eō & XY Accelerator
World Class Incubation Program hosted by leading experts from eō Business Incubators and XY Partners

From October 10, eō in partnership with XY launches an accelerator program for startups and Moldovan technology businesses. 70+ experienced mentors from around the world will work with selected companies to help validate an idea, enter European, US and global markets, increase sales, and attract investment.

Free of charge

The program is free of charge to all applicants. Yet, all accepted founders have to commit to fully participate in the program

Tech-focused

Focused on technology startups (including from universities and research institutes); all technologies, all stages of development

Global Mentors

70+ international mentors with hands-on entrepreneurial and investor experience are available to support all teams

Hands on Support

Each team will be supported in conducting first user interviews, conducting sales, finding a co-founder and attracting investment
Program Partners

EO&XY Accelerator is supported by Western NIS Fund and Future Technology Activity, financed by USAID and Sweden.

Program Mentors
Mentors are an essential part of our program. By freely sharing their wisdom & guidance, they impact the entire network and create real, lasting relationships.
  • Rick Rasmussen
    Rick is an Industry Fellow at UC Berkeley and Adjunct Faculty at Northeastern University
    where he currently teaches Innovation and Entrepreneurship. He is a Silicon Valley native with direct experience and thought leadership across industry, government, venture capital, and academia. Rick has been a member of executive teams of three separate companies that started with zero revenue, raised rounds from leading VCs, went public, gained Fortune 500 status, and sold for a collective $12B. He connects governments and economic development agencies with the vast resources available throughout Silicon Valley. Rick is Head of Mentors for the European Innovation Academy and advisor to Alchemist Accelerator as well as to dozens of early-stage startup companies.

  • Kenneth Shen
    Currently the Managing Partner at Half Past Nine, a digital strategy management consulting firm architecting actionable digital strategy for small-to-mid-sized companies. Previously served for two years as the VP of Marketing for Pressure Profile Systems, a global supplier of the world’s most advanced tactile sensors. Co-founder and Chief Strategy Officer at Altitude University, an advanced training platform for the drone industry. Has held various management roles from consultant to CMO, in companies across industries in B2C, DTC, and B2B.
  • Vadim Keffler
    Vadim is an entrepreneur and an investor. He is currently the CEO and Co-Founder of Clingo - a US-based early stage startup in digital health that is being incubated in the MIT/Harvard ecosystem. He started his career in JPMorgan and spent 10 years dealing with all aspects of buying, selling, operating, and financing businesses while working in M&A, leveraged finance, and private equity out of London. He was on the board of IDS, invested in several early-stage startups, and co-founded a logistics company in the past. He has an MBA from MIT, an MSc from the London School of Economics and he studied Computer Science in college. He is passionate about entrepreneurship and a big believer in Ukrainian tech.
  • Alina Adams
    Alina is a serial entrepreneur and has founded tech companies in the hardware and software spaces. She is a faculty member at Northeastern University and a mentor at several global organizations, including Global Social Benefit Institute, European Innovation Academy, and Stanford LISA Executive Program.
  • Olga Svitelska
    Olga started her career in 2010 as an Operations Manager at Burenina fashion brand. From 2010 to 2012, she was a Costume designer / Producer at 95 Kvartal, Inter (TV channel), Radioactive Films, Plastilin Films and 1+1 (TV Channel). In 2014-2015, she served as an Iteration Manager at Gap Inc./GID. During 2015-2016, she was a Program Manager at Affinity (tryaffinity.com). Currently, Olga is a Director of Operations at HACK Temple and Co-founder and COO of Wunderdogs.
  • Harley Morlet
    Harley is a full-stack developer, with expertise in startups, cybersecurity, and fintech. He is
    co-founder of @TailOffers.
  • Felix Litvinsky
    Felix is a Managing Director of Blackstone LaunchPad at Cornell University, an experiential
    university-wide entrepreneurship program. Felix is a seasoned technology entrepreneur and an active member of various investor groups. He held executive and management positions in business development, technology, and strategy at international companies. For example, Felix was the Vice President of Business Development at ARC International (LSE: ARK.L). Prior to ARC, he was a Co-Founder and the CEO of Alarity Corporation (acquired by ARC International, now Synopsys), a company that specialized in multimedia IP. Felix is also a mentor at Techstars and a mentor and advisor at Princeton University’s Keller Center. He is also a Co-Founder and Managing Partner of Minority Venture Partners, a business acceleration company whose mission is to increase and expand Minority and Women Business Enterprises in emerging technology sectors throughout New York City and the tri-state area.

