Get $40k grant for your startup. Live in Chile for 6 months.

http://www.startupchile.org/about/apply/

by iamelgringo • 15 years ago

158 74 15 years ago

angusgr• 15 years ago

This seems an exceptionally interesting & exciting idea. Is this the first time something like this has been run institutionally in an emerging economy or developing nation?

HistoryInAction2• 15 years ago

Nope. I'm coordinating political advocacy for the Startup Visa here in the US, and one of our volunteers came up with this list of research on international efforts: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Rbs3flXfGSfkVH41L3-oiIJP...

StartupChile is almost certainly the savviest and most effective effort out there, both in results and their marketing of themselves, but there are many other international pushes to promote entrepreneurship.

mlok• 15 years ago

...and since searchyc is now dead (RIP), there is this : http://www.hnsearch.com/search#request/submissions&q=chi...

robfitz• 15 years ago

SearchYC is dead because there's now a search field at the bottom of every page.

iamelgringo2• 15 years ago

I met one of the associate directors of Startup Chile last night at a Hackers & Founders event. These people are amazing. They are trying to revamp their economy by changing the culture, and to do that, they want to import startup culture. So, their government has set aside $100M over the next four years to get 1,000 startups to come to Chile for six months and work.

But even more than that, their vision is much larger. They want the program to become a success, so that other, less developed countries start similar programs. Their goal is to try and convince 10 other governments of developing countries to embark on similar projects.

They are trying to hack their economy. And... it's working.

I was shocked to heard that their applicant pool wasn't that large.

Also, they are willing to take people at the idea stage.

So, if you want to build your startup, and take part in one of the best economic hacks I've heard of in years... apply.

smogzer• 15 years ago

Free lunch ? Or do they want equity ? Can't leave Chile for X years ? Must have headquarters there ?

andrewcooke12• 15 years ago

there's more discussion at http://www.quora.com/Startups-in-Chile/Would-you-develop-you... but in short there aren't that many catches - certainly no equity (i would guess that people here in chile realise 40k really isn't that much in american terms; the payoff is in the numbers and the culture, not taking a stake in your particular business)

[edit: also, getting a visa here is not hard. you don't need to win that grant to come here. i arrived on a tourist visa (3 months, renewable to 6), got a job offer, and within a week of the offer had permission to work. and none of that was illegal. do bring some kind of certificate indicating your level of education, though(!)]

iamelgringo2• 15 years ago

$40k grant. Free as in beer. No equity.

They want you to move to Chile for 6 months, and go to some events and meet some people while you're down there.

almost• 15 years ago

Apparently there's a pretty horrible form to fill out, but that's about it. I know a couple of people out there at the moment and it sounds like a pretty sweet deal.

herval6• 15 years ago

they get you 40k and u have to put in 4k from your own pocket (the 40k are in the form of reimbursements - u spend something, they give u back in the following month). U have to spend the 40k during the 6 months (can't spend it all in one month for instance) and of course, you have to spend it in business-related stuff, like salaries, software, marketing, etc (they won't reimburse coffee or if you buy a car!) The contract you sign is very clear: there are no strings attached apart from having to keep someone here for 6 months and presenting reports to get the reimbursements. So it's no "free lunch" - it's just a great example of what governments could (and should) be doing with their money. It fosters innovation, that alone is a huge return of investment for the country..

disclaimer: I'm in StartupChile's first class of 2011 (Novelo team from Brazil) and LOVE, LOVE, LOVE it. I'd be here even if they offered ZERO dollars!

andrewcooke12• 15 years ago

i live in chile, although i work for us companies. when this was announced i was pretty sceptical, but it does seem to be making a significant difference to the local culture. there is a lot more "buzz" - many more meetings, job offers, companies appearing. there's even a conference being organised - http://www.startechconf.com

thaumaturgy2• 15 years ago

Nice, you might be able to answer the number one question I have about this program: how do native Chileans feel about this? Is there a perception that they're being skipped over, do they feel negatively towards outsiders being brought in through this program, or are they generally positive towards it?

andrewcooke12• 15 years ago

i haven't heard anything negative (as i said, the general response is a positive "buzz"), but i agree you might expect it. it might be because the kind of people i talk to are more developers than founders, or because i am a "gringo" myself, but i think there's also a feeling that it is helping locals. also, there may be similar schemes for local businesses - it wouldn't surprise me. i know other chileans read here, so perhaps one will answer?

ps also, if your experience of latin america is mexico, i should add that chile does not have the anti-gringo sentiment you find there. not at all. it was a real shock for me, to go to mexico...

hercule2• 15 years ago

Not a direct answer to your question, but: the program accepts Chilean entrepreneurs/startups as well as applicants from other countries. Which doesn't meant there can't be negative sentiment, but locals aren't barred from taking part and getting funded.

