Alabama Forestry Accelerator, powered by gener8tor

Grow Your Agriculture Startup With the Alabama Forestry Accelerator

A free 7-week program for founders building in forestry, agriculture for rural and urban vegetation, circular economy for bio-materials, and carbon removal. Get hands-on coaching, investor connections, and a network built to help you grow, in the Wiregrass Region and beyond!

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A gBETA Program

About the Alabama Forestry Accelerator

The Alabama Forestry Accelerator runs multiple cohorts each year, selecting up to 5 companies from a competitive applicant pool across Alabama and beyond. The free 7-week program is designed for startups working across forestry, agriculture for rural and urban vegetation, circular economy for bio-materials, and carbon removal, including AI, software, physical products, logistics, and environmental services.

What Participating Companies Receive

Individualized coaching and mentorship from the gener8tor team on company growth and investor readiness
Weekly "Lunch & Learns" and "Mentor Swarms" with forestry, sustainability, and business experts
Investor and accelerator pitches across Alabama and the broader Southeast ecosystem
$1M+ in deals and perks from vendors including IBM Cloud, Amazon, HubSpot, and Microsoft
Ongoing post-program support and access to the broader gener8tor community and alumni network

Alabama Market Access

Alabama has 23 million acres of timberland, and the mills running on it have the same automation problems your current customers do.

Interaction with industry leaders through the Forestry Advisory Board
Industry site visits to understand real-world problems alongside agriculture experts
Mentor Swarms with people who know agriculture and forestry

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Map of the Wiregrass Region across southeastern Alabama, southern Georgia, and the Florida Panhandle

The Program's Home Region

What Is the Wiregrass Region?

The Wiregrass Region spans southeastern Alabama, southern Georgia, and the Florida Panhandle. Its name comes from the native wiregrass found throughout the area's longleaf pine ecosystem.

Dothan sits at the heart of Alabama's Wiregrass and serves as the home base for the Alabama Forestry Accelerator. The region's forests, mills, farms, and manufacturers connect founders with real industry needs and potential customers.

Southeastern Alabama Southern Georgia Florida Panhandle

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Eligibility Criteria for Alabama Forestry Accelerator

Founders from anywhere, with real interest in the Wiregrass Region

The Alabama Forestry Accelerator is rooted in the Wiregrass Region, where Alabama, Georgia and Florida meet, right in the center of the Southeast's timber basket. Founders can be based anywhere, and no long term commitment to the region is required. We give preference to founders who see real potential for business development and growth in the Wiregrass. There will be two to three in-person engagements in Dothan during the program, and strong preference will be given to startups who can attend them.

Program Commitment

Primarily virtual, with three in-person engagements in Dothan, Alabama.

Virtual Weekly programming

4–6 hours of virtual gBETA programming each week, not including time spent independently working on your business.

In person Three engagements in Dothan

Program Kickoff Wiregrass Innovation Center · Two days in Week 0
Industry Engagement TBC Mill and factory tours · Two days, week to be determined
Final Showcase and Partner Meetups Two days in Week 7

Openness, Fundraising, and Sales

You're prepared to discuss your business openly with mentors and investors, knowing that not everything is proprietary. Raising capital is on your radar, and you are either selling already or ready to scale your sales in a more reliable, consistent way.

Coachability and Responsiveness

You're coachable, open to feedback, and value multiple perspectives to make informed decisions for your business. You're also responsive and thrive in a fast-paced environment.

Apply to an Upcoming Program

Upcoming Program

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We are not currently accepting applications for this program.

Stay tuned. While there aren't any upcoming programs for this location at the moment, there are plenty of other available opportunities at gener8tor!

Explore Other Programming

Program Timeline

Seven weeks of hands-on support, from kickoff to showcase and beyond. Here is what to expect at each stage of the program.

Getting Started

Program Kick-Off: A 1.5-day event featuring a team-building activity, insightful content to guide you through the rest of the program, and introductory 1:1 meetings with your Alabama Forestry Accelerator Program Manager.

Weeks 1–6

Team Meetings: Two 1-hour strategy meetings each week with your founding team and Program Manager.

Lunch & Learns: Weekly 1-hour sessions on: Market and Competition, Revenue Models, Financing and Milestones, Comparables, Pitching, How to Get into an Accelerator, and more!

Mentor Swarms: One 2-hour “speed dating” session each week with a group of new mentors, for a total of ~30 mentor introductions over six weeks.

Week 7

Investor Swarms: Curated 1:1 pitch meetings with 25+ investors.

Showcase: Final celebration event with live pitches and networking with mentors, investors, and customers.

Post-Program

Alumni Support: Ongoing assistance and resources for graduates of the program to help continue their growth and success.

Lightning Rounds: Curated, one-on-one pitch sessions between startups and investors. Learn more

Alabama Forestry Accelerator — FAQs

Frequently Asked Questions

Everything worth knowing about the Alabama Forestry Accelerator before you apply.

Yes. Your company does not need to be exclusively forestry-related. We are looking for technologies applicable to agriculture, and a plausible forestry application is an added advantage. Agriculture, manufacturing, and industrial technologies often transfer well to forestry, including crop monitoring, soil sensing, equipment telematics, residue conversion, automation, quality control, predictive maintenance, energy costs, and materials handling. You do not need to have identified the forestry application before applying. Tell us what you are building, and our team can help explore where it may fit within forestry and the broader forest products economy.

You do not need to be based in the Dothan region, but you must be willing to participate in the two to three in-person engagements there during the program. We run out of HudsonAlpha's Wiregrass Innovation Center in Dothan, and the in-person time is where a lot of the value comes from. If you're outside the region but serious about building here, tell us in your application.

No. gBETA takes no equity and charges no fees. The program is fully funded by our partners.

The program is hybrid. There will be two to three in-person programming engagements, including kickoff, industry engagement week, and Showcase, in Dothan, as well as meaningful industry engagement events like mill and factory tours. Weekly programming is a mix, and your one-on-ones with your Program Manager can be virtual.

Plan on at least 4–6 hours of virtual programming each week, not including the time you spend independently working on your business. The program also includes two to three in-person engagements in Dothan, including kickoff, industry engagement week, and Showcase. We're strict about attendance because the founders who show up are the ones who get the most out of it.

No. We take companies at a range of stages, from early prototype to early revenue. What matters more is that you're moving fast and building something that can scale.

No. Plenty of our founders have day jobs when they start.

The Alabama Forestry Accelerator is run by gener8tor in partnership with Innovate Alabama, Grow Southeast, and HudsonAlpha Wiregrass, with support from Alabama Power and Alfa Farmers. The accelerator is also supported by an advisory board of forestry industry experts.

Yes. Companies change fast, and so does the applicant pool. Reapplying is common and it works.

Looking to Get in Touch?

Whether you are exploring the program, checking your eligibility, or ready to apply, we are here to help. Schedule a time to connect or send a note by email.