15 years after its foundation, the first public accelerator in the world, Start-Up Chile by Corfo, released the results of the survey Annual Alumni Passport, carried out in 2024 to measure the success of the startups in its portfolio and public policy.
Since its creation in 2010, the accelerator has been a key driver for the development of the national and regional entrepreneurial ecosystem. It has been in charge of supporting more than three thousand startups: 38% Chilean and 62% foreign. Of the latter, 68.7% have remained operating in some way in Chile, both with the installation of their office to the generation of sales in the country or the hiring of Chilean employees.
“The survey is a reflection of the maturation and trends of the entrepreneurship and innovation ecosystem of our country, and how the first public accelerator in the world, in its 15 years of history, has been a catalyst in this process,” says José Miguel Benavente, Executive Vice President of Corfo.
Start-Up Chile: evolution metrics
Throughout its history, the startups supported by this accelerator have generated 36,796 jobs, increasing its collaborators by 42.6%. Until the end of 2023, they have contributed $136 million dollars in taxes paid in Chile, a figure that is equivalent to 1.4 times the total public investment that has been made since the beginning of this public policy.
In turn, within the data obtained by the survey, the survival rate of startups that have gone through the BIG (Build, Ignite and Growth) program reached 63.8%. This metric reflects the continuity of startups after more than three years of operation. Adding to this, 25% reported having modified their initial business model. Of the active startups, 34.8% maintain a presence in other countries, with operations in 32 different destinations, the main expansion markets being the United States, Peru, Mexico, Colombia and Argentina. In the specific case of internationalized Chilean startups, 84.3% remain on the American continent.
X-ray to business
Currently, the accelerator reaches a total valuation of US$6.5 billion by 2024, a figure equivalent to 68 times the public investment accumulated until the end of 2023 (US$94 million). Among its ranks are four unicorns (Chilean NotCo and Betterfly, Brazilian Meliuz and Spanish Cabify), a centaur (Chilean Buk) and 64 ponies (Radar, Vita Wallet, Hackmetrix, Rocketbot, among others).
Regarding the number of exits—process in which founders and investors sell their stake—a historic figure of 90 startups was reached, which declare that they have acquired other companies, which represents an increase of 12.5% compared to the 2021 measurement. 84% of them correspond to foreign startups and 16% to Chilean ones.
The survey also made it possible to identify the gender gaps present in technological entrepreneurship. The total private capital raised is $1.88 billion dollars, 97.1% corresponding to startups led by men and only 2.9% to those led by women. Despite this, female founders represent 64.8% of global sales ($3.5 billion in total), thus suggesting more robust and validated business models, largely financed by bootstrapping (use of own available resources).
