I’m excited to announce that we are changing the schedule for our accelerator program. Previously, we have opened applications in the spring, run the program in the summer, and had demo day in the fall. Moving forward, we will be shifting our schedule to the winter in order to better align with SXSW Interactive and take advantage of the investors and press that it brings to Austin.

We will not have an accelerator program this summer. Our next program will run December to March and we will begin accepting applications this September.

This change has some significant advantages… It will increase the number of investors that can attend demo day by aligning with when people already plan to travel to Austin for SXSW. We are also bringing people to Austin in the winter when the weather beautiful rather than the summer when its really hot and when mentors and investors tend to take long family vacations.

This doesn’t mean that nothing is going to happen during the summer. We’re currently planning additional programs for other times of the year and a permanent, downtown incubator space for startups and entrepreneurs in Austin. Stay tuned for more announcements over the coming months!

We will be starting the application process for Capital Factory 2012 in January. Stay tuned for more info by watching this blog and following on Twitter.

I hope you already have your ticket for Wednesday, September 7 from 8:30am-4pm for the Capital Factory Demo Day 2011 because they are going fast! We will showcase the 5 companies selected for the 2011 summer program as well as 15 more of Austin’s hottest startups for a total of 20 startups presenting. We’ll also hear from Ethernet inventor Bob Metcalfe, HomeAway CEO Brian Sharples, and just added – Auren Hoffman from Rapleaf sharing his secrets for tech recruiting.

Demo Day is INVITE ONLY. If you are interested in attending Demo Day, please request an invitation.

Mark your calendars for Wednesday, September 7 from 8:30am-4pm for the Capital Factory Demo Day 2011. We will showcase the 5 companies selected for the 2011 summer program as well as 10 more of Austin’s hottest startups. We’ll also hear from Ethernet inventor Bob Metcalfe and HomeAway CEO Brian Sharples.

Demo Day is INVITE ONLY. If you are interested in attending Demo Day, please request an invitation.

If you know of a kick-ass Austin startup that is fundraising and would benefit from exposure to hundreds of investors and press, have them email demoday@capitalfactory.com

Click here to apply.

If you want to do a startup someday, it’s hard to imagine a better use of your summer than to be an intern at Capital Factory:

You live with not one but five startups, tackling different problems in different markets at different stages of development. You get to know twenty mentors who all have built successful companies and have both advice and connections that is invaluable for your next venture. You’re at the center of the tech startup scene in Austin.

We’ve got a lot of things to do! Whether you already have the skills or you’re eager to develop them, we need help with all this:

• Coordinate events (meet-ups, mentor office-hours).
• Video editing/posting for the lectures and pitches.
• Do audio (and video?) interviews throughout the summer with founders and mentors.
• Help put together Demo Day (build awesome website, event management, sponsor management, speaker coordination, PR/media).
• Tweet and blog for Capital Factory, both new content and relevant content from mentor’s blogs and around the Internet; organize cross-posting those on other blogs.
• Building management logistics during the summer.
• PR, marketing, blogger-support, etc..
• Financial/legal paperwork management.

You could try to squeeze a few thousand dollars out of an internship at Dell, or you could have a blast with us. This is a volunteer position, but so are all the positions at Capital Factory (no one gets paid except the companies, and the mentors actually put up all the money themselves!)

Interested in being part of Austin’s most successful incubator? Apply now.

When is the right time to apply for Capital Factory? Are you too far along, or not far enough? In this short video Joshua Baer explains why its better to apply for Capital Factory with a minimum viable product and some customers.

How does Capital Factory select 5 companies to work with out of hundreds of applicants? In this short video, Joshua Baer explains how the mentors narrow down the list to a dozen that they meet with in person before selecting the final 5.

Austin’s early stage accelerator is now accepting applications for tech startups ready to go to market or raise venture capital.

March 10, 2011, Austin, TX – Capital Factory, an Austin-based accelerator for tech startups, officially kicked off today the start of its 2011 season by opening up its call for startup applications. Founded in 2009, the program’s goal is to get a startup pointed in the right direction with a clear path to profitability and growth through an intensive 10-week mentoring program. In addition to these key relationships, the companies will receive benefits including up to $20,000 in cash, legal and business support and office space downtown.

The deadline for startups interested in applying to be part of the 2011 Capital Factory program is March 27, 2011. The application is available online at http://www.capitalfactory.com.  While the focus is primarily on early stage technology companies, every application will be considered. Capital Factory will announce the five selected companies in April, and then will kick off its 10-week summer program on May 27th.

“It’s amazing to witness what a small, dedicated, mentored team can accomplish in just ten weeks,” said Jason Cohen, who is a Director of Capital Factory this summer. “It’s not unusual for a startup to come in with an idea and a passion and exit a few months later with paying customers and an angel round of financing. And it’s equally fulfilling for the mentors who went through this themselves and now have a way to ‘give back’ in a meaningful way.”

Companies who apply early may be accepted early, so entrepreneurs should submit their application as soon as possible.

