Startup resources in Boulder
Startup Resources lists 88 resources for founders in Boulder, as of , and the lists below show 57 of them by need. Boulder is in Photon Mountain, the Colorado Startups region that also takes in Golden, Arvada and Denver. The lists cover accelerators and incubators, meetups and events, coworking spaces, investors, support programs and universities, then towns nearby; most of the rest are service providers.
Accelerators and incubators
An accelerator is a mentor-led program for a company that is already building. An incubator helps founders test an idea, build a team and set up the company.
Accelerators
A Boulder center for human performance. It has memberships, classes and events. It also has Black Lab X, its human tech venture ecosystem. Black Lab X invests in deep tech companies.
A mentor-driven accelerator program in Boulder.
A mentor-driven accelerator program in Boulder.
A summer accelerator in Boulder. It is for ventures started by CU Boulder students, faculty and staff. It has mentoring and equity-free funding. It also has dedicated coworking space.
Techstars Colorado is a startup community partnership. It was announced in October 2024. Its goal is to restart the Techstars accelerator in Boulder, where Techstars began. It was built with the local startup community.
Watson Institute Semester Accelerator
The flagship Fellowship from Boulder's Watson Institute. It is a fully funded program for impact entrepreneurs. It offers training and mentors. It also offers connections to capital and a global peer community.
Incubators
CU Innovation & Entrepreneurship
A CU Boulder initiative. It connects students, faculty and staff with programs and resources to turn ideas into ventures. Programs include the New Venture Challenge.
A Boulder team of seasoned entrepreneurs and business specialists. Startup founders get an advisory team by subscription. The team coaches and mentors, reviews documents and makes introductions.
A Colorado-based company with a global reach. It runs an invite-only fellowship. It is for growth-stage entrepreneurs who solve global problems. It links them with investors, mentors and institutions.
A Boulder institute powering fellowships with corporate and foundation partners. Fellows are entrepreneurs, mostly from historically disenfranchised backgrounds. Each gets training, mentors and a venture stipend.
Where founders meet
Groups and events where founders learn, find cofounders and pitch. Startup events in Colorado lists the next events on the Colorado Startups event calendar.
Meetups and communities
A Boulder meetup. It links startup founders with Silicon Valley angels. It also links them with investors and seasoned entrepreneurs.
Blerd: Black Nerds in Colorado
Meetup where Black nerds in Colorado get advice, start projects and advance their careers.
An informal Boulder group for the startup and tech community. Its morning coffee meetups alternate between Rayback Collective and online. Each opens with intros, announcements and a moderated discussion.
A Boulder entrepreneur meetup. It meets the second Wednesday evening of each month at RegenHub. It has open networking, introductions and requests. It also has a mastermind session or guest speaker.
Startups2Students / S2S (CU Boulder)
A CU Boulder program. It connects students with high-growth Colorado startups through events. The events are typically in September, January and April. Startups pitch their jobs and internships there.
An online portal for the CU Boulder entrepreneurship community. It has events, competitions and applications, jobs, a forum and mentors. Members can add a venture or project.
Events, pitch nights and hackathons
A free conference in Boulder for entrepreneurs.
Pitch event or demo day in Boulder.
Free student hackathon in Boulder with meals, workshops and prize tracks, open to first-time hackers.
An engineering makerspace at the University of Colorado Boulder, with fabrication tools, workshops and tours.
An online event. Startups with a woman in leadership pitch the MergeLane team and get feedback.
CU Boulder startup competition where teams pitch for funding at the final event.
Pitch event or demo day in Boulder.
A free hackathon for women, non-binary and other underrepresented college students. It is for students in engineering and tech.
Techstars Boulder Accelerator Demo Day
Demo Day of the Techstars Boulder accelerator. The program is for early-stage founders in any sector.
In Startup Resources: Techstars Boulder Accelerator Demo Day
An annual community talks event in Boulder. Locals can speak, sponsor or volunteer.
Coworking spaces
Shared workspaces where founders rent a desk or an office.
A locally owned coworking space in South Boulder. It focuses on private offices. It also has team spaces, dedicated desks, conference and phone rooms, events and workshops. It gives access to open space trails.
Coworking space in Boulder.
A membership social and business club in downtown Boulder. It has workspaces, private meeting rooms, phone booths, a dining room and social programs.
A coworking space near Pearl Street in Boulder and in Denver's Wash Park. It offers day passes, dedicated desks, private offices and virtual memberships. It also holds events such as networking lunches.
Coworking space in Boulder.
A Boulder coworking space and event venue. Members get punch passes, dedicated desks and private offices. It also has space for workshops and private events.
Investors
A listing is not a recommendation, so ask other founders about an investor before you pitch.
Angel groups
Event or group that connects founders with investors in Boulder.
A quarterly private pitch event in Denver or Boulder. Seed-stage founders pitch active angel investors.
