Announcing Fast Forward’s First-Ever Virtual Accelerator Cohort

It’s that time of year…Fast Forward Accelerator season! But this year comes with a twist: we’re kicking off our first-ever virtual Accelerator. We’re thrilled to announce the nine innovative tech nonprofits that make up the 2020 cohort. We’re in unprecedented times, and the potential of these tech nonprofits meets the scale of the challenges we face as a world today.

Over the next three months, the cohort will experience all the enriching aspects of our Accelerators of years past — with a virtual spin. We’re talking curated workshop-style trainings, mentorship from 100+ advisors from the tech and social sectors, the opportunity to pitch to a global audience at virtual Demo Days (stay tuned for your invitation!), $25,000 in unrestricted funding, and of course, themed Zoom happy hours and game nights! (Would it be 2020 without these?)

Our 7th annual Accelerator is made possible by our partners Google.org, BlackRock, Hewlett Packard Enterprise Foundation, GM, Twilio.org, Okta for Good, Bloomberg, Microsoft, CTIA Wireless Foundation, Luminate, AWS, The Walter and Elise Haas Fund, The Nasiri Foundation, and NewRelic.org.

The diversity of the founders in this cohort far exceeds the traditional tech sector. 56% of the organizations are co-founded by people who identify as women, 78% are co-founded by people of color, and 100% have a co-founder with lived experience with the problem.

Meet Fast Forward’s 7th Accelerator Cohort:

AccesSOS — SMS for 911, enabling the disabled and non-English speaking callers to reach 911.

Ameelio — App that sends free letters and photos to keep incarcerated people connected with their loved ones.

Climate Neutral — Software tool that simplifies carbon footprint measurement and certifies carbon neutral companies.

Hopebound — Free teletherapy platform for low-income youth at higher risk for teen suicide and mental illness.

Immigrants Like Us — TurboTax for immigrants, diagnosing immigration eligibility and preparing immigration forms for free.

Movers and Shakers NYC — Augmented reality curriculum of women, people of color, and LGBTQIA+ leaders designed to diversify public narratives.

Reboot Rx — AI platform that surfaces insights into generic drugs that have potential to affordably treat cancer.

The American AI Forum — Game-based curricula introducing AI concepts in underserved schools.

TurnUp — Mobile app created by and for young activists to efficiently organize.

We’re honored to be supporting this cohort of tech nonprofits in the midst of a global pandemic, racial justice reckoning, and rising economic insecurity. It’s clearer than ever that we need our best tech applied to our biggest social problems. We hope you’ll join us in accelerating their critical work by attending Demo Day! Subscribe to our newsletter, What’s Good In Tech, to be the first to know when it’s announced.

Thanks again to our 2020 Accelerator partners for making this summer possible:

Originally published at Fast Forward.