Santa Cruz Works

What Santa Cruz Works does

Santa Cruz Works is a nonprofit organization founded in 2019 that operates as the central connective platform for the Santa Cruz County innovation ecosystem. It links six stakeholder groups — entrepreneurs, employers, students, investors, civic leaders, and community builders — through a portfolio of recurring programs: the Santa Cruz Accelerates accelerator (now in its 6th cohort), Santa Cruz Launchpad (annual student startup competition and job fair), CEO Works luncheons (monthly executive peer forums), the Internship Opportunity Program (deploying up to $100,000 in $10,000 internship grants), a free Jobs Board, and ongoing New Tech meetups and community events. The organization explicitly does not develop proprietary technology; its offering is human-orchestrated programming and community access rather than a software product.

The business model is mission-driven nonprofit: revenue is generated through annual membership and sponsorship programs (recurring in nature), supplemented by multi-year institutional grants (e.g., CMTC funding for three consecutive years) and in-kind support from academic and venture partners. Membership pricing is not publicly disclosed. Distribution is regional, focused on Santa Cruz County and the broader tri-county area (Santa Cruz, Monterey, San Benito), with named co-production partners including UC Santa Cruz (CIED, Baskin Engineering, Career Success, QB3), Cabrillo College, Santa Cruz Ventures, HawkTower, and Reservoir VC/Farms. The organization reports serving 600+ local tech businesses, drawing 1,500+ event attendees and 8,000+ newsletter subscribers in 2025, and supporting 50+ accelerator founders cumulatively.

Operationally, Santa Cruz Works runs with 1-10 employees and is led by Executive Director Doug Erickson and Program Director Malina Long, with governance from a board of directors. Headquartered in Santa Cruz, California, it positions itself around a stated economic thesis: Santa Cruz County's $30B+ tech business base and 10,222+ daily Highway 17 commuters represent untapped economic potential that better ecosystem connectivity can unlock, citing a 6.0x local job multiplier from innovation employment as the underlying macro case for its programming.

Name

Santa Cruz Works

Legal name

Santa Cruz Works

Website

https://santacruzworks.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2019

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Santa Cruz Works is a nonprofit community platform founded in 2019 that connects entrepreneurs, employers, students, investors, and civic leaders in Santa Cruz County through an accelerator, job fairs, CEO networking, internship grants, and recurring events.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Startup Ecosystem Services

NAICS

Business, Professional, Labor, Political, and Similar Organizations (8139), Convention and Trade Show Organizers (56192)

akta.pro primary industry

Youth Business Incubators & Accelerators (EDAMAHAC)

akta.pro secondary industries

Corporate Accelerators & Startup Programs (FSANAHAD), Entrepreneurship, Innovation & Venture Creation Centers (EDAHAHAH), Corporate Foundations & CSR Grantmaking (BPAGAKAC)

Keywords

• Startup ecosystem
• Entrepreneurship support
• Accelerator programs
• Innovation community
• Founder networking

Headquarters

HQ city

Santa Cruz

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Membership and Sponsorship: Annual membership and sponsorship programs that provide companies access to the network, events, and visibility within the Santa Cruz innovation ecosystem. Companies become partners or sponsors to connect with talent, investors, and other businesses.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Santa Cruz Works operates a regional innovation and entrepreneurship ecosystem in Santa Cruz County, California, providing accelerator programs (Santa Cruz Accelerates), student competitions and job fairs (Santa Cruz Launchpad), executive networking (CEO Works), an internship program, a jobs board, and community events such as New Tech. The nonprofit connects entrepreneurs, employers, investors, students, and civic leaders through curated programming and convenings.

