Nearshore Americas
Tucson

Tuscon-based Accelerator Attracting LatAm Startups to Create Local Jobs

A U.S.-based startup accelerator, Startup Tucson, is being funded to help Latin American entrepreneurs set up operations in Tucson, ultimately creating jobs for Tuscon residents.
The development program, called Thryve Latin America, will be funded by a grant from the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA). Reports say the accelerator has already been granted US$50,000 to carry out the task.
Startup Tucson is barely five years old, but its founders have significant experience in dealing with entrepreneurs. Two yeas ago, they were awarded US$1.5 million to create a talent pool by providing occupational training for fresh graduates.
A few other accelerators from Arizona, including Native American Business Incubator Network and BioAccel, have also been awarded similar grants from the SBA, but they don’t seem to be focusing on attracting Latin American firms.
Home to a large Latino population, Tucson has both cultural and business ties with people across Latin America.
To begin with, Startup Tucson will recruit Mexican entrepreneurs, but will expand its hunt to other Latin American countries over time.
Tucson Mayor Jonathan Rothschild has recently stated that attracting Mexican startups is an important component of his plans to create more jobs for people in the city.
Easing the task of the accelerator is Mexican airliner Aeromar, which has announced that it would soon run regular flights between Tucson and the Mexican cities of Hermosillo, Los Mochis, Mazatlan, and Guadalajara.

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Narayan Ammachchi

News Editor for Nearshore Americas, Narayan Ammachchi is a career journalist with a decade of experience in politics and international business. He works out of his base in the Indian Silicon City of Bangalore.

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