You've got an offer in your inbox and a deadline to answer it by. Before you look at the equity line, understand what you're actually being asked to give up, because the percentage is rarely the whole story. Business Chain tracks 186 accelerator and grant programmes right now. 36 of them take equity. 112 take none at all. That split is the first thing worth knowing before you compare anything else.
Four Things, Not One
Founders read an offer and go straight to one number: the equity stake. That's the mistake. A programme can take up to four things from you, and three of them never show up on the slide about dilution.
- Equity, the direct stake. gener8tor Investment Accelerator takes 7.5% for $100,000. Entrepreneurs Roundtable Accelerator takes 6% via a $150K Post-Money SAFE, with batches open W'27 and S'27.
- A tuition fee charged in equity, separate from any investment the programme actually makes, sometimes only triggered if they later decide to invest in you. This is a second number buried in the agreement, not in the headline.
- Your time in person. Grindstone Accelerator charges nothing and takes no equity, but a free cheque still costs you weeks you're not building.
- Relocation. Moving a team for a batch costs runway even when the programme itself is equity-free, and most founders don't budget for it until they're already committed.
Equity vs Grant, On the Same Page
Run the dollar math before you compare a percentage to a cheque. gener8tor Investment Accelerator writes $100,000 for 7.5% equity, which implies a roughly $1.33 million post-money valuation. The Arkansas Business and Technology Accelerator Grant Program offers up to $250,000 at the programme level, or $50,000 to $100,000 as an SBIR match, with zero equity taken. On cash alone, Arkansas beats gener8tor by $150,000. On ownership, Arkansas beats it by 7.5 points you never give back. There is no frame where the equity deal is cheaper in dollars, only a frame where it buys something a grant doesn't.
Line up the rest of the catalogue the same way. Alchemist Accelerator pays a $25,000 stipend for roughly 5% equity, negotiable. Conector Startup Accelerator takes 4-7% equity for programme and services combined. Against those, PepsiCo Greenhouse Accelerator hands out a $20,000 equity-free grant with up to $100,000 more for winners. FSF Accelerator Grant gives $50,000, also equity-free. Google for Startups Accelerator gives equity-free mentorship and technical support, no cash and no stake. Put the two lists side by side yourself: Business Chain's equity programmes against its grant programmes, before you sign anything.
Questions That Matter More Than the Percentage
- Does the programme hold pro-rata rights into your next round, and on what terms? Missouri Technology Corporation IDEA Fund structures its deals as equity or convertible debt, with terms that vary case by case. Ask what 'varies' means for your specific round before you accept.
- What happens if you never raise? A Post-Money SAFE like Entrepreneurs Roundtable Accelerator's $150K/6% converts when you do raise, which means the dilution is locked in before you know your own valuation. If you don't raise on schedule, ask what the instrument does instead.
- Can the programme block a later round? Look for consent rights or most-favored-nation clauses that require their sign-off before new investors can come in. A programme that lists terms as 'seed investment plus mentorship' without a published percentage, the way GSF Accelerator does, needs a term sheet in hand before you commit, not after.
When Equity Is Worth More Than a Bigger Grant
Equity-taking programmes cost percentage points you never get back, so they only make sense when what they add beyond the cheque would cost more to buy on your own. Entrepreneurs Roundtable Accelerator's $150K/6% Post-Money SAFE is only a good deal if the intros and access it comes with would otherwise take you months to build. If raising $150,000 solo would cost you six months and a worse network, 6% is cheap. If what you actually need is capital and nothing else, take the grant. Shuttleworth Foundation Fellowship pays $275,000 per Fellow per year in project funding plus a fellowship grant, and FSF Accelerator Grant pays $50,000, both without touching your cap table. Neither buys you a network. If you already have one, that's the better deal every time.