Unshackled and Mass. Global Entrepreneur-in-Residence Program Partner to Serve More Immigrant Entrepreneurs

(Boston, October 15, 2015) - On Thursday, the Massachusetts Global Entrepreneur-in-Residence (GEIR) program announced a partnership with Unshackled, an investment fund based in Palo Alto, California, backed by 80 of America’s most influential investors. In a major step to retain entrepreneurial talent in America, the partnership brings two innovative organizations together who seek the same mission: to create world-changing companies by enabling and supporting early stage immigrant founders in the U.S.
 
Until now, international students graduating from premier universities in the U.S. were met with limited options to explore their entrepreneurial ambitions. This partnership is another step to offering the brightest international students attending a university in the U.S. the opportunity to build the next big tech company of the future.
 
According to William Brah, founder and executive director of the Venture Development Center at UMass Boston, where the GEIR is based, partnering with Unshackled is a major boost for the GEIR program, an innovative approach to retaining entrepreneurial talent in the state. Through the GEIR, these global entrepreneurs will be eligible for a unique joint appointment at the school — serving as university employees who mentor student startups in addition to running their own companies — qualifying them for visas.
 
This is equally meaningful for Unshackled and the founders it looks to support. Unshackled has seen numerous immigrant founders graduating from universities like MIT, Harvard, and Babson, who need a broader program to help support their entrepreneurial dreams. With this partnership, they can remain in Boston and still take advantage of Unshackled’s investment capital, access to Silicon Valley, and their highly influential network of LPs and advisors, with the possibility for further visa sponsorship.
 
“As demand continues to expand, we are buckling up to ensure strong and scalable growth. We are focused on supporting immigrant founders, especially those already educated or employed in our country, in all ways possible. This is a great way to create a presence on the East Coast and create an unfair advantage in the market for everyone" said Manan Mehta, Founding Partner of Unshackled.
 
Unshackled is offering early-stage (“friends and family”) investment and access to their premier Silicon Valley ecosystem. In this structure, startup teams can raise their early rounds from other investors, in addition to, or instead of Unshackled. More on the terms can be read here.  
 
Without programs like GEIR and Unshackled allowing international students to remain in the U.S. after they graduate, they would have started their companies elsewhere or not at all.
 
For more information about the GEIR program, or to apply to participate, go to http://vdc.umb.edu/geir/.
 
 
About Unshackled
Unshackled is an innovative fund designed to extend the entrepreneurship opportunity to an untapped pool of entrepreneurs in our country — immigrant founders on work visas. By changing the way venture funds deploy capital, Unshackled is the only fund in the country enabling top immigrant entrepreneurs at the earliest stage possible. This unique model allows us to retain and invest in brilliant founders on visas (H1-B, TN, OPT, E3, H4, etc.).
 
Unshackled is supported by 80+ highly influential investors, including Brad Feld, First Round Capital, Jerry Yang and Laurene Powell Jobs. The fund has made over a dozen investments in nearly 30 founders born in 6 different continents. For more information on the investors, investments and team, please visit us at www.unshackled.co
 
About the Venture Development Center
The VDC opened in 2009 with one simple goal in mind: to make it easier for exceptional entrepreneurial teams with important ideas - no matter what university they attended - to take the strategic step from their university setting to a more commercial environment where they can obtain the data required to secure investment and launch their companies. Today, we are proud to be launching some of the best startup companies anywhere, and to be stimulating innovation and entrepreneurship at the University of Massachusetts. To learn more, visit http://vdc.umb.edu/.
 
About UMass Boston
The University of Massachusetts Boston is deeply rooted in the city’s history, yet poised to address the challenges of the future. Recognized for innovative research, metropolitan Boston’s public university offers its diverse student population both an intimate learning environment and the rich experience of a great American city. UMass Boston’s 11 colleges and graduate schools serve nearly 17,000 students while engaging local and global constituents through academic programs, research centers, and public service. To learn more, visit www.umb.edu.
 

Contact Information

Patrick Czapla

PR for Unshackled

VSC and Wareness.io

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