Voronezh region now has its first IT project accelerator

Voronezh some 500km south of Moscow is expected to host GlassHouse, the first venture accelerator for IT projects in the entire Russian ?Black Earth? agricultural region along the border with Ukraine

The sizable agricultural and industrial region of Voronezh, some 500km south of Moscow, is expected to host GlassHouse, the first venture accelerator for IT projects in the entire Russian ?Black Earth? region along the border with Ukraine, reported East-West Digital News, the first English-language resource covering developments in Russia?s digital industries, citing a source in Abireg, a Russian business news agency. The accelerator will reportedly feature a premium-class office center and is designed to foster the rapid development of high-tech start-ups, providing access to ?a partner network of 50 VC funds and angel investors with an aggregate investment capacity of more than $2 billion.? Services will include business mentoring, a start-up development primer, professional product development and marketing, the preparation of a business model and growth strategy, assistance in doing paperwork to apply for funding, etc. The new IT accelerator is expected to join the Voronezh region?s broader IT cluster development project, which was approved this past October, and will seek backing from an array of small business support organizations at the federal level...