Accelerator FAQs

We ask you for information about you, your team, your product or service and your company. Don’t hold back, let us know how great you are!

We want to help start-ups take their business to the next level through collaboration with IAG. We’re interested in all start-ups that can help us in any of the categories described. As the programme is only 10 weeks long, we do ask that you:

• Are able to commit to co-working with our team over the 10 week programme
• Have a proof of concept as a minimum, so that we can deploy and test it during the accelerator
• Be open to receiving investment from IAG

You must be at least 18 years old to enter Hangar 51.

Yes of course. Hangar 51 is a global programme and we welcome start-ups and innovation partners from around the world. This year's accelerator will be virtual with remote participation from wherever you are based.

While we have completed many successful pilots and collaborative projects with the start-ups on the Hangar 51 accelerator, we don’t invest in all of them. We have only invested in a minority of the companies that come through the accelerator, although many others have progressed commercial partnerships or completed investment from VCs as a result of our work together.

Yes, we ask you to agree investment terms as part of your accelerator participation agreement.

Hangar 51 Ventures will not invest automatically as part of the accelerator. Instead, we ask that if you raise money in the two years after the accelerator, you give us the option to invest €250,000 or 20% of the value of your next round. Once we have reviewed the investment information we will let you know if we decide to participate in the round.

The accelerator is designed to help you pilot your technology as quickly as possible. On day one, you'll start with a kick-off session with your senior sponsor and project team to agree the scope of your proof of concept, OKRs and a timeline for delivery. 10 weeks is short so your goal will be to showcase the value that you can deliver to IAG.

You'll work with your project team on a daily basis and have weekly check-ins with your sponsor. Around week five, there'll be a midpoint review to reflect on the progress made and plan out the remainder of the programme; you may even have some early results or data points to share at this stage.

You'll continue developing your proof of concept and have weekly check-ins until the end of the accelerator. In the last week, you'll present back the results from the proof of concept and share your thoughts about future engagement with IAG with your sponsor and project team. The weeks between the end of the accelerator and Demo Day are then used to prepare your presentation.

Applications are open until the 31st August. We’ll review all applications and shortlist start-ups to invite to our pitch event where they’ll get the opportunity to present their company, mission and why they should be selected for the accelerator to our judging panel.

Our judges will select a subset of start-ups to invite to the final stage of the process, selection week. Start-ups will meet with their potential sponsor and project lead to discuss the details of what a proof of concept may look like. By the end of this week, the final cohort of start-ups to invite to the accelerator will be agreed.

The accelerator begins on the 15th November with five weeks taking place before breaking for the holidays on the 17th December. The accelerator will resume on the 10th January until the 11th February. The programme ends up with Demo Day, which will take place the week commencing 14th March.

This is our fifth year for the accelerator and over the last four cohorts, we have screened more than 1,600 applications, seen over 100 pitches and worked with 35 start-ups. Several start-ups have gone on to receive commercial contracts or funding from IAG’s investment fund.

Unlike many other accelerators, we offer the unique opportunity for you to co-work with our teams to deliver a proof of concept in a real operational environment. In the past, we have had start-ups' propositions go live to customers, get tested during our daily flight operations and get integrated with our systems to deliver insights.

You get unparalleled access to our people and operations, with everyone ready to support and help you be successful over the 10 weeks. You'll have the backing of a member of our senior management team to provide guidance and even though you may be working with one airline, you'll get the opportunity to meet with senior decision makers from multiple airlines across our Group.

You'll also build your industry knowledge and expertise, and we're happy to help your business grow further with our extensive industry network.

Yes! Many of the companies that have been through our accelerator applied in previous years. Being able to show progress since your last application is a really positive sign for us.