you to reflect on and manage your time effectively.
The Startup Accelerator is MAP’s flagship program. It is a 5-month full-time program which provides startups with $20,000 in equity-free funding, free office space in the CBD, structured mentoring by entrepreneurs and business leaders, and pitching opportunities to investors and business leaders in Australia and overseas.
The Velocity Program is a part-time program for founders at an earlier stage of their entrepreneurial journey. The workshop-based program comprises 10 workshops centred around customer discovery and market validation with specialised experiences for both for-profit and for-purpose entrepreneurs.
Yes. Provided that the eligibility requirements are satisfied, including having one founder working full-time in Melbourne for the entire duration of the program (July to November).
Yes, internships and jobs do occasionally pop up at MAP. Sign up to our newsletter at themap.co to be kept up to date about when vacancies do open.
Unfortunately, not without an appointment. We work in a shared space with other tenants and our founders are usually super busy working on their companies - so please do contact us and make an appointment beforehand!
