Apply to 43North Accelerator: Dates, Benefits, and How to Get In (2025–2026)

If you want to apply to 43North accelerator in 2025–2026, you’re aiming for one of the most concentrated $1M-for-5% deals in the U.S. startup ecosystem. 43North is a Buffalo-based accelerator and pitch competition that invests $5M every year into just five seed-stage companies, each receiving a $1M investment for 5% equity and a year-long in-person accelerator in Buffalo, New York.

This guide breaks down exactly what 43North offers, who it’s right for, and how to apply on XRaise first so you can centralize your materials, compare other accelerators, and track everything from a single founder dashboard.

Overview of 43North Accelerator

43North Accelerator is a state-backed accelerator and startup competition headquartered in Buffalo, New York, United States. Each year it invests $5M across five winning startups, each receiving $1M in exchange for 5% equity, and then requires winners to relocate their CEO and at least 50% of their team to Buffalo for a minimum of 12 months.

While 43North is technically a competition, its structure looks and feels like an intensive accelerator:

• Stage focus: Mostly pre-seed and seed startups with traction (revenue or strong early customers). 43North describes its sweet spot as seed-stage companies with domain-expert founders, strong teams, and ready-to-ship products.
• Sector focus: Broad and industry agnostic, with strong representation from SaaS, AI/ML, FinTech, HealthTech, Life Sciences, CleanTech, and consumer/enterprise tech.
• Program length & format: 12 months of in-person programming based in Buffalo, with structured programming, mentorship, and office space at Seneca One Tower, followed by ongoing alumni support.

Founders who apply to 43North accelerator are really applying to relocate to a concentrated, Buffalo-centric startup ecosystem that’s heavily supported by New York State and Empire State Development.

Program Structure & Focus at 43North Accelerator

43North is not a generic bootcamp. It’s a one-year, high-commitment residency where you get capital, community, and a defined place in the Buffalo startup ecosystem.

Sector-Specific Focus at 43North Accelerator

43North describes itself as industry-agnostic, but its portfolio reveals clear patterns. You’ll find:

• B2B SaaS and enterprise platforms
• AI/ML and data-heavy products
• FinTech and financial infrastructure
• HealthTech and clinical innovation
• Consumer products with strong brand and distribution angles

If you apply to 43North accelerator with a product that is software- or data-heavy and can scale nationally from a mid-sized U.S. city, you’re aligned with the kinds of winners they’ve historically backed.

Pre-Seed Stage Fit to Apply to 43North accelerator

The FAQ and program pages repeatedly emphasize pre-seed and seed-stage companies with:

• A ready-to-ship product or live MVP
• Traction with customers or clear revenue path within 12 months
• Founders with domain expertise and a strong team
• Capacity to raise external capital (beyond friends and family)

They’re not looking for idea-stage teams. If you’re still validating the problem or haven’t shipped anything, consider university or non-equity programs first and use When You Should Apply to an Accelerator to benchmark your timing.

Program Format of the 43North Accelerator Platform

A typical 43North year follows a three-stage funnel:

1. Online application (late spring; usually a ~6-week window).
2. Remote interview / selection rounds narrowing hundreds of companies down to finalists.
3. Finals Week in Buffalo (October) founders pitch live on stage; five companies win the $1M checks and join the next cohort.

Once you’re in, the 12-month accelerator includes:

• Office space at Seneca One Tower in downtown Buffalo
• Regular programming, workshops, and monthly check-ins
• Intros to nearly 1,000+ investors and regional partners
• Portfolio support in recruiting, marketing, and fundraising

Funding, Equity Terms & Perks of 43North Accelerator

Investment & Equity Structure

43North’s economics are unusually simple and transparent:

• Investment: $1,000,000 per winning company
• Annual pool: $5,000,000 invested across five companies
• Equity: Flat 5% equity stake, typically structured as a warrant and non-negotiable

There is no application fee.

