Home › Contact Us Become a SPARK client NameThis field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.How can we help you?This is the first step in confirming eligibility and ensuring you’re connected with the best resource. Select the option that best fits. Not sure? Pick the closest one — we’ll make sure you land in the right place. Help me choose What’s the difference between Entrepreneurial Services and Capital?Entrepreneurial Services is free, hands-on support for early-stage companies. Capital is direct investment funding. You can be part of both — many ES founders eventually apply for Capital.What’s the difference between Entrepreneurial Services and Small Business Support?Entrepreneurial Services is for tech and innovation-based startups with high-growth potential, primarily (but not exclusively) based in Ann Arbor or Ypsilanti. Small Business Support is open to any business located in southeast Michigan, in any industry, at any stage.I think I’m between two options.Pick whichever feels closest — our team will make sure you end up in the right place. I’m starting or building a tech companyEarly-stage tech or innovation startup with a scalable product, looking for mentorship, coworking, expert connections, and a path to funding.Entrepreneurial services I’m seeking investment for my startupTech startup with high-growth potential, actively raising a round alongside private investors (angels, VCs), looking for a co-investor.SPARK Capital I’m growing, relocating, or expanding a businessEstablished company considering expanding, relocating, or setting up operations in the Ann Arbor–Ypsilanti region.Business Development I run or want to start a small businessA local or small-scale business in any industry. Not necessarily tech — just an owner looking for guidance, resources, and support.Small Business Support I’m looking to work in the Ann Arbor areaJob seeker, recent grad, or professional exploring career opportunities in the Ann Arbor–Ypsilanti region.Talent resources I’m not sure — I just want to talk to someoneTell us a little about what you’re working on, and we’ll point you in the right direction.General inquiry 1. Our startup program is funded to serve companies based in Ann Arbor or Ypsilanti — where are you located?* Ann Arbor Ypsilanti Outside both Good news — while our most intensive services are designed for companies based in Ann Arbor or Ypsilanti, we may still be able to help. Tell us more below, and our team will follow up. 2. SPARK provides services for tech and innovation-based businesses. Does that describe you?* Yes Mostly Not really We focus on tech and innovation-based businesses, so Small Business Support might be a better fit — they work with businesses in any industry. Take me to Small Business Support Continue with Entrepreneurial Services anyway 3. Where are you in the journey?* Pre-revenue Under $1M revenue $1M–$5M revenue Over $5M revenue At over $5M in revenue, it sounds like you may be a stronger fit for our Business Development team. Take me to Business Development No, continue with Entrepreneurial Services 4. How much capital has the company raised?* Under $5M Over $5M At over $5M raised, it sounds like you may be a stronger fit for our Business Development team. Take me to Business Development No, continue with Entrepreneurial Services Are you based in Michigan, with at least 50% of your team here?* Yes No SPARK Capital invests in Michigan-based companies with most of their team here — this one is outside our scope. A few resources that may help: Y Combinator Startup Directory National Venture Capital Association Are you actively raising a round right now, or building toward one?* Yes, actively raising Not yet Sounds like you may be earlier in the journey. Our Entrepreneurial Services team works with pre-seed founders to help build toward a raise — mentorship, product development, and investor connections. Want us to connect you there instead? Yes, connect me to ES No, continue with Capital application Do you have private investors involved — angels, angel groups, or VCs?* Yes No SPARK Capital co-invests alongside private capital — we’re not able to be your sole funder. This isn’t a hurdle; it’s how we stretch our impact. If you’re still building your investor network, our Entrepreneurial Services team can help you get there. Yes, route me to ES No, I’d like to continue Is your business (or planned business) a for-profit venture?