The Nebraska Startup Academy, a nonprofit with the goal of establishing Nebraska as “an innovation hub in the Midwest,” soft-launched its free incubator and coworking space for early-stage startups and entrepreneurs. Located at Millwork Commons, The Grove is designed to provide founders a place to access curated curriculum and mentorship, plus connect the larger Omaha ecosystem as a new hub for community events.

The Grove launch comes on the heels of the announcement of the hiring of Nebraska Startup Academy’s first-ever Director of Entrepreneurship, Alyssa Cave

According to the Nebraska Startup Academy, the first eight startups moving into the space will receive education and resources to grow their businesses and entrepreneurial skills. The Grove will offer founders strategic and tactical support to help them achieve milestones like finding a product-market fit and scaling operations. Experts will also be available to share insights into their personal startup journey. 

“It can be extremely lonely building a startup, with long hours and few people understanding the stress or motivation behind it,” said Charlie Cuddy, executive director of the Nebraska Startup Academy. “The Grove provides an essential space for connection and collaboration, fostering both personal and professional growth for entrepreneurs.” 

The initial group of startups selected to move into The Grove include:

• Engage Vision – AI-powered video analytics for retail, events, museums and sports
• Savii – Provides companies with individualized healthcare benefits via ICHRAs
• Omedus – Wireless medical device to measure vitals during critical care situations
• VisionSync – Strategic planning software for enterprise 
• Moneiva – Automates and tracks communication between carriers and freight brokers
• Build Más – Job estimate platform for Hispanic-owned small business contractors
• Golf Trotter – Mobile app to for golfers to find, book and share tee times
• SheMate – Women athlete-led virtual mentoring for sports teams

According to the Nebraska Startup Academy, more than 20 additional startups have qualified to join the initiative and are currently on the waitlist. 

Cuddy said the qualities they are looking for in candidates can vary, but the characteristics they prioritize include:

• A team of one to three individuals with entrepreneurial and industry experience
• A solution with the potential to scale to serve a large market 
• A product that is currently available in the market or close to launching
• Evidence of proven customers, whether through a letter of intent (LOI), a pilot or actual revenue

While the primary focus is on startups local to Nebraska, Cuddy said he envisions creating regional hubs in the future. The Nebraska Startup Academy sees The Grove as the next step in fulfilling the nonprofit’s mission to equip entrepreneurs with the knowledge needed to build successful businesses.

“We set 6-month milestones with the ability to ‘graduate’ early or sign up for another six months depending on where the startup enters The Grove at in their journey,” said Cuddy. “The graduation is milestone-based, not time-based, so we anticipate some fluidity to the ‘cohorts.’” 

Cuddy recommends that founders who want to get involved with The Grove should sign up for the nonprofit’s online platform for more details about future opportunities. The Grove’s physical space at Millwork Commons has not officially opened to the public yet, but Cuddy said his team expects to release more information related to The Grove later this year.