Techstars launches new AI healthcare accelerator in Baltimore

Global investment company Techstars is partnering with Johns Hopkins University and mid-Atlantic insurance company CareFirst to bring a new artificial intelligence-focused healthtech accelerator to Baltimore. 

Programming for the initiative, called Techstars AI Health Baltimore, will be in person in the city and is intended for early stage startups in the biotech, healthcare and medical sectors using AI. 

The accelerator is open to startups globally. It’s a 13-week program, and founders will receive up to $120,000 in funding from Techstars, along with mentoring, in exchange for approximately 6% to 9% equity, according to program managing director Adam Phillips. 

Up to 12 founders will be selected, and six cohorts are expected, per Phillips. 

“The recent ‘blossoming’ of artificial intelligence has taken a number of folks by surprise, but AI has been around for a long time,” Phillips told Technical.ly. “It will have massive implications for healthcare where accessing currently unstructured datasets will help providers, payers, and patients alike make better healthcare decisions.”

CareFirst’s innovation branch also has its own healthtech accelerator, dubbed the Healthworx Accelerator, for pre-seed and seed firms across the US.

This new launch comes just after Techstars laid off 17% of its staff and announced the coming end of a different accelerator series that operated in DC and other cities. That wind down was expected, representatives told Technical.ly, because it was based on a fund created in partnership with JP Morgan, and capital was set to expire this year. 

Techstars has already made a big splash in Baltimore. Its Equitech Accelerator, a partnership with ecosystem building nonprofit UpSurge, concluded in May after three cohorts. Phillips led that program, as well as the soon-to-end DC accelerator. 

Applications for the first cohort of Techstars AI Health Baltimore open on Aug. 26, and will be accepted through Nov 20.