

Baltimore Is Getting Its First Startup Incubator - llimllib
http://bmoremedia.com/features/startupcity030811.aspx

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subelsky
I know there are a lot of incubators starting up now, but there aren't so many
on the east coast. I wrote in more detail about the vision of this project and
why we're doing it in this Google Doc, if anyone is interested in starting
something in their own city:

[https://docs.google.com/Doc?docid=0AdPdQktVsPezZGp0bW1jNF8xN...](https://docs.google.com/Doc?docid=0AdPdQktVsPezZGp0bW1jNF8xNGdxcHBqamRm&authkey=CMCIsp8K&hl=en)

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bmelton
Baltimore's a good target. You generally would expect something like this to
happen in the (nearby) DC area, but between Fort Meade and other Maryland-area
institutions, there is some AMAZING talent in or around Baltimore, and it's
much more pleasant getting into and out of.

Mike, if you need any help with anything technical, please feel free to let me
know -- contact info is in my profile.

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subelsky
thank you, I definitely will reach out. The main thing we're gonna need is
people to help advise these companies (not too time-consuming, just answer
some questions here and there). I agree with your assessment. There are a lot
of under-the-radar companies and people hanging out in this area.

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kovar
Could you drop me a line, contact information in my profile? I'm in need of
advice and support in some areas, may be able to offer it in others.

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subelsky
I don't see contact info in your profile, but email me and we'll talk!

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Griever
This is great news! As a Baltimorean I am extremely excited to see something
this ambitious come to the East Coast, and better yet my neck of the woods.

I will most definitely be making an effort to participate in this. Great job,
Mike.

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thestoicattack
Right on. I have lived in Baltimore almost my entire life. I'm a PhD candidate
at Hopkins now, but if I do a startup when I finish, I'd much rather stay here
than move to California.

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Griever
The Wire (while being an incredible show) definitely hurt Baltimore in terms
of its reputation. There are some fantastic areas around, and the culture is
very inspiring.

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xiaoma
I think it's the consistent 200-300 homicides per year that hurt Baltimore's
reputation.

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paulsmith
Every major American city has its share of violent, drug- or gang-based crime.
That's not to diminish it, but unless you are actively involved in those
trades or unfortunate enough to be caught up in it by proximity, it likely
will never visit you. It's a shame because there are risks everywhere
(suburbanites think nothing of climbing in their cars everyday to hop on the
highways where 30,000 people die every year) but we're so bad in general at
evaluating them.

Frankly, it doesn't bother me that Baltimore's reputation is somewhat
tarnished, because that just makes it all the more appealing to live here and
know that there is great art, great music, a vibrant technology and hacking
scene, lots of smart young people, and friendly neighbors to enjoy. Now if we
could just get more bike lanes and some better frickin' public transit ...

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asmithmd1
Boston, which is almost exactly the same populations as Baltimore, had 72
murders last year.

If New York had the murder rate that Baltimore does that would mean over 3000
people murdered in a year.

Baltimore has a serious violence problem no matter how you try to rationalize
it.

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subelsky
who's trying to rationalize it? There's not much I can do about it; it's still
an awesome place to live. Good luck buying a house in a nice part of Boston or
NYC as a working-class or middle-class person. Meanwhile I'm hacking code,
running a startup, and I live in a super nice house in a walkable neighborhood
that's very different than the one narrow slice you saw in that show.

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thestoicattack
What neighborhood? (Charles Village here.)

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subelsky
We haven't locked down the space yet but are hoping for a spot in Fells Point.
I actually also live in Charles Village, let's meet up for coffee sometime!
(mike@subelsky.com)

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kovar
I grew up in Bethesda, MD and for personal reasons would like to get back
there. Some of our early adopters are likely to be DC based lawyers and we
were considering setting up shop near DC but we also want a supportive
entrepreneurial environment. You may have solved that for us.

Baltimore is a great city for this. Close to DC, access to NYC and Boston,
lower cost of living, enjoyable place to live, some great schools near by.

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subelsky
this is music to my ears! We actually have a very vibrant innovation/startup
community in Baltimore. Check out our Facebook Group to get a quick firehose:
[https://www.facebook.com/home.php?sk=group_160612380624897&#...</a><p>Also
check out <a href="http://startupbaltimore.org/"
rel="nofollow">http://startupbaltimore.org/</a>, <a
href="http://www.baltimorehackathon.com/"
rel="nofollow">http://www.baltimorehackathon.com/</a>, and the <a
href="http://baltimore.startupweekend.org/"
rel="nofollow">http://baltimore.startupweekend.org/</a>

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kovar
I shall definitely check out the last three links. I'll look at the FB group
but I, unfortunately, use FB only for personal stuff and am very disinclined
to mix my professional and personal life on FB. Just me, not a critique of
you!

