Our founders dare to strap themselves in
and launch into the unknown. Here are a few SkyDeck alumni that went to the moon (and beyond).
Berkeley SkyDeck hosts over 300 startups per year across three programs based on the stage of your startup.
Since 2012, Berkeley SkyDeck has been at the forefront of innovation. Our numbers speak for themselves.
$1.47B
Raised by SkyTeams
60%
SkyTeams received funding
25
Series A, B rounds raised
17
Exits through acquisitions
1000
Attendees at Demo Day
SkyDeck has developed a strong reputation in Silicon Valley and leverages our network of
500,000 Berkeley Alumni to help startups succeed.
Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion
SkyDeck has established an extensive network of top tier VCs and investors. SkyDeck facilitates warm intros to these investors and invites them to attend Demo Day at the end of each cohort.
SkyDeck has developed strong relationships with hundreds of businesses and enterprises that can be early adopters of our startups’ technology. These customer introductions help bring in significant revenue for our startups. By leveraging the vast network of over 500,000 living Berkeley alums, SkyDeck is uniquely able to make key introductions to executives from countless companies across any industry.
Berkeley SkyDeck has 450 advisors and mentors who actively coach and mentor our startup founders. Our network guide our founders on everything from product development to customer acquisition to go-to-market strategy and beyond.
SkyDeck helps connect the intellectual firepower at UCB to our startups. Through our recruiting fairs, we match hundreds of students, MBAs, and postdocs to intern and work for our startups. We also match faculty to advisory boards.
At SkyDeck, we aim to have the diversity of our founders reflect the world’s and are working to provide equitable access to our resources and programming in order to accomplish this.
In 2018, SkyDeck launched a Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (DEI) committee to aid in our mission of achieving this goal. Since its implementation, SkyDeck has significantly grown the number of startups founded by female founders and historically-overlooked founders. In addition, we continue to grow our network of advisors and mentors who are committed to supporting founders from a broad range of cultural, racial, gender and socioeconomic backgrounds. For example, our program includes more than six workshops that specifically cater to female and under-represented founders offering everything from networking opportunities to pitch coaching.
There is still work to be done and SkyDeck is committed to our journey in achieving more equitable access and greater diversity. If you are interested in learning more, please reach out to us.
The new model for Funding Education
The Berkeley SkyDeck Fund is the investment partner for UC Berkeley’s SkyDeck Accelerator Program. They invest $200K into each startup that goes through SkyDeck, as well as participate in later stage investment rounds with Berkeley founders. They are one of the most active seed investors in the Bay Area, having made over 130 investments in 3 years!
In a first-of-its-kind, public-private partnership, the Berkeley SkyDeck Fund shares one-half of fund profits with UC Berkeley. This unique partnership will help support UC Berkeley education and create a source of funding for UC Berkeley’s public education mission.
The Berkeley SkyDeck Fund is run by Chon Tang, its Managing Partner, and Brian Bordley, Partner. Berkeley SkyDeck Fund is funded by organizations such as Sequoia Capital, Sierra Ventures, and Canvas Ventures, as well as other VC firms, individuals, and large corporations.
