The Angels Up Academy: Bilbao

Join the I edition of The Angels Up Academy sponsored by Seed Capital & Crowdfunding Bizkaia

Designed to equip you with the knowledge, skills, and strategies needed to invest in startups: from theory to an actual investment.

Startup Wise Guy’s origins began in 2012 and, since then, we’ve seen firsthand the incredible potential of investing in international startups. We also have a deep understanding of the challenges and opportunities that arise. Now, we’re excited to share our expertise with you through The Angels Up Academy.

You’ll have access to expert-led workshops, real-life case studies, and networking opportunities with other investors and industry leaders. And, by the end of it, you will have the tools to make an informed personal startup investment decision. 

Essentially, you will learn how to invest in international startups: from theory to an actual investment. And you will join a community of like minded professionals with exclusive access to content, investment opportunities & events available for our Alumni only.

Incentives

Become a "diamond miner"

We've got the inside scoop on what works and what doesn't and we will share with you all the do's and don'ts that we have learned so far.

Learn-by-investing

We will provide you with hands-on practice, taking you from the initial stages of evaluating a startup to making an actual investment.

Join an exclusive network

You will join the Angels Up Academy Alumni and will connect with a community of top-tier investors, mentors, and industry leaders

About the Program

Application Process

Application Deadline: Friday 31st March

Apply now

This course is sponsored by Seed Capital & Crowdfunding Bizkaia, free of charge for participants, & seats are limited. 

This program is 11 weeks long, will be delivered in English and consists of 24 sessions (±80 hours).
90% of the program will be online; offline experience is planned for key events and networking time on the following dates: 

    • Monday 17th April: Welcome to the Academy & Workshop #1
    • Friday 19th May: Closure of Market Engineering Sprint 
    • Friday 30th June: Closure of the Academy with Startups pitching & lunch afterwards

Module 1

Theoretical workshops

Monday 17th April - ONSITE

  • 09:00 to 09:30 - Welcome & Program Overview
  • 09:30 to 10:00 - Intros and Networking
  • 10:00 to 11:00 - Fireside Chat from an active investor
  • 11:00 to 12:00 - Workshop #1: Angel Investing Foundations

Friday 21st April - REMOTE

  • 09:00 to 11:00 - Workshop #2: Startup Selection and Due Diligence

Monday 24th April - REMOTE

  • 09:00 to 11:00 - Workshop #3: Crafting Your Investment Thesis

Friday 28th April - REMOTE

  • 09:00 to 11:00 - Workshop #4: Post Investment Process

Module 2

Pre-Accelerator Content

This module is fully remote & is divided into 8 weeks and each week covers a different topic. New topics will be released each week on Thursday, so you will have time to view the content on a weekly basis and at your own pace. Additionally, you will join as mentors in Mentor Day (1 to 1 sessions with startups from the batch).

  • Thursday 4th May - #1 Purpose
  • Thursday 11th May - #2 Pitching & Product
  • Thursday 25th May - #3 Product & Planning
  • Friday 2nd June - Mentor Day (1 to 1 sessions with startups from the batch)
  • Thursday 8th June - #4 Sales & Brand
  • Thursday 15th June - #5 Company & Investors
  • Thursday 22nd June - #6 Legal & Basics
  • Friday 23rd June - Mentor Day (1 to 1 sessions with startups from the batch)

Module 3

Startup Wise Guys’ Scouting Pitch session

3h online sessions engaging participants in groups of five people per session, getting you to provide live feedback and staying at the end of the pitch session to ask further questions to the Startup Wise Guys’ Scouting team.

Final dates TBC - Tentative dates are:

  • Monday 1st May - 09:00 to 12:00
  • Thursday 4th May - 09:00 to 12:00
  • Monday 8th May - 09:00 to 12:00

Module 4

Market Engineering Sprint (MES)

During 6 days (5 days remotely & 1 day on site connecting remotely with the experts), Investors will be part of some immersive sessions including:  

  • Content & assignments shared by, Cristóbal Alonso, Startup Wise Guys' CEO
  • Provide feedback to startups on their assignments
  • Startups Pitch Presentations
  • Feedback about the program so far & what's coming up next

Online Live Sessions

Friday 12th May and Monday 15th May to Thursday 18th May

  • 09:00 to 11:00 - Content shared by Cristóbal Alonso (Startup Wise Guys’ CEO)
  • From 18:00 - Provide feedback to startups on their 1st workshop exercise

Hybrid Session
Friday 19th May

  • 10:00 to 12:00: Startups Pitch Presentations (streaming onsite from BAT Tower)
  • 12:00 to 13:00: Feedback about the program so far & what's coming up next
  • 13:00 onwards: Lunch (optional)

Module 5

Fireside chats with investors

1 hour online live sessions with top investors from around the world sharing their stories of the hustle and bustle of the Angel Investing world, insights into what makes successful startups, and perspectives of the challenges that they have faced.

  • Friday 26th May - 09:00 to 10:00
  • Friday 9th June - 09:00 to 10:00
  • Friday 16th June - 09:00 to 10:00

Module 6

Pitch Day Session

Investors will join the graduation day, a 3h session with final pitches from startups of the Pre-Accelerator program batch. Investors will have the opportunity to watch it all together at one single location, streaming or live, and sharing feedback based on what they have learnt.

Friday 30th June

  • 10:00 to 12:00: Streaming Graduation Day session
  • 12:00 to 13:00: Final seminar hosted by Seed Capital & Crowdfunding Bizkaia
  • 13:00 to 13:30: Wrap-up of learnings
  • From 13:30: Lunch
  •  

What happens next? Alumni Community

Once you enroll in this program & make your first investment, you'll have access to a community of like-minded investors who are as passionate as you (and us!) about investing in startups. You will have the opportunity to attend unique events around the world & unlock exclusive content.

