Mozilla Accepting Applications for its Open Source Accelerator | Hacker News Reader

Mozilla Accepting Applications for its Open Source Accelerator

webfwd.org

121 pointsbreck28 comments

David Ascher here, I oversee WebFWD. I'm happy to take questions here if the HN crowd has them.

Would you consider accepting a hardware based internet-of-things/robotics startup?

I can't speak on behalf of the team doing acceptances but if it's awesome, open and uses the web; yes.

hi - I help run WebFWD and can definitely say "yes" to this - if there is an "Internet" in the Internet of Things element, we're interested :)

Strictly web right?

Don't pass up this opportunity!

Mozilla is chock full of great folks with tremendous experience.

The WebFWD team is top notch.

* I was in their first "batch" and with their help I'm still building OpenPhoto / Trovebox.

How much $ do they give to startups?

Good question. In the normal process, we offer no funding, and take no equity. We give advice and coaching to companies we think are likely to move the web in a positive direction. Keeping money out of it at this stage keeps things simple.

I think the true potential of WebFWD can only be unlocked if/when the funding problem is solved. It can be directly through Mozilla or by very strong partnerships with foundations and firms that do investment.

It's the only missing piece in my mind. I hope it's something the team is thinking about (I've talked with Pascal about it during our stint).

Would love to chat about it more though.

Is it wrong to say this is the peak(IMO) of what the Internet should be? What with people building cool stuff, open sourcing it, and getting help from others who have already gone down the road.

Is this program just for startups?

I've got an opensource project that I would like coaching & mentorship on, but I'm not convinced I want to monetize it. Should I apply anyway?

To me, it seems that question is answered pretty clearly in the "What" on their homepage:

A 3-month hands-on accelerator designed to help entrepreneurs from around the globe build healthy businesses.

(with "build healthy businesses" in bold)

I'm in a similar boat. I have a few things like that where I think the best thing for it would be to get it where to the point where a bunch of people would fork it and make their own cool things.

I don't want to be in business, I want to make cool stuff.

Check out Mozilla Hatchery at https://blog.mozilla.org/labs/2013/04/announcing-mozilla-hat...

It may be what you're looking for.

PS: I am a Mozilla Rep.

If it's Good for the Web, I at least am happy to chat, give advice, mentor, to the extent that I have free time. I do that on a regular basis for local companies, but that's just because it's more convenient. I expect many Mozilla folks do the same.

(and if it's a thing that should/could be a Mozilla consumer product someday, then yes, check out the Hatchery, that's a more structured program w/ a bunch of coaches).

Do they provide any funding? It's hard to tell from the site.

No, nor do they take equity.. They do provide a ton of "goodies". Credits to hosting providers, lawyers etc... And the mentoring is priceless.

See my answer above. We should tweak the site to make it clearer, thanks for the feedback.

Another thing you can make clearer is where you are based—I had to go to the blog to figure out it is Mountain View (I’ve seen a lot of things out of Mozilla London recently so I was hoping it was in London!).

It's location agnostic. Most teams aren't located near a Mozilla office. All of the program is virtual.

I'm near Mountain View so I spent many a days at the Mozilla HQ but none of the other teams were local.

The application is unviewable with Javascript disabled.* Note to applicants: please consider the value of progressive enhancement.

* I had temporarily disabled Javascipt on Firefox for debugging something a couple days ago. I had been using Chrome since then, but decided to open Firefox for this. I was confused until I tried to check my Gmail, whereupon I was informed that I had Javascript disabled. Oops. I've re-enabled Javascript.

WebFWD is an awesome experience! It's helping us turn mist.io into a solid business with a great product, without having to give away any equity. The mentors are top notch and very engaged in the whole process. Being a part of the Mozilla community is the best thing ever. If you're working on an open source startup, complete the short application form now! It's totally worth it.

Apply now if you are building mobile/web technologies

...to make the Web better and more open ...open source (at minimum, a component) OR leveraging HTML5 ...actively exploring its business model(s) ...at a prototype stage or beyond

Our three-month program is global, no relocation is required!

For more info visit webfwd.org

I've also got to sing the praises of WebFWD — my organization, CASH Music, was part of the first class and it was invaluable to us. Great people, continued support, and an experience that helped shape the organization. Highly recommend you share your open project ideas and apply.

I wish there were more things like the for C/C++ and backend developers like myself.

I would also like to mention that all webFWD participants can use all plans of http://errormator.com free of charge!

Best of luck Mozillians!

WebFWD is a great program for startups involved heavily in open source.

-- I was in their first cohort, feel free to ask any questions.

Do you lift?

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