E85: ATDC: Startup Incubator & Accelerator Extraordinaire

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ATDC is one of the original startup incubators and accelerators in the US. Founded in Atlanta, GA 40 years ago it is supported by the State of Georgia and hosted by Georgia Tech. ATDC Director John Avery walks us through the history and strategic vision of ATDC as Georgia’s technology business incubator, assisting entrepreneurs throughout the state. Using a unique blend of coaching, curriculum, community, and connections, and not just to Georgia Tech and its resources, but also to capital and customers. ATDC helps Georgia startups at various stages navigate the choppy waters of taking an idea from concept to product prototype to launch and ultimately to scale. ATDC annually graduates successful portfolio companies with 48% of ATDC companies having a successful exit. ATDC guides entrepreneurs through 3 stages of development: Educate, Accelerate, and Signature. Educate embraces entrepreneurs at the very beginning of their startup journey with a targeted three step educational curriculum with ATDC Educate Entrepreneurship 101, ATDC Educate Financial Literacy 102, and ATDC Customer Discovery. This curricula prepares founders for advanced classes on functional areas such as sales, digital marketing, product development, etc., as well as market-specific classes throughout the year in Industry Program verticals: FinTech, Advanced Manufacturing, HealthTech, 5G, Supply Chain/Logistics, Sustainability, and Robotics & Automation. Accelerate is the Launch stage for entrepreneurs who usually have at least a Minimal Viable Product (MVP) or are beta testing their product, are adding initial customers, and refining their business model. Signature is the growth stage for Accelerate graduates who are usually adding customers, hiring more employees, raising venture funding, and learning to scale their business. In this stage, ATDC is providing connections to industry, customers and capital. For 2017, 2018, and 2019, ATDC’s portfolio Accelerate and Signature companies collectively raised over $100M each year from investors and cumulatively have raised over $2.9B in capital since 1980. The ATDC Investor Connect Program connects ATDC portfolio companies to Investors with a dedicated program manager who tracks, monitors, and reports on regional and national investment trends and is available for consultations. In addition, ATDC’s coaching staff works with each presenting company to hone and polish their pitch until your pitch and placement materials are perfect. An Angel in Residence is also on-hand to provide experienced guidance. Founders can become members of ATDC for a modest fee and do not give up equity to join the ATDC program. (recorded 9/7/23)

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