The White House announced the launch of a startup accelerator and investor network in Uruguay.

Uruguay continues to strengthen its innovative culture and, alongside a representative from the White House, announced the creation of a regional startup accelerator that will encompass the 12 countries of the Alliance for Economic Prosperity in the Americas (APEP), led by the United States, Canada, and Uruguay.

Following an invitation by the Uruguay Innovation Hub program, in coordination with the Embassy of Uruguay in Washington, Uruguay hosted a delegation from the U.S. government led by Ramón Escobar, the Director of Strategy for the Western Hemisphere at the White House. The purpose of the visit was to announce that Uruguay will lead an investor network aimed at mobilizing venture capital for local and regional entrepreneurs and will also support the creation of a regional startup accelerator.
"I am pleased to announce that Uruguay will lead the formation of an angel investor network and support the creation of a regional accelerator for the Americas to provide more opportunities for our entrepreneurs," said Escobar in his speech at the Punta Tech Meetup Welcoming Dinner.

"For the White House, it was very important to be here in person and make the announcement because they are very grateful to President Lacalle Pou, who, at the APEP Summit in November, with U.S. President Joe Biden and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, resolved to support this initiative," said Inés Bonicelli, Business Development Manager at Uruguay Innovation Hub, to EFE.

The announcement, made during the Punta Tech Meetup event in Punta del Este, Uruguay, marked the beginning of initiatives endorsed by APEP during its first summit held in Washington in November 2023, attended by Uruguayan President Luis Lacalle Pou. The summit included the participation of several countries, including Barbados, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, the United States, Mexico, Panama, Peru, the Dominican Republic, and Uruguay.

Through the accelerator, the program will bring together entrepreneurs from the region, provide training, initial capital, and facilitate networking with private sector investors. The goal is to benefit a large number of regional startups and promote economic development in Latin America.

Initially, the United States will invest $5 million to establish infrastructure for the accelerator network. "It will be like a boot camp, cohorts of entrepreneurs going through networking, team building, mentorship," Escobar told Ámbito Financiero.
The Canadian government will invest another $3 million to support underrepresented communities in the ecosystem.