MassChallenge was founded in 2009 with a singular purpose – to make it as easy as possible for entrepreneurs to launch and grow new ventures.
MassChallenge co-founders John Harthorne and Akhil Nigam were working as strategy consultants at Bain & Company during the global economic recession in 2008. It was at this time that John and Akhil envisioned a creative, inspired society in which everyone is empowered and has the resources to maximize their impact.
"Over the past decade, MassChallenge has played a vital role in strengthening local and global innovation economies. We have helped entrepreneurs from more than 54 countries solve some of the world’s massive problems. From a scrappy startup founded in Boston during the height of the global economic recession by two idealistic entrepreneurs to a network of nine accelerators in seven locations around the globe, MassChallenge and our 2,458 startups have had a transformative impact on the world."
- Siobhan Dullea, CEO of MassChallenge