Zalarma
Investors · Accelerators

Accelerators: who they are and how to approach them

Data as of 2026-11-01 · Source: Zalarma investor database

The short answer

Our database lists 323 US startup investors in the accelerators category, and 94 of those with a known state are based outside California, New York and Massachusetts. The most represented states are California (144), New York (65), Texas (26), Massachusetts (10). (Zalarma investor database, as of 2026-11-01.)

323startup investors
66angels & syndicates
181list pre-seed
282list seed

What Accelerators investors look for

Accelerators trade a small check and a structured program for equity. Outside the famous few, many regional and sector programs give founders mentors, a cohort and an investor demo day close to home.

Where they are

US states with the most accelerators investors in our database.

What stages they back

Of the 300 records in this group that list a stage, here is how many invest at each one (investors often list several).

Investors by stage

Pre-seed181
Seed282
Series A116
Series B+44
Source: Zalarma investor database, as of 2026-11-01. Counts under 10 are not shown.

Who they are

The mix of investor types tells you where your first checks are most likely to come from.

Investors by type

Angels & syndicates66
Venture capital firms & partners68
Accelerators323
Source: Zalarma investor database, as of 2026-11-01. Counts under 10 are not shown.

Sectors they focus on

Sector focus as listed on each record. Generalists who list many sectors are counted in each.

Investors by sector focus

B2B SaaS & enterprise software205
Consumer & retail182
Fintech113
Healthcare & digital health107
Machine learning & data101
Deep tech & hardware74
Climate & energy67
Biotech & life sciences63
Source: Zalarma investor database, as of 2026-11-01. Counts under 10 are not shown.

Typical check sizes

Based on the 294 records that list a check size (we use the low end of a stated range).

Investors by typical check size

Under $50K67
$50K–$250K135
$250K–$1M75
$1M+17
Source: Zalarma investor database, as of 2026-11-01. Counts under 10 are not shown.

Active firms outside California, New York and Massachusetts

Firms ranked by how many of their investors in this group appear in our database, counting only investors based outside the three biggest hubs. A starting map, not a ranking of quality.

FirmMain stagesListed
TechstarsPre-seed, Seed11
AntlerPre-seed, Seed10
Plug and Play Tech CenterPre-seed, Seed, Series Aunder 10
Allen Institute for Artificial Intelligence Incubator (AI2)Pre-seed, Seedunder 10
Capital FactoryPre-seed, Seedunder 10
Yale VenturesPre-seed, Seed, Series B+under 10

About this data

Counts are records in the Zalarma investor database, as of 2026-11-01: angels, venture firms and their partners, micro-VCs, family offices, corporate VCs and accelerators that list startup investing. One investor can appear in several stage or sector rows. Stage, sector and check size come from what each record lists, so not every record has every field. Counts under 10 are not shown. Firm names are listed; we do not publish personal contact details on this site. Read how we build and check the data.

Frequently asked questions

How many accelerators investors are there in the US?

The Zalarma investor database lists 323 US startup investors in this group as of 2026-11-01. It is a count of records in our database, not of the whole market.

Are most of them in Silicon Valley?

No. 94 of those with a known state are based outside California, New York and Massachusetts.

How should I approach them?

Shortlist the investors whose stage, sector and check size match your round, find a warm path for the top 25, and send a short, specific note to the rest. Our guides cover both.

Can Zalarma introduce me?

Tell us about your round and within 2 business days we will send 5 hand-picked investors, each with a one-line why-they-fit. We never share your details with investors without your OK.

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