Western Accelerator

The Western Accelerator is open to entrepreneurs connected to Western University, including Western students, alumni, faculty, and employees. At least one founder of the venture must have an eligible Western connection. You do not need to have a fully launched business to apply.

Not necessarily. Validate is designed for founders still proving the customer problem and opportunity. Launch is for founders with evidence supporting the opportunity who are moving a solution toward customers and the market. Accelerate is for businesses demonstrating traction through customers, pilots, revenue or other meaningful market evidence and preparing for further growth.

The Western Accelerator is a 12-week program running from January 11 to April 8, 2027. Founders participate in focused programming and working sessions during the week, with time between sessions protected for execution in their businesses. Community Live Thursdays bring founders from across the Accelerator together at key points. Participants should be prepared to actively work on their ventures throughout the 12 weeks.

The Western Accelerator is built around an in-person founder experience at Western University in London, Ontario. Programming takes place at the Ronald D. Schmeichel Building for Entrepreneurship and Innovation. Some experts or programming may occasionally participate virtually when appropriate.

You will work on your actual company. Programming combines stage-specific instruction, founder problem-solving, coaching, mentorship, expert support, Community Live experiences and dedicated execution time. Founders continually identify important business challenges, determine what evidence they need, take action and review the results.

Community Live brings Validate, Launch, and Accelerate founders together for larger shared experiences throughout the program. It can feature entrepreneurs, operators, experts, founder discussions, networking, workshops, live business problem-solving, and pitch opportunities. It's where the individual cohorts become one Western Accelerator community.

Programming responds to the stage and needs of participating companies. Depending on your cohort and business, topics may include customer discovery and validation, product-market fit, sales, marketing, pricing, business models, finance, intellectual property, legal issues, operations, leadership, hiring, capital, strategy, systems, and scaling. These topics are applied to the problems founders are actually working on rather than treated simply as standalone lectures.

Financial support varies according to the stage of the venture. Validate founders compete for program awards. Launch participants receive a base stipend and are eligible for additional competitive awards. Accelerate participants receive a larger base stipend and compete for additional awards. Limited accommodation assistance may also be available for eligible out-of-town Accelerate founders.

Base stipends associated with a cohort are subject to the terms of participation in the program. Where a stipend is divided into multiple payments, later payments require successful participation, engagement, and evidence that the founder has actively worked on moving the venture forward. Competitive awards are separate from base stipends and are awarded through the program.

Up to two founders per company may participate in the program. At least one participating founder must have the required Western connection.

We look for founders who are prepared to work. Different stages require different evidence, so we aren't expecting a Validate applicant to have the same traction as an Accelerate company. Across all three cohorts, we're interested in founders who demonstrate curiosity, coachability, commitment, a willingness to test assumptions, and the ability to act on what they learn.

Complete the Western Accelerator online application by November 9, 2026. The application asks about you, your venture, your customers, the evidence you have collected, your current stage, and the challenges you are working to solve. Applications are reviewed both for admission and for placement into Validate, Launch, or Accelerate. Applicants may be contacted for additional information or a conversation. Successful applicants will receive cohort placement and onboarding information before the program begins.

Yes. Western students are eligible to apply. The application will ask about your schedule and other commitments so the Accelerator team can understand your ability to participate fully in the program.

Yes, provided you meet the Accelerator's eligibility requirements and can meet the in-person participation requirements associated with your cohort. Limited accommodation assistance may be available for a small number of eligible out-of-town founders participating in Accelerate.

This requirement is being finalized for the redesigned program. Applicants should complete the application based on the current stage of their venture; the Accelerator team will provide any business-registration requirements associated with acceptance.