Thrive
Intelligence Ventures to launch accelerator program
The initiative, which will begin its first cohort in September, is a 10-week program.
For Intelligence Ventures founder and general partner Doug Nissinoff, launching an accelerator program made sense.
The Lakewood Ranch-based venture capital firm focuses on artificial intelligence powered healthcare startups. There are four key verticals: biotechnology and pharma tools, medical devices, diagnostics and healthcare software as a service.
Nissinoff began to work on the effort in February 2023 and officially launched the fund in May 2025.
Since its establishment, the company has invested in five startups. While the organization has received over 700 applications, it has only supported less than one percent of these companies.
“We’ve met so many great founders that we really believed in,” Nissinoff said. “It was just a matter of them needing that extra oomph.”
The accelerator will begin its first cohort, a 10-week program, in September. He added that Intelligence Ventures is targeting to work with 10 startups.
Nissinoff hopes to operate three cohorts per year.
The kickoff will be based in the Tampa Bay area. Following the introduction, founders will participate in online programming for nine weeks.
To culminate the effort, these individuals will travel to New York City for a demo day and pitch their businesses to members of Intelligence Ventures’ investor network. Many are doctors, exited founders and medical technology executives.
He explained that the investors will have a hands-on role in the accelerator program. They will teach modules.
“We’ve already done diligence on a lot of these startups,” Nissinoff said. “What we are realizing is that they each have their own individual needs and there’s plenty of overlap. So, we’re doing our best to look to see what needs to be done.”
Content will focus on regulatory strategy, marketing and other topics. Additionally, sponsors such as banking and accounting providers will participate and help educate the founders.
“We invest in companies from the U.S. and Canada,” he added. “I think what we are trying to do is engage the Tampa Bay community a little bit more.”
Many of the founders that Intelligence Ventures works with have not visited the region. This initiative could introduce them to local networking and funding opportunities.
Each startup enrolled in the accelerator program will receive a $25,000 investment from Intelligence Ventures. The company plans to invest an additional $25,000 in top performers after demo day.
The healthcare profession has played a key role in Nissinoff’s career. Once he received a Master’s degree in biotechnology from Georgetown University, the entrepreneur moved to New York City and worked in investor relations for publicly traded biotech and pharma companies.
Eventually, Nissinoff began to consult for a medical startup and learned more about early stage organizations. He has collaborated with over 25 young companies. This inspired Nissinoff to launch his own venture fund.