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subelsky
it's a fair critique and you aren't the first to mention it. But I will say
it's vastly accelerated the exchange of ideas and feeling of community in
Baltimore so overall it's a net win. There's also a network of twitter
accounts to follow if that's more your taste (@startupbmore @ignitebaltimore
@bmorehackathon @startupdigestmd @bootstrapmd @innovatebmore etc etc)

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Smirnoff
I live in Baltimore and I approve this message =)

Now, my CTO can stay as a CTO because he loves Baltimore and doesn't want to
move to San Francisco!

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mikealeo
Wonderful idea. Born and raised in Baltimore/Columbia and this is definitely
more of what we need. Great work so far. Do you guys have a website yet?

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subelsky
just a splash page for now, designed by Mark Armbruster. The site is
<http://thestartupcity.com> (the guy who owns startupcity.com wants a lot of
$$$ for it)

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LiveTheDream
> Applicants to Startup City, who will be selected based on a YouTube video
> they submit to the program's website

A YouTube video alone is not sufficient to make an informed selection from the
applicants. An interview in-person, or on the phone at least, is essential. I
hope the process was just over-simplified in the article.

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kovar
Y Combinator requires a one minute video for each founder. No cute graphics,
no special effects, just one minute of you talking. I did it, and thought it
added value to my submission.

I'd be a bit put off by any video requirements that allowed for too much more
technical wizardry than that. I present myself well, but I do so far better in
person, and I'm not adept with making movies.

I'd be quite happy to come in for an in person interview, even though I'm
1,500 miles away. I want to evaluate _you_ as well. Committing to a particular
incubator _is_ a commitment by both parties and I want to be sure I'm
comfortable working with you as well.

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dlevine
This is great. I grew up in Baltimore, but headed to the Bay Area after
college because that's where all of the action is in the high-tech space. My
mom always tries to convince me that Baltimore is becoming a high-tech hub,
and maybe it actually is.

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LiveTheDream
The Baltimore region actually _is_ a hub for gaming companies: MicroProse,
Firaxis, Big Huge Games, etc. I'm not overly familiar with the video game
industry, but Baltimore/Maryland is no slouch. Zynga has an office in Timonium
now (suburbs of Baltimore) where they are hiring.

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llimllib
Bethesda Software too.

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Smirnoff
Mike, I have two people on my team and we live in Baltimore. Should we apply
as a team or separately? Also, our product is targeting Russian market. Is
that a problem? Do you only accept companies that target US to begin with?
Thanks

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subelsky
you should definitely apply as a team. We would love to back a company
targeting Russia! It's a global economy, right? Also there's a large Russian
population in Baltimore FWIW

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Smirnoff
Awesome. We will definitely look into this opportunity.

Thanks Mike.

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mindgrub
Baltimore is a tech hot bed right now. Between our Universities, culture and
under-doggedness we are going to seriously crush it these next couple of
years. I missed out on funding to start my mobile company 5 years ago because
I didn't want to move out west. Now I'm happy to say its game time without it.

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kovar
Any thought on requiring successful incubator startups to reinvest in the
incubator in some way? Or at least a gentleman's agreement to do so?

Speaking for myself, I'm a firm believer in building community and in
reinvesting in people and things that have invested in me.

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subelsky
So, that's one of the main reasons for doing this, to create that virtuous
cycle, but at this stage I don't think we can require it.

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philjackson
Omar's-a-comin' ... and he's got 25% equity thanks to the last round.

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mcgeadyd
shiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiittttttttttttttt!

Looks like Mayor Carcetti really is turning things around.

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zavulon
Stringer Bell is definitely going to be applying.

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mcgeadyd
Where do you think the money is coming from?! Shiiiiiiiiiiiiiii.

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intellectronica
Oooh, there's a John Waters movie hiding somewhere in here...

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TheSOB88
Holy shit. As a local, I can't wait to see more info on this. I don't think I
could beat out all those Silicon Valley hotshots that apply to YC, but for
something local, I think I can get in.

This being in Baltimore is such a surprise - I'd never thought I'd see the
day. I'm giddy.

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subelsky
glad to hear it! But this is just one small facet of the tech scene in
Baltimore...Please check out my response to kovar for a list of other
resources you should check out.

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sausagefeet
What is the difference between this and something like ETC on Boston St? They
have The Hive which is a cheap place for startups to go (do they lack
funding?).

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subelsky
The ETC is great but does not provide funding, and you have to pay rent for
the office space (though the leases are on startup-friendly terms, graduated
rates, etc). The ETC will actually be providing their services (consulting,
introductions, etc) to our portfolio

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sausagefeet
Awesome cool.

