Morgan Stanley announced the 2023 global cohort of the Inclusive Ventures Lab, with 23 companies selected across North America and Europe, the EMEA, double the size of previous cohorts. The Lab offers a five-month in-house accelerator program for underrepresented founders of tech and tech-enabled startups in the post-seed to Series A funding round stage.
Chosen from over 7,900 applicants –which is more than three times last year’s pool – the selected startups represent a range of disruptive technologies across industries such as healthcare, sustainable solutions, customer service, supply chain, recruiting and cybersecurity.
What companies make the 2023 cohort?
Companies in the cohort get a $250K investment (£250K in EMEA) from Morgan Stanley and various mentorship opportunities and business-growth resources from its ecosystem of internal and external partners. The selected companies in the 2023 global cohort include:
- Ad Auris; empowers marketing teams, publishers and content creators to repurpose written content into high-quality audio to reach an audience of listeners (Canada)
- Automated Architecture; provides the technological infrastructure for a distributed robotic micro-factory network producing sustainable timber housing (UK)
- Bidrento; offers an all-in-one solution for tenant experience and rental property management, helping to save time and money while also reducing CO2 emissions in real estate (Estonia)
- ByFusion; provides a zero waste landfill diversion platform to transform non-recyclable plastic waste into reusable building materials (US)
- Cult Mia; is an online fashion marketplace for sustainable and ethical brands from around the world (UK)
- DotLab; develops breakthrough, actionable AI and ML technologies that lead to better health outcomes for women, starting with the diagnosis of endometriosis (US)
- eBanqo; offers businesses an omnichannel platform to drive customer engagement and support (Nigeria)
- Encounter AI; uses digital conversational ordering solutions to provide faster, friendlier and more efficient service to customers, restaurants and retailers (US)
- FLUIX Inc.; enterprise AI software saves critical infrastructure on energy costs by integrating and optimizing facility systems (US)
- GigBridge; is an online platform for construction companies to hire, onboard and pay their workforce all in one place (UK)
- Health in Her HUE; connects Black women and women of color to culturally sensitive healthcare providers, health content and community support through a digital platform (US)
- Inicio AI; delivers a virtually guided affordability assessment to help organizations save contact center costs while improving their end customer experience (UK)
- MEDIjobs; is the first virtual recruiter for the healthcare industry, filling more than 55 types of positions at a rate five times faster than a human would (US)
- Nopalera; is a collection of bath and body products powered by Mexico’s nopal cactus – an ancient symbol of Mexican culture (US)
- OKO; offers affordable and inclusive crop insurance to farmers in emerging countries using satellite weather data and mobile payment technologies (Israel)
- Oppos; provides robust cybersecurity and compliance security solutions for businesses, safeguarding data confidentiality, integrity, and availability (Canada)
- Partsimony; enables organizations to build intelligent manufacturing supply chains that are more resilient and sustainable by unifying engineering and supply chain data (US)
- Ridelink; leverages technology to enable small and medium-sized businesses to move cargo in Uganda and cross-border in six neighboring countries (Uganda)
- serviceMob; is an AI & ML-powered customer service analytics platform that helps businesses optimize operations and improve the customer experience (US)
- Stak Mobility; facilitates widespread urban electric vehicle adoption by merging space-saving vertical parking automation with fully integrated EV charging and a seamless mobile self-service experience (US)
- Tall Poppy; is a digital security company protecting employees and public facing teams from online threats (US)
- Twipes; uses bio-tech to produce flushable, biodegradable wet wipes that break down in water in three hours and biodegrade in landfills in seven days (US)
- Unfabled; is a consumer health platform that delivers personalized solutions for women by matching them with health and wellness products (UK)
What does the program mean for Morgan Stanley?
“We are proud to welcome the Lab’s largest cohort yet, marking our continued efforts to create a more equitable investment landscape for overlooked entrepreneurs. We’re working to bridge the investment gap for underserved founders and help correct documented market imbalances,” said Selma Bueno, Global Head of the Morgan Stanley Inclusive Ventures Group.
“We are thrilled to bring our unique accelerator program to more entrepreneurs globally, including our first participants from Africa and the Middle East. It is highly rewarding to work closely with founders to take their game-changing technologies to scale and help set them up for continued success,” said Sanghamitra Karra, EMEA Head of the Inclusive Ventures Group.
“By providing the startups with capital, a tailored curriculum and access to investors within and beyond the Firm’s far-reaching network, we aim to ensure that more underrepresented founders can succeed,” said LaToya Wilson, Americas Head of the Inclusive Ventures Group.
Programming will run through February 2024 and culminate in a global Demo Day, when participating companies will present to potential investors, business partners and customers.
The Inclusive Ventures Lab has won multiple Gold Anthem Awards, including Most Impactful Corporate Initiative in 2022 as well as Corporate Social Responsibility in 2023. Also, the innovative program was also listed as one of Global Finance’s Best Innovation Labs of 2023.