If you’re considering multiple accelerators, that 5% for $1M compares favorably with many global programs that take 6–7% for smaller checks. (For context on the broader funding environment, see AI Startup Investment 2025 – Funding Boom and AI Investment Bubble 2025 – XRaise Analysis.)

Non-Cash Perks and Support

Beyond capital, winners receive:

• Free Class A office space at Seneca One Tower
• One-on-one mentorship from sector-relevant experts
• Access to an extensive investor network (hundreds of angels and VCs nationally)
• Recruiting support via 43North’s internal talent team
• Marketing and PR support, including media coverage, events, and Demo Day exposure
• Potential to benefit from STARTUP-NY, with significant state tax advantages for qualifying companies

Perks of Applying through XRaise

When you apply to 43North accelerator on the XRaise startup platform, you also unlock:

• Structured application flow and reusable founder profile
• Ability to compare 43North to other programs in the XRaise Accelerator Directory
• Access to Startup Perks & credits that can offset tooling and infra costs while you prepare your deck and data room (for example, cloud, dev tools, CRM).

Who Should Apply to 43North Accelerator

This section is where you reality-check whether 43North matches your startup’s stage, sector, and geography.

Sector Fit

You should apply to 43North accelerator if you’re building in one of these broad buckets:

• B2B SaaS or platform software with national/international potential
• AI or data-driven products (analytics, automation, applied AI)
• FinTech and financial infrastructure
• HealthTech or life sciences with a clear commercialization path
• Consumer brands or marketplaces that can scale from Buffalo with online or distributed demand

Highly regulated or brick-and-mortar models (traditional retail, real estate, hospitality, etc.) are usually outside the program’s focus and, in some cases, explicitly ineligible.

Stage & Traction Fit

Strong 43North candidates typically:

• Have launched a live product or are truly “ready-to-ship”
• Show traction, revenue, pilots, or strong pipeline with near-term line-of-sight to revenue
• Have 3+ full-time team members or a credible hiring plan
• Are either pre-seed or seed but sometimes slightly later, if growth potential is strong

Founder Profile & Geography

You’ll be a strong fit if:

• You have deep domain expertise and can credibly own your market
• Your team can relocate to Buffalo for at least 12 months
• You’re excited about building in a non–coastal hub with a tight-knit ecosystem
• You’re comfortable pitching publicly on a big stage (Finals is a ~3,000-person event) If relocation is impossible, or you want a fully remote program, 43North is probably not the right fit, and you should focus on hybrid or virtual programs from the full accelerator directory on XRaise instead.

How to Apply to 43North Accelerator (on XRaise)

This is the crucial bit: XRaise should be your primary application path, not the 43North form.

Step 1: Create Your XRaise Founder Account

Start by creating a XRaise founder account.

You’ll build a reusable startup profile (team, traction, deck, links) that you can use not only for 43North but also for other accelerators, grants, and perk programs.

Step 2: Open the 43North Accelerator Profile on XRaise

Next, go to the 43North accelerator profile on XRaise.

This page centralizes key facts about the program and gives you a clear “Apply Now” call-to-action tuned to XRaise’s structured application flow.

Step 3: Prepare a Strong Application Package

Before you hit submit, tighten:

• Pitch deck, crisp problem, solution, traction, metrics, and Buffalo fit
• Product proof, a live demo, product video, or sandbox
• Traction summary, paying customers, pilots, or a validated funnel
• Team narrative, why this team is uniquely positioned to win in this space

Step 4: Submit through XRaise and Track Status in Your Dashboard

Submit your application directly through XRaise.

From there you can:

• Track application status
• Update traction numbers as you grow
• Reuse your profile for other programs that match your stage and sector

This is a big advantage vs. one-off forms: you’re building a reusable founder OS.

Step 5: Optionally Visit 43North’s Site for Additional Context

After submitting through XRaise, you can explore 43North’s own materials (FAQs, portfolio stories, Finals videos) on the official site to understand culture and expectations more deeply. Save that for post-submission so you don’t fragment your application workflow.

