BUILD AND ACCELERATE

Sourcing the right partner is a start, but it doesn’t guarantee a successful journey.

Requiring a lot of resources and various expertises, kickstarting a collaboration comes with several challenges.

From finding the exact co-development idea to de-risking the technology, market, and economics of the projects, partners need to venture into the unknown, along with potential cultural gaps between startups and other stakeholders.

Overall, having the right tools and trainings to properly enable a fruitful acceleration are key.

Let's talk

WHAT WE DO

We support our clients in building and testing new solutions, including with new partners, in an environment encouraging experimentation and agile ways of working, around specific acceleration programs or corporate venturing units.

For collaboration, we start by running a 3 weeks sprint with your key internal stakeholders, the startups, and our experts in order to land on a realistic collaboration scenario.

This enables your management to already have some qualitative elements on technology, economics, and market fit when they decide whether or not to dedicate people’s time to investigate further. 

We then put in place a gated process, some tools, and expert hours to steer the collaboration development process with you.

For incubation, our programs range from early-stage startups looking to fully define their business model and go-to-market strategy to more mature ones looking to expand internationally.

On top of modules and connections, we rely on our international network of experts to provide tailored coaching sessions to the startups.

OUR APPROACH

COLLABORATION ENGINE

We help you kick start your collaboration with startups to ensure a scalable co-development.

ACCELERATION & COACHING

We bring your startups to the next level through tailored mentoring & connections.

WHY US

From the words of our clients and startups, our approach is unique.

Instead of doing venture building internally, we provide a collaborative approach that enables quicker time to market and an extended set of expertise to power innovations.

Instead of just looking at collaboration with an investment lens only, we provide both the startup and the companies an occasion to really understand each other’s assets and culture. Setting the ground for fruitful future collaboration.

This approach has proven to actually save time for companies by making better decisions in terms of time allocation (to de-risk a collaboration), but also enhancing the transformation rate of those collaborations.

Our knowledge of the startups’ needs enabled us to build an approach that is a win-win, resulting in a high level of involvement from both parties.

Finally, our extensive network of experts is able to generate ideas that are truly disruptive to the industry, while still realistic in terms of feasibility.

CLIENT CASE STUDIES

CONTEXT

As the EV revolution is underway, NGK Spark Plugs is at a crossroad. Pioneer manufacturer of key elements of combustion engines, NGK Spark Plugs decided to focus on new growth engines: digital health, smart mobility, and decentralised utilities.

Within their Venture Lab, the ambition is to launch innovation projects to tackle tomorrow’s challenges.

Our partner’s goal is to provide solutions that improve the quality of life in the world and achieve a financial target of $1 billion in new revenue by 2030. 

OUR APPROACH

Hello Tomorrow conducted a three-step program :

  1. Ideation & Benchmark: interactive workshops using creativity methods to help define new areas of interest. Then doing desk research to validate and refine the vision
  2. Startup challenge: an international innovation call organised to gather the best startup fitting with the needs previously identified
  3. Acceleration: Establish the right path to create new business. A 3-week boot camp to set the basis of a common opportunity with a fast-track program in our partner facilities

WHAT WE PROVIDED

The collaboration is still ongoing for phase three, up until now Hello Tomorrow provided: 

  • Ideation workshop where 19 ideas were framed, then detailed in opportunity card diving including their value chain
  • The most promising area of interest “Changing the paradigm to improve patient care” has been chosen to conduct an innovation challenge that received 110 applications
  • The bootcamp was divided into two parts:
    • Two weeks online were the startups and Venture Lab’s team created two business case one for collaboration and the other for investment gathering in total 20 people
    • Last week in Berlin to meet the team, refine their collaboration models and prepare pitches to the top management to decide on which idea they will allocate people’s time to build the final business case
  • The 3 best startups were invited to a Demo Day in Japan for a showcase and meet the investment team that will elect the ventures they want to run a due diligence on before validating upcoming investments
  • Ongoing collaborations 

CONTEXT

As Servier R&D was starting to build their new research institute in Saclay (expected in 2023), they decided to develop an incubation offer for Drug Discovery and Medical Biotech startups, based on Servier’s main areas of expertise.

They asked Hello Tomorrow to help them design the best incubator for startups, leveraging our large network.

To pursue a user-centric design, we involved startups as early as possible in the discussions, strongly believing that their experience and insights would be a real asset in imagining the future Servier R&D incubator.

Moreover, Servier’s executives wanted to onboard and educate their collaborators (and futur incubator mentors) about the specific needs of deep tech and healthcare startups, in order to prepare and engage them in future assignments.

OUR APPROACH

We conducted a three-step program:

  1. We first sent a survey to a subset of our global network to gather their insight on what an “Servier incubator” should provide, and analysed the results.
  2. Then, we organised a workshop with 15 French startups. Due to Covid-19 travel restrictions, we held it online, pushing us to adapt our proprietary methodology to the situation. The workshop involved more than 30 startups and 6 Servier decision makers, including their Research Scientific Director and Department Head on Prospective & Opportunities.
  3. Learning expedition: Once Servier’s decision maker team was aware of the challenges and roles of a deep tech incubator, we took the collaborators that will operate in the future incubator at a Learning Expedition to the Hello Tomorrow Global Summit. They met pioneer healthcare startups and engaged in discussions with them, through collective sessions about best practices in incubation as well as working groups about startups concrete expectations in incubators (whereas in terms of human and financial support than industrial and scientific expertise, strategy etc.)

