Tech Incubator Sends Off Inaugural Group

A tech business incubator has "hatched" its inaugural group of six companies. The startups spent 20 weeks at AlphaLab, which is based on Pittsburgh's South Side. AlphaLab Director Jim Jen says the goal during that time was for the businesses to come up with a test version of their product so that they could get feedback, and begin to attract potential investors. Jen says he thinks the six businesses were largely successful in meeting that goal.

Jen says AlphaLab won't change much for the next group, but administrators did learn a few lessons. One was that 20 weeks can pass pretty quickly, so it's important to get companies that are really ready to go through the program. Jen also says the new group of companies may face a greater challenge finding investors due to the state of the economy.

AlphaLab companies get office space, a $25,000 investment, and access to local tech advisers. Each week, they also get instruction on various business topics, like accounting, payroll, legal issues, and pitching to potential investors. The next group of companies will begin the program in January. More information is available at alphalab.org.