As we wrap up our Catalyst Autumn '25 cohort, we're thrilled to share the incredible progress our founders have made over the past ten weeks - and to announce that applications for Catalyst Spring '26 are now open until 12 noon on February 17th.
Three Tracks, One Mission
Catalyst is designed to meet founders wherever they are in their startup journey, with dedicated support that evolves as founders progress. All founders begin with Build, a core programme of sessions guiding participants through identifying real problems, understanding customers and markets, and developing solutions that genuinely meet user needs. This foundational stage ensures everyone starts with a clear vision and validated direction.
Founders making tangible progress can then advance to the Grow track, designed for those pursuing sustainable growth or actively experimenting with scaling their business. This track focuses on practical acquisition strategies, business model development, and the real-world challenges of growing an early-stage company.
Founders not progressing to the Grow track, including those who need to pivot early or require more time to refine their approach, will be offered continued support through 1:1 coaching with Visiting Entrepreneurs via the Refine track. This ensures that when their company is ready to take the next step, Techscaler will be ready to support them again.
For founders aiming to raise significant early-stage capital, the Raise track offers advanced workshops and tailored support. Acceptance is based on ambition, traction, and alignment between the business model and funding strategy, with Entrepreneurs in Residence providing guidance on strengthening investment propositions and preparing for funder engagement.
A Cohort of Committed Founders
This autumn, 44 companies completed the Catalyst accelerator, representing a 68% completion rate across both the Grow and Raise tracks. These founders attended workshops, challenged their assumptions, validated their ideas, and made tangible progress on building their startups.
The feedback speaks volumes. We achieved a Net Promoter Score of 78 and an average rating of 4.6 out of 5 across Grow sessions, with founders consistently praising the quality of content, speakers, and peer engagement. One founder captured it perfectly: "The session was incredibly insightful! I especially loved the founder's tips and the discussions on revenue modelling. It really emphasised the importance of tracking and measuring what truly matters."
What Made This Cohort Special
From day one, founders dove into the fundamentals of building an early-stage tech company. Through interactive workshops led by founders and industry experts, participants worked on everything from customer discovery using Jobs-to-Be-Done methodology to developing revenue models and preparing for investment.
The breakout sessions proved particularly valuable, creating space for founders to learn from each other's experiences. As one participant shared: "Loved the opportunity to engage with other founders and learn from their experience - also very much appreciate that when we went into the breakout rooms in Zoom, people were actually there, engaging and interactive."
Our Raise Track founders received tailored support as they prepared to secure investment, with Entrepreneurs in Residence paired with 13 companies to offer practical feedback and guidance. The results are encouraging: founders supported through Techscaler's High Growth workstream have collectively raised £61.4 million year-to-date.
Real Founders, Real Insights
Throughout the programme, founders benefited from hearing directly from entrepreneurs who've navigated similar challenges. In particular, the Investor Bootcamp session, which featured a fireside chat with seasoned founders who had successfully raised VC was well-received, with one founder noting: "Excellent standard of guest speakers, in particular the fireside chat part was outstanding."
Whether learning about B2B sales processes, pricing structures, or the realities of early-stage validation, founders appreciated the practical, experience-driven approach. "Great expert - great knowledge and expertise," said one participant. "Showed that early market research and customer discovery activity, to know the market, define problem and find problem-solution fit, is still all a part of the sales process!"
For many founders juggling day-to-day responsibilities, the flexibility to take part through session recordings alongside live sessions proved essential. "I really appreciated the programme and the flexibility to engage via recordings alongside day-to-day responsibilities," shared one founder. "It has been genuinely helpful in sharpening focus and execution."
Learning and Evolving
At Techscaler we believe in continuous improvement, and the Spring '26 cohort will benefit from several key updates informed by feedback from previous participants.
We've made the decision to remove watch parties and hybrid delivery elements, which resulted in fluctuating attendance and inconsistent regional experiences. Instead, we're doubling down on what founders told us matters most: meaningful in-person connections. The new programme includes networking days, cohort mixers, Visiting Entrepreneur drop-ins, and focused co-working sessions—all designed to build stronger founder communities and provide hands-on support when it's needed most.
We've also streamlined how we deliver the programme. All content and resources will now be accessible through the CodeBase platform, creating a more centralised and efficient experience for founders. And we've clarified the programme tracks to make progression clearer, with dedicated support pathways for founders at different stages of their journey.
These changes reflect what we heard from our Autumn '25 cohort and our commitment to creating the most valuable experience possible for early-stage founders.
Looking Ahead to Spring '26
We're now preparing to welcome our next cohort of ambitious founders. Catalyst Spring '26 will run from March 3rd to May 5th, 2026, offering the same intensive, hands-on approach to building early-stage tech startups.
The programme structure remains focused on action over theory. Founders will work through the Build phase covering problem, market, and customer discovery, before progressing to the Grow track for those making tangible progress. Founders not yet ready to move into Grow can continue in the Refine track, where time, support, and space are available to pause, pivot, and sharpen their ideas. The Raise track will continue to support founders seeking significant early-stage capital, with applications opening in early April.
Sessions take place on Tuesday mornings (10am-1pm), with Raise Track adding Thursday morning sessions between weeks seven and ten. All workshops are recorded for founders to revisit, and the programme continues to emphasise in-person touchpoints, including networking days and cohort mixers.
Join Us
If you're an early-stage founder ready to make meaningful progress on your startup, we'd love to hear from you. Catalyst is funded by the Scottish Government with no cost or equity stake involved, and is available to Techscaler members.
To be eligible, you should be working on your startup for more than eight hours per week and have either developed a prototype or MVP that's been shared with potential customers, or registered your company. Completion of Techscaler Discovery is strongly advised before joining.
Applications close at 12 noon on February 17th. Find out more here and take the next step in your founder journey.
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