The Angels Up Academy is for you if

    1. You are located in Bizkaia.
    2. You have a genuine interest in investing in startups and innovative projects.
    3. You can commit to do a personal investment of a minimum of 5,000€ into at least one company of their choice within the natural year (from 1/1/2023 to 31/12/2023).
    4. You can attend at least 70% of the sessions (17 out 24 sessions).

This course is free of charge and seats are limited, thus one sent the pre-inscription a selection of profiles will be made.

Let’s crunch some numbers

Startup Wise Guys is a leading early-stage startup accelerator with multiple venture capital funds with a strong track record of investing in successful startups from around the world.

By December 2022, Startup Wise Guys was recognised among top 3 global accelerators by European VCs, listed among the top mentioned global ones along with Entrepreneur First, Y Combinator, and followed by Techstars and Plug and Play.

We have a strong team of outstanding mentors, amazing serial entrepreneurs, and an exclusive international network of top-tier investors. We have the experience and knowledge to help you start your journey in startup investing — sustainably, wisely, and globally.

350+

companies invested

80%

Survival rate

13

Exits

22x

Multiplier across all exits

Sponsors

Team

Based in
🇪🇸

Azahara Vera Cobos

Head of Scouting

Based in
🇺🇸

Brianna Quintero

Learning Design Lead

Based in
🇪🇸

Ilze Timi Graubina

Pre-Revenue Program Manager

Based in
🇷🇴

Nicoleta Pirvu

Project Manager

Based in
🇮🇹

Santiago Fortino

Program Operations Manager

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

  • What is the Angels Up Academy?

    At Startup Wise Guys, we decided to create a program that contributes to professionalizing the European investing ecosystem and supporting entrepreneurs. Angels Up Academy is designed to equip you with the knowledge, skills, and strategies needed to invest in startups: from theory to an actual investment.

    In the past eleven years, Startup Wise Guys has managed to build a portfolio of 350+ startups from 65+ countries, with 13 exits (for now!) and a multiplier of 22x. From founders to founders, from ecosystem to ecosystem. We know the startup ecosystem from inside out.

    The education provided in the Angels Up Academy is delivered by Startup Wise Guys’ professional network in various sectors, as well as by experienced angel investors who share their experiences and best practices from all over the world.

  • How does the program content look like?

    This program is delivered in English and is 11 weeks long, split into 24 sessions:

    • 4 theoretical workshops 
    • 1 session attending Startup Wise Guys Scouting Pitch Session Days
    • 7 sessions with exclusive access to Startup Wise Guys’ Pre-Accelerator Program content
    • 2 sessions for Mentoring Startups
    • 3 Fireside Chats hosted by investors
    • 6 sessions attending the Market Engineering Sprint hosted by Cristóbal Alonso (CEO of Startup Wise Guys)
    • 1 final session with Startups pitching to investors 

    All of these sessions will be online, except 3 of them (see below). All of these will be hosted in Bilbao (BAT Tower):

    • Monday 17th April from 09:00 to 12:00 - Welcome to the Academy & Workshop #1
    • Friday 19th May from 10:00 to 13:00 - Closure of Market Engineering Sprint 
    • Friday 30th June from 10:00 to 13:30 -  Closure of the Academy with Startups
  • Do I need to pay to participate?

    This course is sponsored by Seed Capital & Crowdfunding Bizkaia, free of charge for participants, & seats are limited. 

    Participants need to commit to do a personal investment of a minimum of 5,000€ into at least one company of your choice within the natural year (from 1/1/2023 to 31/12/2023).

  • Do I need to have invested in a startup before?

    No, the purpose of the Angels Up Academy is for anyone who is interested in learning how to invest in startups can learn and do it right after the program.

  • Are there any geographical restrictions for who can apply?

    Yes, this program is restricted to people from Bizkaia.

     

  • What is expected from me as a participant in the Angels Up Academy?

    We expect you:

    1. To attend a minimum of 70% of the sessions (17 out of 24).
    2. To commit to do a personal investment of a minimum of 5,000€ into at least one company of your choice within the natural year (from 1/1/2023 to 31/12/2023).
  • What is the time commitment?

    We have taken into consideration that you will be doing this program while you are potentially busy in your day-to-day, so we have ensured that sessions are between 1 hour and 3 hours long. And the total estimated number of hours that this program entails is ±80 hours. 

  • Will the program happen online or on-site?

    90% of the sessions will be online and only 3 sessions will be hosted on-site in Bilbao (BAT Tower):

    • Monday 17th April from 09:00 to 12:00 - Welcome to the Academy & Workshop #1
    • Friday 19th May from 10:00 to 13:00 - Closure of Market Engineering Sprint 
    • Friday 30th June from 10:00 to 13:30 -  Closure of the Academy with Startups pitching & lunch afterwards
  • Can I run this program in my city?

    Sure you can! We can definitely deliver a program like this one or create a bespoke one according to your needs. Please get in touch by email with Azzy Vera-Cobos, Product Lead of the Angels Up Academy via email: azahara@startupwise.com.

  • All the online sessions will be recorded?

    Yes, but they will be shared only with the program participants for you to watch on your own time if you can't attend the live sessions (which we highly recommend so you can participate in the Q&A session).

If you didn’t find what you were looking for get in touch with us at hello@startupwiseguys.com.