Accelerating Business Leadership and Entrepreneurship (ABLE) Program 2026 – YOA

Deadline: July 12, 2026

Applications are open for the Accelerating Business Leadership and Entrepreneurship (ABLE) Program 2026. The Accelerating Business Leadership and Entrepreneurship (ABLE) is an accelerator program designed to help influence-oriented companies within the United States that are addressing important group wants and driving revolutionary options.

The program is dedicated to offering entrepreneurs from traditionally deprived communities and connections to Africa with entry to capital and investor-readiness coaching by connecting members with trade leaders. Twenty entrepreneurs will take part in a digital enterprise and management coaching program from for six weeks, main as much as a stay, in-particular person pitch day in Silicon Valley. The program offers weekly coaching classes, mentorship, and community-constructing.

Benefits

• Tailored Entrepreneur and Leadership Training: Benefit from a completely funded, excessive-high quality accelerator expertise designed particularly for early-stage, income-producing startups led by African diaspora entrepreneurs.
• Access to Capital and Markets: Connect with buyers, funders, and enterprise leaders in Silicon Valley and past, opening doorways to funding alternatives and international markets
• Pitch to Distinguished Networks: Showcase your enterprise to ADN’s group of buyers, advisors, and companions, constructing visibility amongst resolution-makers and potential supporters.
• Expert Mentorship: Work instantly with skilled mentors who present steering on scaling, investor-readiness, and navigating the beginning-up panorama.
• Join a Thriving Ecosystem: Become part of the African Diaspora Network’s rising and supportive entrepreneurial group, sharing experiences, partnerships, and alternatives lengthy after this system ends.
• Financial Award: Participants who efficiently full this system might be eligible to obtain a monetary award

Eligibility

For consideration, potential candidates should meet the next necessities:

• Founder or government of a scalable, for-revenue startup
• Company have to be led or co-led by traditionally excluded entrepreneurs, with deal with these of African descendant
• The firm is early-stage and income-producing (seed to Series A).
• Enterprise have to be headquartered within the United States
• Must be a longtime authorized entity already in operation for six months or extra
• Must have a confirmed product market match with energetic clients and demonstrable income streams
• Must have a transparent and sustainable enterprise mannequin with monetary projections for development
• Evidence of buyer adoption, market traction, and demand for the answer
• Strong worth proposition with a differentiated services or products
• A clearly outlined goal market and aggressive positioning
• Leverage know-how or revolutionary options to drive influence
• Commitment to fixing urgent challenges by sustainable and scalable improvements
• Applicants should decide to attending all ABLE classes, finishing required program duties, and actively collaborating with their cohort, mentors, and facilitators

Selection Criteria

Primary Selection Criteria

• Must reveal early traction evidenced in rising utilization, income, or different metrics–ideas, pitches, or prototypes aren’t eligible. The enterprise ought to have a web site and a tangible digital or bodily services or products.
• Potential for monetary sustainability, funding, scalability
• Demonstrate quantifiable influence and market attain
• The entrepreneur should have the ability to dedicate time to program actions, together with enterprise coaching, mentorship classes, networking occasions, and availability to attend the in-particular person pitch day and pitch day observe. Finalists are anticipated to satisfy with program friends, ADN community members, mentors, and sponsors as part of their dedication. Participants are anticipated to stick to a excessive degree of non-public and skilled integrity, respect for each other, and accountability.

Secondary Selection Criteria

• Applications are welcome from all industries and for companies which are influence-oriented. 
• Balanced gender illustration amongst entrepreneurs.
• Reasonable geographic distribution among the many United States and territories.
• Cross-sector range and a complete combine that showcases influence and innovation amongst a number of sectors, together with training, healthcare, finance, connectivity, agriculture, and renewable vitality.

Application

There isn’t any value to take part in this system, and firms don’t want to surrender any fairness.

Click here to apply

For extra info, go to ABLE.