Silicon Valley SBDC at San Jose State University

What Silicon Valley SBDC at San Jose State University does

Silicon Valley SBDC at San Jose State University is a nonprofit business advisory service hosted by SJSU as part of the Northern California Small Business Development Center (NorCal SBDC) network. Founded in 1983, it provides free, confidential one-on-one advising, group training workshops, and webinars to small businesses and entrepreneurs across the Silicon Valley region, covering startup, growth, and transition/sale stages. Specialized programs include a Finance Center, Technology Futures Group (TFG), Restaurant Program, and international trade initiatives. The underlying technology stack is an online advising platform with virtual meeting capabilities and webinar delivery, plus the SBDCIntel newsletter subscription system; the organization is not a software product company and exposes no proprietary AI or data assets.

The organization's revenue model is grant-funded rather than commercial: services are provided at no cost to clients, and all advisory offerings, training events, and resources are free. Annual program funding totals approximately $11.4M, drawn from a federal cooperative agreement with the U.S. Small Business Administration (50% federal share, approximately $4.89M) matched by the California Governor's Office of Business and Economic Development (GO-Biz), plus supplemental federal grants for SSBCI Technical Assistance ($760,800), FAST Partnership ($400,000), and SBA PRIME ($450,000). Customer outcomes in calendar year 2020 included 5,120 new jobs created, $514.9M in client capital infusion, 16,342 businesses receiving one-on-one advising, and 83,916 advising hours delivered across the NorCal network.

The go-to-market is community-led and event-driven: clients self-enroll through the svsbdc.org website, and outreach runs through organic social media (Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn), the SBDCIntel email newsletter, partner referrals (PTAC, SCORE, WBC, VBOC), and corporate sponsors such as Comerica Bank, Helcim, and Marble Bridge Funding Group. Distribution is regional, with delivery via in-person advising at the SJSU location, virtual sessions, and self-serve webinars. The organization holds America's SBDC national accreditation and operates with a small core staff (3+) supported by a network of 20+ volunteer and part-time advisors.

Name

Silicon Valley SBDC at San Jose State University

Legal name

Northern California Small Business Development Center Network

Website

https://svsbdc.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1983

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Silicon Valley SBDC at San Jose State University is a nonprofit business advisory service providing free, confidential one-on-one consulting, training workshops, and webinars to small businesses and entrepreneurs across the Silicon Valley region.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Small Business Advisory Services

NAICS

Educational Support Services (61171)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Small Business & Entrepreneurship Community Education (EDAAAFAK)

akta.pro secondary industry

SBA/USDA Government-Backed Loan Intermediation (FSAEAEAI)

Keywords

• Small business advising
• Business consulting services
• Entrepreneurship training
• Startup mentoring
• Finance advisory

Headquarters

HQ city

San Jose, California

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Government Grant Funding: Funded through cooperative agreements with U.S. Small Business Administration (50% federal share) and grants from California Governor's Office of Business and Economic Development. Total program cost of $9,776,108 for SBDC program, plus additional funding for SSBCI ($760,800), FAST ($400,000), and SBA PRIME ($450,000) programs.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Silicon Valley SBDC delivers free, confidential one-on-one business advising, group workshops, and webinars to small business owners and entrepreneurs in Northern California. Services span the full business lifecycle—from startup formation and growth to transition/sale—and include specialized programs such as the Finance Center (capital access) and Tech Futures Group (technology commercialization). All services are provided at no cost to clients and funded through federal and state government grants.

Product overview

Silicon Valley SBDC at San Jose State University is a nonprofit business advisory organization, not a technology product company. It operates as part of the Northern California SBDC network and provides free consulting, advising, and training services to small businesses. The organization offers 1:1 advising, webinars, workshops, and specialized programs including a Finance Center and Tech Futures Group. These are service offerings, not packaged software products.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• 1-on-1 Business Advising
• Finance Center (Get Funded)
• Webinars and Workshops
• Import/Export Initiative (International Trade)
• Restaurant Program
• Tech Futures Group
• Startup Advising
• Growing Business Advising
• Transition Business Advising

Quantifiable outcome

• 5,120 new jobs created in 2020
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers10 records

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered supporting, flagship and core.

