Extreme U becomes Extreme Startups with $7 Million in committed funding

Montreal has FounderFuel, Vancouver has GrowLab, and now Toronto has Extreme Startups.

Extreme Venture Partners successful Extreme U program has morphed into an accelerator.

According to their press release this morning Extreme Startups is a "premier tech accelerator" providing up to $200,000 per company, a collaborative environment, and deep access with companies so that accepted startups can integrate the tools they need from the ground up.

We looked at what was and was not working in the market, and decided to build something different. The funding we can provide is superior. Our mentorships and deep industry collaborations will help our cohort companies speed the rate at which they reach escape velocity. Placement of our companies in cohorts gives them the ability to push together and to collaborate. We have the pieces in place to hit a whole new level of excellence.

Serial entrepreneur Dan Debow (who’s Rypple was recently acquired by Salesforce) will join the Extreme Startups team for its inaugural cohort as the Entrepreneur Link. The Entrepreneur Link is a role specifically created to give participants a person "who has been there and done it.”

Investors in Extreme Startups include Extreme Venture Partners, BlackBerry Partners Fund, Rho Canada Ventures, OMERS Ventures, and the Business Development Bank of Canada. Andy Yang, a member of the BlackBerry Partners Fund investment management team, will become Program Director.

“The genesis of Extreme Startups was in Extreme University, “ said Extreme Venture Partners’ Co-Founder and Managing Partner Amar Varma. “We knew we were onto something extraordinary. But we also knew that to take it to the next level, we needed to reach out to our peers, some of the best minds and investors in the world. We are stronger for everyone’s input.”

Extreme Startups will have 2 cohorts of 5 companies each per year - applications open today and close March 1st.