te_platt• 15 years ago

Do you know if they are targeting a specific geographic area? I'm guessing most everything will be coming out of Santiago.

herval6• 15 years ago

although everyone is initially coming to santiago, Valparaiso and Vina del Mar are doing all they can to grab a piece of the action (including offering free office space for SUP alumni) :)

funthree• 15 years ago

I got a survey from these guys a few weeks ago and it had cc'd over 400 applicant emails, including mine, for all to see.

gcb5• 15 years ago

looking at the web site some time ago also gave me the impression it's not thatwell planed prices. lots of missing info.

no wonder every thread about it raises the same basic questions.

herval6• 15 years ago

it's also the first group (there was a beta last year), so it's not exactly a "long planned, flawless program". They call it an EXPERIMENT for a reason: come with an open mind and you'll definitely grow. Come full of "it doesn't work like that back home" and all you gonna find is frustration. Just my opinion, anyway. :P

Tichy• 15 years ago

Very few people know how to send group mailings correctly :-/

corry• 15 years ago

What's the cost of living like down there? What's the equivalent of ($40k in Chile) in a typical US city? i.e. ($40k in Chile = $x in Atlanta).

Seems like a cool program, just trying to understand how far that $40k would go (or even the $5k that you can pay yourself).

andrewcooke12• 15 years ago

there's a lot of info at http://www.quora.com/Hows-life-in-Santiago-Chile but basically: if it's imported, it's more expensive than the usa, but if it's local then it's less so. so the cost of living depends a lot on your standard of living. if you want all the luxuries you might expect in the usa or europe, you'll need to spend a similar amount. but if you're happy living in a cheap part of town, eating local fresh food, you could get by on much less.

you could rent a small apartment in a good area (providencia) for $300 a month; a ride on the metro or bus is $1 - $1.50; bread is around $2.50 a kilo... minimum wage here is about $500 a month (the quora page is a bit out of date - the dollar has lost some value...). i imagine you'd need to pay around $2,500 a month for a decent programmer - less for someone with less experience.

so bring a laptop with you!

hugh32• 15 years ago

What about non-Santiago parts of Chile? If I were going to spend six months in Chile I might be tempted to forego the metropolis and find a nice town by the seaside or the mountains (both of which seem to be pretty easy to find in Chile). But are there "nice" areas outside the big city, or is all the wealth concentrated in Santiago?

davidw2• 15 years ago

How about health care, in terms of cost and quality?

thaumaturgy2• 15 years ago

Since it's a frequent topic of discussion here, it's worth pointing out that Chile is still not bound by the Patent Cooperation Treaty (http://www.uspto.gov/web/offices/pac/dapp/pctstate.html), although they are taking some steps in that direction (http://chile.usembassy.gov/press20090731_mou.html).

If you have a product that you think might be popular enough to run afoul of the U.S. patent mafia, it might be worth consulting with someone versed in Chilean patent law and trying out a launch there instead.

bazookaBen2• 15 years ago

any social/mobile game startups considering a move to Chile?

gcb5• 15 years ago

how much is 40k in chile?

can i and 2 other cofounders move there and have a good place to stay each? ...maybe one or two with the wifes?

herval6• 15 years ago

you can only spend 350k pesos per founder, from those 40k. The rest should be used for other expenses, such as hiring, software (housing/rent is also refundable outside the 350k cap), etc.

350k pesos = 760 usd/month, which allows for some pretty ok living (a decent meal runs for 3-4k pesos, subway tickets are 500 pesos and so on).

I'm here with my wife, there's a guy here with SEVEN kids. :)

gcb5• 15 years ago

3-4k pesos per meal is already over 500k for one month, two people.

meal price * people * two meals day * 30 days

3k * 2 * 2 * 30 = 360k

other comments mention rent $300 (150~200k pesos?)

wiradikusuma• 15 years ago

this is a very silly question, but what are the odds they will accept founders from Asia? i'm Indonesian currently working in Malaysia. if the odds are good, i'm willing to try. i don't want to waste my and their time submitting application if i know they favor certain countries of origin (i just pessimistically think they're luring people from Valley and the like, not just some random countries).

zb• 15 years ago

"Any globally-minded entrepreneur is eligible to apply, regardless of his or her nationality and all applications will be judged under the same criteria."

bazookaBen2• 15 years ago

if you watched This Week in Startup, there's an episode where Jason and Jose were pitched on the ideas worked at StartupChile. the first was from brazil. second from Italy. Third was boston. No silicon valley in sight!

ebaysucks6• 15 years ago

Which Twist episode was this?

econgeeker3• 15 years ago

Chileans are interesting. I like the country, they seem to be culturally capitalist (though when we were there we did observe a communist party having a rally of some sort.) But on the street, you don't see kids bugging you for money, the poor kids go around selling coca-colas in the park. The older kids sell american cigarettes.