WHAT WE PROVIDED

Both the survey and the workshop results allowed us to build a common vision, shared with Servier R&D and the startups, highlighting Servier’s unique positioning and sought after scientific expertise. 

As a summary, a prioritized list of key functionalities, offers and expertise expected by startups was provided, all linked to specific key internal and external stakeholders to be onboarded.

The Learning Expedition at Hello Tomorrow’s Global Summit allowed future incubator mentors and collaborators to engage with the community of deep tech startups in a direct and intimate way. 

As a result, Servier’s collaborators understood how their future working routines and objectives will change in an fast-paced environment. 

They also got a clear view of startups’ expectations of an incubator.

CONTEXT

Jointly organised by Hello Tomorrow and Enterprise Singapore, the Hello Tomorrow Innovation Alliance, a Global Innovation Alliance (GIA) Acceleration Programme, accelerates the growth of cutting-edge Singaporean startups looking to expand in France and Europe.

Benefiting to overall 3 cohorts, Hello Tomorrow supported and trained Singaporean startups for their entry into the French market, leveraging its ecosystem and flagship event, the Hello Tomorrow Global Summit.

OUR APPROACH

After a selection of relevant Singaporean deep tech startups and a thorough assessment of needs, a 6-week program was carried out with:

  1. 1-month of training by Hello Tomorrow and partners to design market access strategy, understand corporate culture & collaboration frameworks, get better at pitching…
  2. Mentorship sessions with a seasoned expert following the startups’ field and overall program goal
  3. 1-week immersion in the French ecosystem with onsites visits and discoveries
  4. Business meetings during the Deep Tech Week and the Hello Tomorrow Global Summit to exchange with prospects and potential partners

WHAT WE PROVIDED

Despite a difficult context related to the Covid-19 pandemic, Singaporean startups benefited from a complete program from ecosystem discovery to partnership development.

  1. Masterclasses on innovation, and business practices in France.
  2. Guided tour of the ecosystem.
  3. Networking opportunities.
  4. Participate in our Deep Tech Days:
    • 3 cohorts made of 10 participants
    • 6 startups made the trip to Paris
    • 100+ business meetings conducted with corporates, research centers, investors, and industry experts
    • Collaborations ongoing

CONTEXT

Jointly organised by Bpifrance and Hello Tomorrow, the CO-INNO program accelerates and supports the most cutting-edge French startups from the discovery of a forein ecosystem to the establishment of technological partnerships, funding and even their settlement onsite.

This first edition landed in Singapore, an international hub benefiting from: 

  • A strong innovation ecosystem. Singapore was ranked the 8th most innovative economy in the world and 2nd in Asia for innovation, after South Korea according to the 2020 Global Innovation Index (GII).
  • A strategic location. Considered an open-door to the ASEAN region, About 1900 French companies have already established themselves here.

A rich network. Both Bpifrance and Hello Tomorrow benefit from strong relations with entities onsite, from Singaporean institutions able to support company expansion to potential partners, suppliers, and clients known by the APAC Hello Tomorrow hub.

OUR APPROACH

Governed by the ‘Advanced & Resilient Industries’ thematic, this first cohort is made of 6 French deep tech startups with solutions ranging from biotech to Industry 4.0.

The program is carried out in 3 main phases: 

  1. Training sessions with preparatory modules on foreign culture, business etiquette as well as ecosystem stakeholders and co-innovation. Startups are also introduced to their local mentor. 
  2. Matching needs and expectations to introduce French startups to Singaporean entities (corporate, startups, institutions, etc.), apprehend what co-innovation and co-development would look like, and leverage the Singaporean ecosystem and its events during an onsite immersion week 

Decision making to pursue international strategy with office hours from Hello Tomorrow to further support potential applications for funding

WHAT WE PROVIDED

The program is currently ongoing, yet startups from this first cohort will benefit from: 

  • 5 masterclasses ranging from understanding foreign culture and practices to co-innovation frameworks and implications
  • Support of a dedicated mentor throughout the program 
  • Introductions and business meetings with potential prospects and partners in Singapore
  • Workshops to generate collaboration ideas and leverage existing Hello Tomorrow canvases for collaboration framework, business model, and market fit
  • Guided tour of the Singaporean ecosystem
  • Networking opportunities including participation in SWITCH, Singapore’s flagship innovation event 
  • Office hours following startup’s strategy to apply to funding or settle in the region

DEEP TECH: THE GREAT WAVE OF INNOVATION

Discover our report co-authored with the Boston Consulting Group that shines light on the deep tech approach to innovation and essential factors for deep tech ventures to succeed.

Download the report