Application Timeline & Key Dates to Apply to 43North Accelerator (2025–2026)

How the Annual Cycle Works

According to 43North’s FAQ and program pages:

• Applications open once per year in late spring
• The window typically stays open for about six weeks
• Finals Week happens in October, where finalists pitch on stage in Buffalo
• Five winners are selected at Finals and join the cohort for a 12-month accelerator in Buffalo

A recent New York State press release noted that applications for one cycle were accepted through June 7, which gives you a rough sense of where deadlines tend to land (early June). Exact dates vary year to year, so treat past dates as reference points, not guarantees.

2025–2026 Specifics

• 2025 application period: Marked as closed on the program page.
• 2026 applications: 43North states that applications will open in Spring 2026 and is currently running an application waitlist for founders who want early notice.

In practice, that means:

• Start preparing your application 90 days before you expect the window to open.
• Aim to submit early in the cycle; late submissions to competitive accelerators generally see lower read-through and interview rates.

43North Accelerator Alumni, Outcomes & Success Stats

Portfolio Highlights

43North’s portfolio includes notable companies across sectors, including:

• ACV Auctions, B2B auto auction marketplace that became 43North’s first unicorn and later went public.
• Squire, Vertical SaaS platform for barbershops, which tripled its valuation to ~$750M in 2021.
• Circuit Clinical, HealthTech startup bringing diversity to clinical trials, with a $29M Series C.
• Top Seedz, Consumer products company with organic seed crackers and snacks, illustrating 43North’s openness to strong physical-product brands.

Aggregate Results

From 43North’s own stats:

• $5M invested annually into each cohort of winners
• ~64 portfolio companies with a total of $40M invested
• More than $1B in capital raised by portfolio companies collectively
• 1,000+ local jobs created in the Buffalo area

Those aren’t hypothetical outcomes; they’re a decade of proof that 43North’s model can pull serious companies away from the coasts and help them scale.

If you want to compare these results to other seed programs, check out related guides like Apply to Techstars Chicago Accelerator for another midwestern, seed-focused accelerator playbook.

Should You Apply to 43North Accelerator?

Here’s the honest pros-and-cons view so you can decide whether to apply to 43North accelerator or allocate your energy elsewhere.

When 43North Is a Strong “Yes”

You should prioritize an application if:

• You’ve raised (or can raise) a seed round around a $1M+ check, and 5% additional dilution is acceptable.
• You want deep, place-based support instead of a light, remote curriculum.
• You and your team are excited to relocate to Buffalo and embed in a rising ecosystem rather than just dipping in for a few weeks.
• You’re building in sectors the portfolio already understands (SaaS, AI/ML, FinTech, HealthTech, climate/industry tech, consumer products).

When You Might Skip or Defer

You may want to look elsewhere or delay your application if:

• You cannot relocate your CEO and 50%+ of your staff for 12 months.
• Your business is hyper-local to another region and can’t be credibly run from Buffalo.
• You’re still pre-MVP and would be giving up valuable equity before product, market fit.
• You need a program that fits around a full-time job or has minimal time commitment, 43North expects deep engagement.

Next Steps to Apply to 43North Accelerator

If you’re ready to move from research to action, here’s a simple next step stack:

Apply via XRaise so you can compare programs
Go to the 43North accelerator profile on XRaise.
Use XRaise’s structured flow to apply to 43North accelerator and keep your founder profile ready for other seed-stage, SaaS, AI, fintech, and healthtech programs.

Explore more accelerators and tools on XRaise
Browse the wider accelerator options on XRaise to discover comparable programs by stage, sector, and geography.
Use the XRaise startup platform as your home base for tracking applications, perks, and fundraising.

If you’re building a high-growth, venture-scale startup and you’re open to spending a year in Buffalo to tap into $1M for 5% equity plus deep ecosystem support, now is the moment to apply to 43North accelerator and use XRaise to architect the rest of your accelerator and funding path with intention.