Chileans don't seem paranoid, or to have an inferiority, nor a superiority complex like many people. They're open, but not pushy. If you don't say anything to them, they'll leave you alone, but if you ask a question they'll try to answer it.

Santiago has a gay quarter which looked about comparable to the kind you'd find in an american cities. We were there during the day so I can't say anything about the scene, other than it isn't in the closet.

Oh, and they have the best food.

Highly recommend Chile as at least a place to visit. I could certainly live there.

andrewcooke12• 15 years ago

the political spectrum is wider than the usa, and people are more politically involved (both of which you would expect, i think, given the country's history). some of the most decent people i know here are still active communists; many of my friends were in the party during the dictatorship because that was the main coordinating movement in the resistance.

there's an active debate about how society should work. i suspect some americans will see "communists" and think they are going to have their work stolen from them. that's not the case. in practice the debate is more about where to position the country between what you might call "european" and "american" ideals. sure, some people i know advocate permanent revolution. but on the other side some people advocate eugenics of the poor (seriously - speaking from experience). there really is a wider range (and i think that's a good thing).

limedaring• 15 years ago

Last I looked at this, I thought one of the requirements was that your startup had to directly affect Chile, like providing jobs or something of that sort. Am I completely incorrect or is there something on there with that provision?

ebaysucks6• 15 years ago

There is a checklist of things they like to see. Hiring locally is one of the points in the list, but you only need to do a few items on the list so you can get by with scoring an article in your hometown paper, going to a Chile event, etc. Also, even if you don't need developers you can hire a Spanish speaking assistant to do all the admin work and contacts with the government. The list of things you can do is in the FAQ & Terms, see startupchile.org

markddotme• 15 years ago

Any developers here interested in applying? I've been thinking about it but I'm primarily on the business side. If anybody would like to discuss possibilities please check my profile for further background and contact info.

wolfparade• 15 years ago

how many times can I apply?

hercule2• 15 years ago

Only one active application at a time: http://www.startupchile.org/faqs/is-it-possible-to-apply-for...

ebaysucks6• 15 years ago

Once per round, as many rounds as you want.

Futur1st• 15 years ago

When I first heard about this a few months back I was somewhat skeptical, but it seemed like a great idea. It's nice to see a Gov't that doesn't have its head firmly lodged up its own ass and one that is trying different approaches to attracting business. From the other comments it seems as though it's working out pretty well- When I can no longer take anymore of the politics and RIDICULOUS politicians here in the States, Chile could be a good place for the next adventure...

runT1ME• 15 years ago

40k for six months of my life in an area where I don't have a lot of familiarity or a network of business associates or friends isn't a great deal.

Six months of my life to win a contract with the Chilean government to use my software, and I'm sold. How much support or networking is done by the program? Is it pretty much you get the money and you're on your own in a foreign country?

HistoryInAction2• 15 years ago

The first class met with Dave McClure and the Chilean President as part of one of Dave's Geeks on a Plane visits to South America recently.

Looks like they do a fair bit of networking.

lawfulfalafel• 15 years ago

I looked at the application sheet, is it preferable to already have incorporated before applying? Or is that a no-no like YC?

ebaysucks6• 15 years ago

You need to incorporate in Chile upon arrival (they help you with that), so I don't see how being incorporated in your own country would help because that company would just become a subsidiary to the Chile parent.

Okvivi• 15 years ago

I wonder what the internet penetration, internet speed and mobile penetration is in Chile. Do they see this as something that would directly benefit Chile through the products or something that would just create a pool of people and ideas that would indirectly improve the startup environment in Chile.

And then the broader question in my mind is: can you build a successful US focused startup from somewhere else? Aren't the first six months some of the most critical stages of your product development where you have to be close to your users and understand their needs well?

ccarpenterg• 15 years ago

I'm a chilean entrepreneur looking for a cofounder to apply to Startup Chile: http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=2824118

gcb5• 15 years ago

#2 is interesting. but my bet is there is already plenty of competition around. first step should be mapping them.

daimyoyo• 15 years ago

I was looking into living in Chile after I heard about this program and one thing that really jumped out is that the Chilean Peso is running at more than 450-1 against the dollar. Does anyone know why the currency is so devalued? Is the political situation unstable? Or is the sovereign debt situation out of control?

matioyeah• 15 years ago

I'm a non-technical guy (in that I don't really code) with a decent looking prototype built out of a CMS and minor hacks.

Would applying for something like this with the intent of working with Chilean, or other, coders be a waste of the reviewers' time?

clb22• 15 years ago

I suggest you to sign up on http://www.startupdigest.com/chile to stay connected with chilean startup scene!

Disclaimer: I'm the curator of Chile Startup Digest

@cleiva

Get $40k grant for your startup. Live in Chile for 6 months.

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