* Yes No — it’s a nonprofit There are no wrong answers on the rest of this form — revenue, size, and stage won’t disqualify you. This just helps us connect you with the right support. Our small business program is built for for-profit businesses. For nonprofit support, here are a few resources that may help: Michigan Nonprofit Association Nonprofit Enterprise at Work (NEW) SCORE Ann Arbor First name*Last name*Title*Email* MobilePhoneCompany NameWebsitePlease include https:// Street AddressCity / Region*State*AlabamaAlaskaArizonaArkansasCaliforniaColoradoConnecticutDelawareDistrict of ColumbiaFloridaGeorgiaHawaiiIdahoIllinoisIndianaIowaKansasKentuckyLouisianaMaineMarylandMassachusettsMichiganMinnesotaMississippiMissouriMontanaNebraskaNevadaNew HampshireNew JerseyNew MexicoNew YorkNorth CarolinaNorth DakotaOhioOklahomaOregonPennsylvaniaRhode IslandSouth CarolinaSouth DakotaTennesseeTexasUtahVermontVirginiaWashingtonWest VirginiaWisconsinWyomingZip / Postal code*Country*Select a countryUnited StatesCanadaOtherIndustry*Select…Advanced Agricultural Processing TechnologyAdvanced AutomotiveAdvanced Information TechnologyAdvanced ManufacturingAdvanced MaterialsAerospaceAlternative EnergyBanking/FinanceBusiness ServicesCommunicationsEducationFood & BeverageHealthcareHomeland Security and Defense TechnologyInvestingLegal ServicesLife SciencesMediaOpticsOtherPrinting and PublishingResearch & DevelopmentSubsector* Agriculture Tech Animal Health/Agriculture Artificial Intelligence Augmented Reality Big Data Biotechnology Cannabis Clean Tech Consumer Products and Services Cryptocurrency Diagnostics Digital Health Drones E-commerce Educational Tech Financial Technology Genomics Hardware Health & Fitness Healthcare Services Insurance Technology Internet of Things Legal Tech Machine Learning Marketing Tech Media Medical Devices Mobility Pharmaceuticals Professional Services – bank Professional Services – financial planning Professional Services – general office/back-office Professional Services – IT & Marketing Professional Services – medical offices Professional Services – mortgage firm Restaurant Retail – clothing & accessories Retail – food Retail – gifts & art Retail – home goods Robotics Security Services Software Virtual Reality 4-digit NAICS code*Select…3251 Basic Chemicals3252 Resins and Synthetic rubbers, Fibers, and Filaments3253 Pesticides, Fertilizers, and other agr. Chemicals3254 Pharmaceuticals and Medicine3259 Other Chemical Products3261 Plastics Products Manufacturing3331 Agr., Construction, and Mining Machinery3332 Industrial Machinery3333 Commercial and Service Industry Machinery3336 Engines, turbines, and Power trans. equipment3339 Other General Purpose Machinery3341 Computers and Peripheral equipment3342 Communications equipment3343 Audio and Video equipment3344 Semiconductors and other electronic Components3345 Navigation, Measurement, and Control Instruments3359 Other electrical equipment and Components3361 Motor Vehicles3362 Motor Vehicle Bodies and trailers3363 Motor Vehicle Parts3364 Aerospace Products and Parts3369 Other transportation equipment3391 Medical equipment and Supplies5112 Software Publishers5174 Satellite telecommunications5182 Data Processing and hosting5191 Other Information5413 Architecture and engineering5415 Computer Systems design5417 Scientific research and development6215 Medical and diagnostic laboratoriesYear founded*Please enter a number from 1900 to 2026.Current stage*Select a stageIdeaMVP/PrototypeEarly Revenue (<$50K)Scaling (>$50K ARR)Legal structure*Select a structureC-CorpsLLCS-CorpB-CorpNot Incorporated YetNumber of full-time employees*Please enter a number greater than or equal to 0.4-digit NAICS code*Select a NAICS code3251 Basic Chemicals3252 Resins and Synthetic rubbers, Fibers, and Filaments3253 Pesticides, Fertilizers, and other agr. Chemicals3254 Pharmaceuticals and Medicine3259 Other Chemical Products3261 Plastics Products Manufacturing3331 Agr., Construction, and Mining Machinery3332 Industrial Machinery3333 Commercial and Service Industry Machinery3336 Engines, turbines, and Power trans. equipment3339 Other General Purpose Machinery3341 Computers and Peripheral equipment3342 Communications equipment3343 Audio and Video equipment3344 Semiconductors and other electronic Components3345 Navigation, Measurement, and Control Instruments3359 Other electrical equipment and Components3361 Motor Vehicles3362 Motor Vehicle Bodies and trailers3363 Motor Vehicle Parts3364 Aerospace