On February 17, Google announced the start of the second phase of financing of its support fund for startups in Ukraine, launched in March 2022. The US giant’s $10 million allocation will materialize in the form of up to $200,000 grants, in addition to “mentoring support, product support, and $300,000 in Google Cloud credits.”
“This practical assistance aims to ensure that Ukrainian entrepreneurs have the opportunity to support and develop their business, strengthen their community and create a basis for economic recovery after the war,” wrote Agnieszka Hrynievych-Bienek, Senior Director at Google for Startups.
Applications will be opened on a non-specified date later this year.
So far, Google’s Ukraine Support Fund has provided 58 recipients with $5 million worth of non-equity grants. Follow-on funding amounted to $15.8 million. Among the supported startups, Hrynievych-Bienek mentioned Skyworker.ai and Mindly, which “use artificial intelligence to create economic opportunities, as well as Zeely, “whose founders were included in the Forbes Europe 30 Under 30 list.”
Google launched a variety of other initiatives in support of Ukraine — from helping refugees to developing air alert systems, as reported by Ukraine Digital News.
In 2022, Google received the Ukrainian President’s Peace Award “for its work in support of the Ukrainian people,” reminded Hrynievych-Bienek.
“Since then, the war has taken on new dimensions, but our commitment to being worthy of this award is unwavering.”
In total, Google claims to have committed “more than $45 million in cash and $7 million in in-kind donations to support humanitarian efforts for people in Ukraine and those fleeing the war” since February 2022.