Product overview

Santa Cruz Works is a nonprofit organization that operates as a community platform connecting entrepreneurs, employers, students, investors, civic leaders, and community builders in Santa Cruz County. The organization offers a suite of programs including Santa Cruz Accelerates (accelerator), Santa Cruz Launchpad (student startup competition and job fair), CEO Works (executive luncheons), the Internship Opportunity Program, a Jobs Board, and regular events. These programs work together to support the local innovation ecosystem by providing mentorship, funding pathways, talent connections, and community visibility for founders and growing companies.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Santa Cruz Accelerates: Accelerator program for early-stage entrepreneurs along the Central California Coast, providing mentorship, workshops, and pitch competition opportunities.
• Santa Cruz Launchpad
• CEO Works
• Santa Cruz Ventures

Products and services

• Santa Cruz Accelerates
• Santa Cruz Launchpad
• CEO Works
• Internship Opportunity Program
• Jobs Board
• Membership

Quantifiable outcome

• 50+ early-stage founders connected with mentors and capital through Santa Cruz Accelerates
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers14 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• SBDCminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSmall Business Development Center partner providing additional resources and support to accelerator participants.
• UC Santa Cruz - Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurial Development (CIED)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-producer of Santa Cruz Launchpad with UCSC. CIED Faculty Director Dr. Manel Camps leads the student startup competition component.
• Cabrillo CollegeminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerEducational partner for Santa Cruz Launchpad, supporting student participation in the startup pitch competition.
• Baskin EngineeringminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerUCSC Baskin School of Engineering partner for the Launchpad event and broader ecosystem support.
• Innovation & Business Engagement HubminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerUCSC partner organization supporting startup ecosystem initiatives.
• QB3minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCalifornia Institute for Quantitative Biosciences partner supporting biotech innovation.
• Career Success (UCSC)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerUCSC Career Success team partner for job fair component of Santa Cruz Launchpad.
• California Manufacturing Technology Consulting (CMTC)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCMTC awarded Santa Cruz Works funding for the 3rd consecutive year to support manufacturers in the tri-county region. SCW is a member of California's Manufacturing Network (CMN).
• Roadmap 4 Innovation (R4I)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerNew nonprofit continuing a 33-year legacy of technical assistance for California manufacturers. R4I has ETP funding to help manufacturers offset workforce training costs.
• Innovation NorwayminorGTM or Marketing PartnerHead of AI and Venture Capital Alex Bergo cited SCW's New Tech as 'Best regular networking event in Santa Cruz.'

Scale indicators12 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• MassChallenge: Global nonprofit accelerator running equity-free programs for early-stage startups. Directly comparable to SCW's Santa Cruz Accelerates program in mission and structure.
• 1871: Chicago-based nonprofit tech hub and incubator that provides workspace, programming, and community for entrepreneurs. Closely comparable as a regional innovation hub that convenes founders, employers, and investors through recurring programming and events.
• TechTown Detroit: Nonprofit tech hub and business accelerator serving Detroit's innovation economy with founder services and workforce programs. Comparable as a city-level nonprofit combining accelerator, employer, and workforce programming.
• Nashville Entrepreneur Center: Regional nonprofit that convenes founders, executives, and investors through programming and events. Comparable as a city-level innovation hub with accelerator, CEO peer groups, and employer engagement.
• Opportunity Hub (OHUB): National ecosystem builder connecting underrepresented founders with capital, talent, and corporate partners. Comparable to SCW in its focus on community-led ecosystem development and partnership-driven programming.

Broad incumbents

• Techstars: Global accelerator network operating in many regions with mentor-driven programs and demo days. Comparable as a large-scale accelerator operator, though broader in geography and corporate sponsor base than SCW.
• Founder Institute: Global pre-seed accelerator running distributed programs across many cities. Comparable in operating cohort-based accelerator programming, though more standardized and global than SCW.
• Plug and Play Tech Center: Large global innovation platform running industry-specific accelerator programs and corporate venture partnerships. Comparable in its accelerator-plus-corporate-sponsor model, but operates at much greater scale than SCW.

Others

• Bay Area Council Economic Institute: Regional economic development and policy research organization covering the broader Bay Area. Comparable as an economic development convener focused on the same Northern California innovation corridor where SCW operates.

Regional players

• CIC (Cambridge Innovation Center): Operator of innovation campuses combining workspace, venture services, and community programming across multiple US and international cities. Comparable as an ecosystem operator, though primarily a workspace and venture services provider rather than a nonprofit.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/SantaCruzWorks
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/santa-cruz-works
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCz5b0-0wLF6X7g5N0Z5vCZw
• Instagraminstagram.com/santacruzworks
• Facebookfacebook.com/santacruzworks

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Santa Cruz Works