• Project EquitysupportingStrategic or Co-development Partner · 24 September 2026National organization promoting employee ownership as business exit strategy. Works with business owners on succession planning and employee buyouts. Co-hosts employee ownership webinars with SBDC.
• Amazon Web Services (AWS)flagshipGTM or Marketing Partner · 16 July 2026Cloud computing partner for AI pitch competition. Provides up to $25,000 in AWS partner funding for AI/cloud solutions through the GenAI Pitch Competition.
• EMUMBAflagshipTechnology or Integration · 16 July 2026AWS Advanced Tier Services Partner helping SMBs build and scale with AI and cloud technologies on AWS. Co-presenter of GenAI Pitch Competition.
• San Jose State University Research FoundationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerHost organization for Silicon Valley SBDC. SJSU faculty and staff contribute to the institution's mission as a responsive state institution.
• Cal Poly Humboldt Sponsored Programs FoundationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNetwork headquarters for Northern California SBDC. Operates as the business advisory service organization for the NorCal SBDC network.
• Comerica BanksupportingGTM or Marketing PartnerCorporate sponsor providing financial services expertise. Dedicated to helping small businesses succeed with 173+ years of banking experience.
• HelcimsupportingGTM or Marketing PartnerCorporate sponsor - payments company with mission to be the world's most loved payments company, offering affordable payment solutions for small businesses.
• NorCal PTACsupportingChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorNonprofit program helping businesses sell products and services to government agencies. Provides free counseling, bid matching, training, and networking.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• SCORE: National nonprofit network of volunteer business mentors offering free 1:1 advising and workshops to small businesses. SCORE is the closest direct peer to SBDC in mission, audience, and delivery model, also partially funded by the SBA.
• Small Business Development Corporation of Oregon (Business Oregon SBDC): Statewide SBDC network in Oregon offering free advising and training to entrepreneurs under the same national SBDC umbrella. Highly comparable model and target customer base.
• Michigan SBDC: Statewide SBDC network providing free business consulting and training to Michigan small businesses under the same national SBA-funded program structure.
• Los Angeles Regional SBDC: Another regional SBDC within the California SBDC network offering the same SBA-funded small business advising model to Southern California entrepreneurs. Directly comparable in service offering, funding structure, and customer base.
• NorCal PTAC (Procurement Technical Assistance Center): NorCal SBDC's referral partner for government contracting advising. Provides free counseling, bid matching, and training on government procurement—closely aligned with SBDC's mission and an explicit channel partner in the data.
• Veterans Business Outreach Center (VBOC): SBA-funded program delivering business training, consulting, and mentorship to veteran entrepreneurs. Same SBA cooperative-agreement funding model and analogous free-advisory service design.
• Women's Business Centers (WBC) Program: SBA-funded network of WBCs providing training, mentoring, and capital access specifically to women entrepreneurs. Closely comparable federal small business advisory program with similar funding mechanism.

Regional players

• Business Development Bank of Canada (BDC): Canadian government-backed business development bank providing advisory services, capital, and growth support to SMBs. Comparable in mission and public-mandate structure, but serves a different geography.

Emerging players

• Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses: Philanthropically funded program offering education, mentoring, and capital access to underserved SMBs. Comparable target audience and education-driven model, but private-funded and selective rather than universally free.

Others

• Small Business Majority: Small business advocacy and research organization that engages on policy and resource access for SMBs. Comparable small business stakeholder focus and policy advocacy role, though not a direct advising peer.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/SiliconSan
• Facebookfacebook.com/SVSBDC1
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/svsbdc-at-sjsu

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 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 Silicon Valley SBDC at San Jose State University