While the main focus of the program is one-on-one time with the mentors, Capital Factory and select partners will also provide the 2011 class of companies the following resources and benefits:

• Up to $20,000 in cash
• Weekly group dinners with a speaker
• Investor introductions
• Basic IT infrastructure for email, website, version control
• Office space downtown
• Company formation and legal documents
• A logo and corporate identity if needed
• Service provider introductions
• Press support

Capital Factory’s 2011 season will culminate on September 7th when they host Demo Day for the selected companies. Angel investors, early stage venture capitalists, entrepreneurs, and media will be invited to come out and see the portfolio companies’ demos as well as help them identify next steps and make suggestions for achieving optimal success.

In return for the mentorship, Capital Factory receives a five percent equity stake in the portfolio companies under founder-friendly terms. Capital Factory has a right to participate in future financings and has invested more than $500,000 in companies from 2009 and 2010 as part of Series A and B financings.

MENTOR CLASS OF 2010

Capital Factory is pleased to announce four new mentors coming on board to participate this year, including:

• Neelan Choksi – President and COO at Tasktop Technologies
• Bill Boebel – Founder of Webmail.us (now Rackspace)
• Josh Kerr – Founder of Zosh (now YouSendIt)
• Jack McDonald – CEO of Silverback Ventures and Chairman, Perficient
• Chris Porch – Founder of Trilogy and CEO of RecycleMatch
• Marc Smookler – Founder of Fonality and SakeSocial.com

“Aspiring entrepreneurs want to talk to other successful entrepreneurs who have been through it before,” said Joshua Baer, Director of Capital Factory. “This year we’ve raised the bar again.”  “Just being able to talk to someone who has done it before and who probably knows if not the right answer, something close to the right answer, is invaluable,” said Chuck Gordon, CEO of Sparefoot, a 2009 participant that has raised millions of dollars in venture capital.    Additionally, returning mentors from the 2010 season, who make up an impressive “who’s who” of local experienced technology entrepreneurs, include:

• Joshua Baer – Founder and CEO, OtherInbox
• Brian Beard – Partner, Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati
• Jeremy Benken – Founder, ApartmentRatings.com and BuzzStream
• Andrew Busey – Founder and CEO, Challenge Games (now Zynga)
• Jason Cohen – Partner, Capital Thought and Founder, Smart Bear
• Sam Decker – CEO, Mass Relevance
• Russell Hinds – Managing Director, RSH Ventures
• Rony Kahan – CTO and Co-Founder, Indeed
• Kip McClanahan – Partner, Silverton Partners
• Bryan Menell – Director, Dachis Group
• John Price – CEO, Vast.com
• Mellie Price – CEO, Sourcespring
• Yvonne Tocquigny – CEO, Tocquigny
• Michael Trafton – Founder and CEO, Blue Fish Development Group
• Marc Yagjian – Managing Director, Origin Partners

For more information on Capital Factory, or to find out other ways to get involved, visit www.capitalfactory.com. The application for interested startups can be found at http://www.capitalfactory.com/

About Capital Factory

Capital Factory is an early stage accelerator program for tech startups that provides a small amount of seed capital and weekly mentoring sessions by entrepreneurs who have founded successful companies. Startup companies apply to participate in our 10 week summer program intended to get a startup pointed in the right direction with a clear path to profitability and growth. The program runs from May 25th to August 11th. On September 7th, we will host more than 250 investors and entrepreneurs for Demo Day and stream it live over the Internet.

For more information on Capital Factory, please visit the web site at www.capitalfactory.com, or find Capital Factory on Facebook at www.facebook.com/capitalfactory, or on Twitter @capitalfactory.

Here is an updated agenda for Demo Day. This is not meant to be exact timing and will be adjusted as necessary, but it gives you an idea of what to expect.

The live stream will be displayed on our home page at www.capitalfactory.com all day Wednesday, September 8.

Agenda

8:00 AM Continental breakfast & Registration Desk Open

9:00 AM Introduction

9:15 AM Keynote "The Rise of the Angels" by Naval Rakivant

9:50 AM CF Demo 1 – Hurricane Party

10:05 AM CF Demo 2 – Keepstream

10:20 AM "How to Identify a Lean Startup" by Ash Maurya

10:45 AM Break (w/ snack and networking)

11:15 AM CF Alumni Demo – PetsMD

11:30 AM CF Alumni Demo – Famigo Games

11:45 AM CF Demo 3 – Smackages

12:00 PM Lunch

1:30 PM CF Demo 4 – RippleFunction

1:45 PM CF Demo 5 – RecycleMatch

2:00 PM "Lean Investing" by Dave McClure

2:30 PM Closing Remarks

3:00 PM Happy Hour – Gabriel's Cafe

Twitter hashtag is #dd10

8:00 AM Continental breakfast & Registration Desk Open
9:00 AM Introduction
9:15 AM Keynote “The Rise of the Angels” by Naval Rakivant
9:50 AM CF Demo 1 – Hurricane Party
10:05 AM CF Demo 2 – Keepstream
10:20 AM “How to Identify a Lean Startup” by Ash Maurya
10:45 AM Break (w/ snack and networking)
11:15 AM CF Alumni Demo – PetsMD
11:30 AM CF Alumni Demo – Famigo Games
11:45 AM CF Demo 3 – Smackages
12:00 PM Lunch
1:30 PM CF Demo 4 – RippleFunction
1:45 PM CF Demo 5 – RecycleMatch
2:00 PM “Lean Investing” by Dave McClure
2:30 PM Closing Remarks
3:00 PM Happy Hour – Gabriel’s Cafe