Products and Parts3369 Other transportation equipment3391 Medical equipment and Supplies5112 Software Publishers5174 Satellite telecommunications5182 Data Processing and hosting5191 Other Information5413 Architecture and engineering5415 Computer Systems design5417 Scientific research and development6215 Medical and diagnostic laboratoriesWhat are you working on? Job board Browse open positions across the region’s tech and innovation economy Browse open jobs Events calendar Networking, career fairs, and community events Upcoming events Internships & work programs Early-career pathways into the regional tech ecosystem Internship opportunities Get discovered Join the regional talent network so employers can find you Join the talent network a2Tech360 Ann Arbor’s tech talent community — jobs, events, and more a2Tech360 community Tech Homecoming For Michigan talent living elsewhere who are considering a return Tech homecoming Hiring, or exploring a workforce partnership? Reach our team at BusinessDevelopment@annarborusa.org What brings you to SPARK?*Select…Expanding or relocating a business to the regionLooking for partnership or supplier connectionsExploring incentives or site selectionSeeking talent acquisition support and resourcesOtherBrief description (optional)Current annual revenue*Select…Not started yetLess than $250K$250K–$1MOver $1MBusiness type / legal structure*Select…Not formed yetLLCCorporationS-CorporationSole ProprietorshipPartnershipLARA registered?*Select…YesNoNot sureNot yet formedNot sure? Look it up in the Michigan Business Registry (opens in a new tab).LARA ID numberCurrent employees (FTE)*Please enter a number greater than or equal to 0.Expected job creation (next 12 mo.)Please enter a number greater than or equal to 0.This number will NOT impact your acceptance to the program.Brief business description* Describe the problem being solved (product / service description)*Describe the product or service to be sold by the company and the customer problem that it solves (i.e., the need). Do you know potential market size? (1950 character limit)Competitive advantage*What are the current and anticipated solutions to the problem, i.e., the competitive products or services? Why is your product or service better than the competition, and why will it have a sustainable competitive advantage? Are there any significant barriers to entry? (1950 character limit) Technology platform / IP* More about Technology platform / IP Describe the underlying technology and what needs to be done to develop the intellectual property position further. Do you have IP protected — i.e. a patent or options? Was a university or corporate employee involved, or were outside resources used in the creation of the technology? Describe the underlying technology and what needs to be done to develop the intellectual property position further. Do you have IP protected i.e. a patent or options? Was a university or corporate employee involved or were resources used in the creation of the technology? (1950 character limit)Development status & milestones*What is the status of the development of the product or service? What are the near term activities and key milestones that are required for the development of the product or service? Are there any key alliances necessary? (1950 character limit)Team description*Describe briefly the role of current participants and give their relevant background to their ongoing involvement in the product development or proposed company. (1950 character limit) Business model*How will the company generate revenue? Describe your marketing and sales strategy for capturing and defending significant market share. What are your profit expectations? (1950 character limit)Funding to date & financial plan*Describe any funding to date, the dollar amount, use of the funds, and the source. (1950 character limit)Help requested from SPARK*(1950 character limit)LARA ID numberDon’t know your registration number? Look it up in the Michigan Business Registry (opens in a new tab). What customer problem do you solve, and who feels it most?*Name the customer persona, their pain, and how they cope today.How big is this problem for your customer? (quantify if possible)*e.g., “$X lost per year,” “Y hours wasted per week,” “Z% error rate”How many substantive customer discovery conversations have you had?*Select a number01-45-1011-2525+In those conversations, how often is this problem a top-3 priority?