Bialecki, Klaviyo\u2019s chief executive, and Hallen, Klaviyo\u2019s chief strategy officer, launched their firm in 2012 while Hallen was in his final semester pursuing his MBA at the MIT Sloan School of Management. They met up daily at the Martin Trust Center, and developed strong bonds with other startup founders there. <\/p>\n
\u201cI thought, man, this is what entrepreneurship should feel like,\u201d recalled Bialecki, whose software firm is now worth $5 billion on the stock market. \u201cIt\u2019s hard. You\u2019re figuring things out. But also, you\u2019ve got other people that are doing it [to collaborate].\u201d<\/p>\n
Now, as concerns persist about Massachusetts\u2019 competitive position in the venture capital and startup world, Bialecki and Hallen are hoping to pay it forward with their $6 million pledge to help early-stage startups in the Delta v summer program. The infusion will expand the program\u2019s maximum stipend to $75,000 per startup team from $20,000, starting this year. Participating MIT students also get an extra personal stipend, currently around $9,000 per student for this summer. (The funds are not loans or equity investments, but grants without strings attached.)<\/p>\n
The donation will also help support more customizing, to better tailor the program for each entrepreneur, as well as a broadening of its professional network, to support mentorship from industry veterans for the participating startups. <\/p>\n
\u201cYou do have to have an idea but it\u2019s actually not the hard part,\u201d Bialecki said. \u201cThe hard part is getting access to folks that really have been through it, that get it. You always want mentors that have seen some things you haven\u2019t seen.\u201d<\/p>\n
In particular, Bialecki said he\u2019s encouraged by the freedom that AI provides startup founders, by making it easier to develop software without necessarily needing a deep bench of coders and engineers. He said he considers now to be one of the greatest times \u201cto build in the software industry.\u201d<\/p>\n
Bill Aulet<\/a>, the Martin Trust center\u2019s managing director, said the gift from Hallen and Bialecki represents the largest donation to accelerator program in its 15-year history. Aulet launched the program, under a different name, to help ensure more promising entrepreneurs stuck with their MIT studies and stayed around Cambridge rather than moving to the West Coast. He envisioned the program as MIT\u2019s answer to Y Combinator, the famous San Francisco startup accelerator that has Boston-area roots.<\/p>\n The Delta v program is competitive: Only about one-fifth of the teams that apply, or around 100 students per year, get accepted. Nearly two-thirds of participating teams end up successfully raising funds from outside investors as well, Aulet said. He expects to accept 12 teams this year, or about half of the usual amount, to ensure the new updates to the program roll out smoothly. <\/p>\n Aulet is revamping the program with the help of Ana Bakshi, the trust\u2019s executive director, brought in several months ago to oversee the program. He said the program\u2019s main focus will be how to take a business idea and commercialize it, to find paying customers, and have an impact.<\/p>\n Klaviyo, which specializes in marketing technology, is the sort of success story that Aulet would like to see Delta v participants emulate.<\/p>\n \u201cThese are two guys who went against the grain,\u201d Aulet said. \u201cThey executed, stayed in Boston, and built a great company. … If we can get a few more people like them, which I\u2019m sure we will out of this, it makes the world a better place, it makes Boston a better place, it makes MIT better.\u201d <\/p>\n Jon Chesto can be reached at jon.chesto@globe.com<\/a>. Follow him @jonchesto<\/a>.<\/p>\n