  • Will Mercer
    Will is a career problem solver; he works with early-stage businesses to clarify their mission and strategy. His career spans entrepreneurship, finance, and strategy consultancy. In 2015, Will became Head of Strategy of The Trampery, a workspace provider for creative startups. During his tenure he drove the growth of the business which included operating five spaces across London, developing a new co-living village, and delivering an international consulting business with projects in Oslo and the Balkans. In 2017, he moved to France to start a new type of residential work and event space in a fairy tale castle. Chateau de La Salle successfully launched in May 2018. Since then, Will has operated as a freelance strategist, with projects such as advising USAID in Ukraine, developing a placemaking strategy for Lingang, a new city in China, and developing the strategy for the European Creative Hub Network. He was also the Venture Director at Zag, a commercial design consultancy that has created new products for customers such as Facebook, Yamaha, and Lego. Will is a judge on Marriott Hotel’s Test Bed program and for the Hult Prize.
  • Charles K. Whitehead
    Chuck is the Myron C. Taylor Alumni Professor of Business Law at Cornell Law School and the Founding Director of the Law, Technology & Entrepreneurship program at Cornell Tech in New York City. He is also the Co-Founder of eō Business Incubators. Prior to entering academia, Chuck held senior legal and business positions in the financial services industry in New York and Tokyo, including as a Managing Director of Nomura Securities International, Salomon Brothers, and Citigroup. His law and banking experience extends to venture capital and other investments, IPOs (including by VC-funded companies), and mergers & acquisitions. Chuck is an honorary doctor of the Yaroslav Mudryi National Law University and a Co-Founder of the Institute for Law, Technology & Innovation in Ukraine.
  • Traian Chivriga
    Traian has been involved in projects in various fields: sports, logistics, HoReCa, art and consulting. He has worked in companies and projects such as Ignite Chișinău, UnArtOras, IHUB, Tekwill and Vintage. His expertise will be useful to startups at the product development, sales, PR and marketing stage.
  • Olga Melniciuc
    Olga is a finance expert, trainer and entrepreneur. She advises manufacturing startups with an online presence. In the past she worked in state organizations such as ODIMM and was economic advisor to the Prime Minister of Moldova. Olga can help startups access sources of funding.
  • Alex Lebedev
    Alexander has extensive media experience. In 2013 he launched Diez.md which is now one of the most popular media portals in Moldova. He can help startups create good media relations, develop communication strategies and marketing processes.

Program Syllabus

The program was designed to help entrepreneurs validate and launch their startup ideas. Each block of the program represents a weekly sprint which helps the founders master a business skill or learn a startup development technique.
Week 1
  • Introduction & Program Overview
  • Setting program Goals and KPIs/OKRs
  • Validating Your Startup
  • Pitches & Feedback
  • Customer Development Workshop
Week 2
  • 1-on-1s (45 min per company)
  • Friday Happy Hour (Optional)
Week 3
  • Introduction to Design Thinking and Customer Development
  • Mentor Matchmaking
  • CusDev Roundtable
Week 4
  • Prototyping. Matching Customers to Products/Service Workshop
  • 1-on-1s (30 min per company)
Week 5
  • Go-to-market Strategy
  • 1-on-1s (30 min per company)
Week 6
  • Financial Modelling
  • 1-on-1s (30 min per company)
Week 7
  • Financial Model: What Investors Want to See
  • 1-on-1s (30 min per company)
Week 8
  • 1-on-1s (30 min per company)
  • Basics of Finance
  • Pitch Practice (3-min pitch)
Week 9
  • Pitch Practice (3-min pitch)
  • Legal Basics for Startups
  • 1-on-1s (30 min per company)
Week 10
  • 1-on-1s (30 min per company)
  • Data-Based Marketing & Product Market Fit
  • Pitch Practice (3-min pitch)
Week 11
  • 1-on-1s (30 min per company)
  • Fundraising 101
  • Pitch Practice (3-min pitches)
Week 12
  • 1-on-1s (45 min per company)
  • Pitch Practice (30-sec pitches)
Week 13
  • 1-on-1s (45 min per company)
  • Pitch Practice (30-sec pitches)
January 19
Demo Day
Corporate Partners
Our partners offer generous discounts for startups participating in XY Partners programs.
Graduate Startups