Virtual Startup Incubator

Committed to Startup Thriving™

Where bold ideas become real ventures.

Startup Cielo™ is a one-year, fully virtual incubator for founders at the pre-seed and seed stage. We combine rigorous curriculum, deep individual coaching, and hands-on experimentation to transform your idea into a thriving startup — no matter where you're starting from.

Entrepreneurs

Jun 15

Apps close Jun 5 · 12 spots

Intrapreneurs

Jul 10

Apps close Jun 30 · 12 spots

High Schoolers

Sep 5

Apps close Aug 20 · 12 spots

Start your journey How it works

Young entrepreneurs brainstorming together

Month program

9.3/10

Avg. entrepreneurial skills rating

100%

Said aspiring entrepreneurs benefit

77%

Want individual coaching monthly

Cohorts completed & counting

Our approach

Three pillars of effectiveness.

Our methodology draws on proprietary research in entrepreneurship, organizational design, and venture development. Every program is structured around a scientific framework that keeps founders moving forward with clarity and purpose.

Systematization

At the foundation of our startup incubator lies the logical math-inspired scientific framework, titled Organizational Coordinate System. This system is designed to provide business leaders with a set of questions and tools to design their organization and identify potential areas of resource and effort concentration.

The Organizational Coordinate System also allows entrepreneurs a structured guided process for startup venture development. Every segment takes 2–3 months to complete and provides a segment outcome, which allows the startup program participant to move forward.

Individualization

In our startup incubator, we pay incredible attention to the concept of the individuality of a human. Our program is developed specifically for the underdogs — the individuals with limited resources, capacity, or other physical, mental, or emotional constraints, deemed unfit for success in the field of choice.

Our startup incubator program is designated to explore, challenge, and redefine an individual as a leader in their environment (incl. leadership values, style, strengths and weaknesses, areas for further development, and most effective communication approach), and redesigning the environment for the humanistic, sustainable, value-oriented outcome.

Experimentation

Startup venture development is a combination of art and science, glued by experimentation. Experimentation is a process of trial and error that leads to certain results.

In our startup incubator, we use diverse coaching tools that help startup participants embrace key concepts of an entrepreneurial mindset, develop insights, and make consequent steps, which lead to effective experimentation and desired results. Some of the subjects covered in the incubator program include success, failure, idea generation, result analysis, intention, reflection, motivation, expectations, team dynamics, change management, assumptions, financial projections, and more.

All programs are delivered virtually and run one full calendar year. Optional academic certification available at additional cost through accredited partner institutions.

Diverse group of entrepreneurs collaborating

Who we serve

Built for the ones who refuse to quit.

We designed this program for the underdogs — individuals with limited resources, learning differences, non-traditional backgrounds, or life circumstances that mainstream incubators overlook.

Aspiring founders without a traditional background

Experienced entrepreneurs facing fear blocks

Business students seeking applied learning

Young executives launching new projects

High schoolers with learning differences

Student parents balancing multiple roles

Retirees exploring new ventures

Post-military and post-incarceration leaders

Programs

Find your path forward.

For founders

Starts Jun 15 · 12 spots

Entrepreneurs

For founders ready to take their idea from concept to viable venture. Full-year immersive incubation with executive coaching, curriculum, and investor introductions.

Full program details →

Pay monthly € 700/mo▼

12 monthly payments of €700 — billed each month via PayPal.

Pay in full €7,950Save €650▼

One-time payment — best value, no monthly commitments.

Most comprehensive

Starts Jul 10 · 12 spots

Intrapreneurs

For executives and team leaders launching new initiatives inside existing organizations. Strategy, structure, and execution support designed for corporate environments.

Full program details →

Pay monthly € 850/mo▼

12 monthly payments of €850 — billed each month via PayPal.

Pay in full €9,500Save €700▼

One-time payment — best value, no monthly commitments.

Ages 13–18

Starts Sep 5 · 12 spots

High Schoolers

For young visionaries ready to think and build like founders — before anyone tells them they can't. A formative program tailored to early-stage entrepreneurs.

Full program details →

Pay monthly € 140/mo▼

12 monthly payments of €140 — billed each month via PayPal.

Pay in full €1,495Save €185▼

One-time payment — best value, no monthly commitments.

About us

Startup Cielo™

Startup Cielo™ exists to help individuals and startups grow together — creating a productive, human-centered space where entrepreneurs at every level can build with speed, depth, and genuine support.

Our incubator is powered by a proprietary scientific framework and driven forward by coaches and mentors who connect with participants on a truly individual basis.

Our mission

To create a nurturing and productive environment for entrepreneurs and intrapreneurs in which they can build their visions rapidly and efficiently — combining academia, hands-on experience, coaching, and investor introductions.

Diverse team of entrepreneurs collaborating

Our vision

To help individuals and startups grow together.

Our values

Growth Daring Openness Compassion Persistence

We serve aspiring founders, experienced entrepreneurs, business students, young executives, high schoolers, student parents, retirees, and post-military and post-incarceration leaders. See the full list above →

Founder & Head Coach

Dr. Elena Emma

Meet your coach

Dr. Elena Emma

PhD · Executive Coach · Entrepreneur · TEDx Speaker · Adjunct Professor · Author

Elena Emma is the founder of Startup Cielo™ and a catalyst for transformation across all stages of entrepreneurship. With over 19 years of experience as a CEO, business consultant, crisis coach, and academic, she brings a rare combination of rigorous theory and deeply human practice to every founder she works with.

She built Startup Cielo™ on a conviction forged through her own research and lived experience: that entrepreneurship is not a gift reserved for the privileged few — it is a learnable skill that belongs to everyone willing to do the work. Her proprietary Organizational Coordinate System framework was developed through her PhD research in alternative entrepreneurial education and startup incubation, and has been tested across multiple cohorts spanning 13 to 65+ years of age.

Elena's coaching style is direct, individualized, and deeply human. She is known for her ability to meet founders exactly where they are — whether that is a 14-year-old with their first business idea or a seasoned executive navigating an organizational pivot — and help them move forward with clarity, confidence, and momentum.

PhD in Business Administration & Management — Research in alternative entrepreneurial education & startup incubation · United International Business Schools, Switzerland

Graduate Certificate in Organizational & Executive Coaching — New York University, USA

BS in Business Administration (Finance) — San Diego State University, USA

Adjunct Professor — Multiple business schools in Barcelona, including Geneva Business School

19+ years coaching individuals through personal and professional transitions via Purple Sun House

▶ Watch TEDx Talk elenaemma.com →

A diverse mentoring community

Startup Cielo™ participants benefit from more than one coach. Our extended mentoring network brings together business professionals from a wide range of industries, cultural backgrounds, professional disciplines, and age groups — from early-career entrepreneurs to seasoned executives and investors. This diversity is intentional: we believe that the most powerful insights come from the collision of different life experiences, and that every founder deserves exposure to perspectives far beyond their own starting point.

What our participants say

Real results from real founders.

Feedback collected across two completed cohorts — 24 participants, zero paid reviews.

45%

Rated personal development a perfect 10/10

100%

Said aspiring entrepreneurs benefit most

77%

Preferred 100% virtual delivery

Founders coached across 2 completed cohorts

It takes a disruptive and unique approach within the accelerator industry, putting the entrepreneur first.