VentureLab is a new kind of accelerator that takes startups to new markets

A new accelerator launched in Los Angeles and San Francisco today that changes the usual model. VentureLab is part fund, part incubator, part startup studio. The main objective is to identify startups that have potential in other markets and help them set up shop on the other side of the world.

“It’s more the role of a founding partner, not a traditional accelerator,” says VentureLab partner Mike Prasad.

VentureLab takes what Prasad calls a “cross-market approach” to taking on board startups, and it might even go as far as creating startups to fill a niche in a new market. The first step is guiding US startups to Europe and Southeast Asia; later the team is plotting ways to teleport startups from anywhere and developing new vistas for them in places like China, South Korea, or anywhere else where the product fits.

Startups can’t apply for VentureLab in the normal way – instead the new team goes out to find new ventures that can work in multiple markets. Prasad looks for ones where VentureLab “can contribute to business development, IP, and the product.” It puts about US$100,000 into those early-stage startups, but that may rise in the future.

Philippines phocus

One US startup is already under VentureLab’s wings and is now preparing to enter the Philippines with guidance from the accelerator crew.

AdCoin, a US-based platform for monetizing adverts by giving out virtual currency, now has a major (but undisclosed) telco partner in the Philippines. The telco will use AdCoin to reward subscribers for watching ads – the reward being prepaid mobile credit or some other virtual goodie. “It’s a good example of what we do – build up a revenue stream,” says Prasad. VentureLab flew to the Philippines to close that deal. It’s one that a small American startup might never have thought about, let alone manage to nail down.

Two other projects venturing into Asia are Fanmouth and Fanlive. The fact that all three of those ventures are related to ad tech, marketing, and engagement between consumers and brands is no coincidence. VentureLab tackles new markets in clusters based around a particular market opportunity – the first cluster being “native engagement.”

The second cluster, to be unveiled at a later date, will take a new batch of startups to tackle health and quantified self data, Prasad tells Tech in Asia, while the third will revolve around ecommerce. There’s no regional boundary on any of those. “A cluster is specific to a market opportunity,” not a geographic area, he adds.

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