*Select a frequencyNeverRarelySometimesOftenAlwaysN/A (no conversations)Estimate your Total Addressable Market (TAM) in US$ and briefly explain how you calculated it*e.g., “5,000 mid-market hospitals × $50K/yr = $250M SAM (bottom-up from AHA data)” Describe your solution in 2-3 sentences*What does it do? How does the customer use it?Name two competitors and one reason a buyer picks you*Include “do nothing / manual process” if that is the real competitor.What is better about your solution, and what will be hard to copy in 12 months?*IP, proprietary data, switching costs, regulatory moat, network effects.Is your product in market today?*Select an answerYesNoDoes your business have defensible IP or technical differentiation?*Patents, trade secrets, proprietary data, regulatory moat.Select an answerYesNoNot SureIf you are pursuing a regulatory pathway, what pathway are you pursuing?*Select a pathway510(k)De NovoPMAIND/NDA/BLANot yet determinedN/A: Don’t need to pursue regulatory pathway Strongest evidence customers will pay* Signed LOI(s) Paid pilot(s) Paying customers Design partners Grant(s) tied to customer need Pre-orders/waitlist None yet Number of paying customersPlease enter a number greater than or equal to 0.Trailing 12-month revenue band*Select a band$0<$250K$250K–$1M$1M–$2.5M>$2.5MHow do you make money (business model)?*Select a modelSaaS subscriptionUsage-basedMarketplace/commissionHardware + serviceLicensingAdvertisingOtherGross margin*Select a band<20%20–50%50–70%70%+Don’t know yet Founder 1 LinkedIn URL* Founder 2 LinkedIn URL What round of fundraising are you in?*Select a roundPre-seedSeedSeries AOtherNot raising at this timeInvestment instrumentSelect an instrumentSAFEConvertible NotePriced Round (Equity)OtherTo Be DeterminedHow much are you raising this round?Please enter a number greater than or equal to 0.How much have you raised so far (this round)?Please enter a number greater than or equal to 0.Terms (cap / discount / valuation)e.g., “$8M cap, no discount” or “$6M pre-money”Capital raised to date (all sources)*Please enter a number greater than or equal to 0.Sources of prior capital*Select every one that applies. Venture Capital Angel SBIR/STTR Bank/Lender MEDC Founder/Insider Corporate/University/Foundation Other Monthly burn ratee.g., $45K / moPlease enter a number greater than or equal to 0.Current cash balance / runway (months)e.g., “$45K / ~4 months”If given this capital today, how would you allocate it? (3-4 uses)*e.g., “40% engineering hires, 25% sales, 20% product dev, 15% ops”What specific milestones will this capital fund in next 12–18 months?*3-5 measurable milestones (e.g., reach TRL 5, close 10 customers, hire CTO). Is your company headquartered in Michigan?*Select an answerYesNoPercent of current team physically based in Michigan*Select a share0%1–49%50–99%100%Where will you hire your next 5–10 employees?*e.g. MI city/region: ___ (# roles) | Outside MI: ___ (# roles) Pitch deckEnsure the deck covers: problem, solution, market, product, traction, team, competition, financials, ask. Drag file to upload or Select a File Accepted file types: pdf, ppt, pptx, key, Max. file size: 50 MB. … or link to your Pitch deckAlready hosted online? Paste a Google Drive, Dropbox or Docsend link instead of uploading — make sure it’s viewable by anyone with the link. Financial projections3-5 year projections: revenue, expenses, cash flow, hiring plan. Drag file to upload or Select a File Accepted file types: pdf, xls, xlsx, Max. file size: 50 MB. … or link to your Financial projectionsAlready hosted online? Paste a Google Drive, Dropbox or Docsend link instead of uploading — make sure it’s viewable by anyone with the link. P&L / income statementIf revenue-stage; current YTD or trailing 12 months. Drag file to upload or Select a File Accepted file types: pdf, xls, xlsx, Max. file size: 50 MB. … or link to your P&L / income statementAlready hosted online? Paste a Google Drive, Dropbox or Docsend link instead of uploading — make sure it’s viewable by anyone with the link. Additional documentsExecutive summary, LOIs, patent filings, demo video, customer testimonials, etc. Drag file to upload or Select a File Max. file size: 50 MB. … or link to your Additional documentsAlready hosted online? Paste a Google Drive, Dropbox or Docsend link instead of uploading — make sure it’s viewable by anyone with the link. We’ll ask for your financial model after an initial conversation — no need to prepare it now.