Seed and early rounds
Seed-stage venture capital firm in Boulder.
A venture capital fund. It is early-stage. It invests in technology companies.
A Boulder investment firm, now BFG Partners. It backs founders of better-for-you consumer brands. Their products are what people eat, drink and use every day. It invests from the first check to Series B.
A seed-stage venture firm that invests in founders. The founders are in underserved and emerging startup ecosystems. The ecosystems span the Midwest, Texas and the Rockies.
Seed-stage venture capital firm in Boulder.
An investment consortium. It offers deal-by-deal access across stages, sectors and asset classes.
Next Frontier Capital (Boulder/ Montana)
A venture capital firm with offices in Boulder, Bozeman and Park City. It backs startups in enterprise intelligence and in critical infrastructure. It also backs startups in financial systems and in national security.
In Startup Resources: Next Frontier Capital (Boulder/ Montana)
A seed-stage venture firm based in Boulder, Austin and Atlanta. It invests in high-growth healthcare, fintech and logistics startups across the United States.
Seed-stage venture capital firm in Boulder.
A sustainable real assets investor with a Boulder office. It develops and transforms complex assets. The assets are in energy, transportation and agriculture. The work is for the transition to sustainability.
Growth rounds
A venture capital firm. It has an office in Boulder. It invests in information technology and biotech firms in Colorado and the Mid-Atlantic.
Venture capital firm for seed-plus rounds in Boulder.
A private equity firm in Boulder. It buys majority stakes in North American businesses. It works with their teams to improve operations.
A venture firm. It backs deep tech founders in space, data, energy and security. Stages run from seed-plus to Series B.
Venture fund investing in startups that have a woman in leadership.
A Boulder investment firm. It gives growth-stage capital and hands-on operating help. It serves natural foods and consumer products businesses.
A Boulder venture capital firm. It funds early-stage technology businesses in healthcare, internet and enterprise IT. It also funds clean technology and internet-based services.
A multi-stage venture capital firm. It is focused on cybersecurity. It invests around the world. Its offices include Boulder, Silicon Valley and Boston.
Funding and support programs
Offices and programs that help local businesses start and grow. For statewide programs, see How to start a company in Colorado.
The Boulder chamber of commerce. It offers networking events, workforce development and economic vitality work. Its member groups include Bolder Young Professionals and the Business Growth Network.
A City of Boulder department. It is for innovation and technology. It runs the city's open data catalog. It also runs the community broadband and fiber network projects.
Entrepreneurial Law Clinic (the University of Colorado Law School in Boulder)
A clinic at the University of Colorado Law School in Boulder. Law students give pro bono transactional legal help. It serves local businesses that lack access to legal resources.
In Startup Resources: Entrepreneurial Law Clinic (the University of Colorado Law School in Boulder)
A center at the University of Colorado Law School in Boulder. It runs events, publications and student programs. Its work covers law, policy and entrepreneurship in the digital age.
Universities
Universities and colleges that Startup Resources lists as support for founders.
University of Colorado Boulder
A public research university in Boulder. It has undergraduate and graduate programs. It also has research. Its campus is student-centered.
Nearby in Photon Mountain
Startup Resources lists 8 more in Golden, Longmont and Louisville, other towns in Photon Mountain, as of . Denver has its own guide.
Accelerators and incubators
A network of mentors, advisors and fractional executives in Golden. Its members guide startup founders and business owners. The network works with partners such as the Colorado School of Mines.
Where founders meet
A makerspace in Longmont. It has shared tools, equipment and classes for members and the community.
Coworking spaces
A Golden coworking space. It has locations in the historic Armory building downtown, near Red Rocks and in Genesee. It offers private offices, reserved desks, coworking, meeting rooms and member events.
A coworking space in the foothills between Golden and Evergreen. It has open and private offices and phone booths. It also has conference rooms for half-day or full-day rental, and networking events.
Funding and support programs
Longmont Economic Development Partnership
A Longmont economic development partnership. It leads a joint strategy to strengthen the city's economic health. It shares updates on local jobs, events and housing.
In Startup Resources: Longmont Economic Development Partnership
Louisville Chamber of Commerce
The Louisville chamber of commerce. It connects, advocates for and promotes local businesses through membership, sponsored programs and events.
McNeil Center for Entrepreneurship & Innovation
The Colorado School of Mines entrepreneurship and innovation network in Golden. It includes the McNeil Center, the Innovation Hub, makerspaces and tech transfer, for students, faculty and staff.
In Startup Resources: McNeil Center for Entrepreneurship & Innovation
Universities
A public research university in Golden. It focuses on applied science and engineering. It has hands-on STEM education. That means lab work, field sessions and professional development.
More guides for founders
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Every list here comes from Startup Resources, which the community keeps current. If a Colorado resource for founders is missing, tell us. A person reviews every suggestion before it goes in.