Columbia Startup Lab (CSL)
About
Important Dates
Eligibility
Apply
About Columbia Startup Lab
Columbia Startup Lab (CSL) is Columbia University’s recent-alumni co-working space located on the ground floor of WeWork Soho West at 69 Charlton Street.
As a partner school, Columbia Business School accepts applications from recent alumni for seats it reserves at the Lab. Resident ventures form a 71-person cohort of entrepreneurs from each of the partner schools. Together they comprise more than 40 startups of which more than 20 are Columbia Business School alumni-founded startups.
Founded in 2013, the Lab has been “corporate headquarters” for more than 250 Columbia-founded ventures and over 350 members in industries from FinTech to Fashion to Food and more. In total, these early-stage companies have raised more than $55M in venture funding and generated exit and acquisition value of $100M. The Lab has become the symbolic nexus for Columbia’s commitment to entrepreneurship.
Upcoming Dates
- Application Period for the 2020-21 cohort: on or about March 2 to April 3
- Information Session: March 4 (12:30pm, Uris 303). Register here.
- CSL Open House: March 26 (69 Charlton St)
Eligibility
CSL is open to recent alumni (five years or less from most recent degree) founders who are committed to working on their new venture full-time.
- Teams must select one Columbia University-affiliated founding member.
- Only one application per team will be considered, regardless of the school in which the founder is affiliated.
Apply
- Applications will open on or about March 2, 2020
- Admitted teams may spend up to 1 year in the space.
- The annual turnover of cohorts is the first week of June.
- The space is administered by WeWork and includes furnishings (desk & chair), WiFi, printing, meeting spaces, phone booths, water/coffee, beer, cleaning/maintenance, and access to common facilities across the global WeWork network.
- CSL provides ongoing workshops, office hours, networking events, and community building activities to help resident ventures advance their businesses. All CSL teams are encouraged to participate.
- Columbia University-affiliated tenants are required to commit to a four-month term in the space at a rate of $250 per month/per seat. Non-Columbia University team members will be required to make a contribution of $400 per month/per seat.
Questions? Contact langcenter@gsb.columbia.edu.
Liz Wilkes '13 of Exubrancy shares her experience at Columbia Startup Lab.