GrowLab Accelerator Takes Root in Vancouver

Start-up accelerator programs are now available in every flavor and color. The latest is Vancouver, BC-based GrowLab, which says it will accept five technology companies for its first class beginning August 15.

GrowLab participants will spend three months in Vancouver and one in San Francisco, receiving $25,000, office space and mentorship, plus a promise of $150,000 from BDC Venture Capital upon completion of the program. That means effectively that GrowLab has matched Y Combinator’s relationship with Yuri Milner and SV Angel, which provide the same amount for all participating companies (though Y Combinator serves many more start-up teams–it expects to have 62 in its next class).

GrowLab is led by Canadian entrepreneurs and angel investors including folks from NowPublic and AbeBooks.com, and it will give preferential consideration to applicants from Canada. A previous Vancouver-based start-up accelerator called Bootup Labs reneged on its promise to fund some participants and seems to have been discontinued.