Curated list of startup incubators and accelerators from Tulsa and guides to their programs
Tulsa's startup ecosystem is uniquely shaped by its combination of Midwest values and forward-thinking innovation initiatives. The city has made a deliberate effort to attract entrepreneurs through programs like Tulsa Remote and significant investments in coworking spaces and startup support. Local accelerators and incubators focus on creating an affordable, collaborative environment where founders can build sustainable businesses without the crushing costs of coastal cities. Many programs emphasize energy tech, software development, and community-driven entrepreneurship, reflecting the city's heritage in energy and its push toward technological diversification.
Next on the list is Techstars, which has backed more than 3,500 startups, including well-known names like Uber, Twilio, and DigitalOcean.
Techstars invests up to $120,000 in each company. This includes $20,000 upfront plus the right to purchase 6% of your fully diluted shares at your next qualified financing round (typically when you raise $250,000+). The 6% common stock is issued right before that financing event. Full investment terms are available on the Techstars website.
You apply through an online form, which usually takes 2–5 hours to complete. Many founders speak with Techstars mentors beforehand to make sure their application communicates their startup clearly and effectively.
If your application makes it through the initial review, you’ll receive an invitation to a two-round interview, usually within four weeks. Common interview questions include:
If I gave you $200K to hire people, who would you hire?
Who are your target customers?
What outcome are you hoping to achieve by joining Techstars?
What are your most important leading indicators or KPIs this week?
How did you validate this market, and how big is the opportunity?
If you pass the interview rounds, you’ll meet with the Techstars screening committee, which includes the managing director, program manager, mentors, and corporate partners. Clear that stage, and you officially join the three-month Techstars program.
Month 1 is all about building your network. You’ll meet around 100 mentors from the Techstars ecosystem—experts across product, marketing, leadership, hiring, fundraising, and more.
Month 2 is about execution. You’ll use what you learned to push your startup forward: building product milestones, hitting KPIs, onboarding early users, or sharpening your business model.
Month 3 focuses on storytelling and fundraising. You’ll polish your pitch deck, develop investor materials, and practice communicating your vision to customers, investors, and future team members. The month ends with Demo Day.
After the program, Techstars continues supporting founders through its alumni network and ongoing mentorship.
Building a startup in Tulsa offers a unique blend of affordability, community support, and growing opportunities. The city has invested heavily in attracting entrepreneurs and creating an ecosystem where founders can focus on building without breaking the bank. Here are some practical tips to help you make the most of Tulsa's startup scene.
Take Advantage of Affordability
One of Tulsa's biggest advantages is cost of living. Your runway goes further here than in expensive coastal cities. Use this to your advantage — invest more in product development, hire talent at reasonable rates, and give yourself time to find product-market fit without the constant pressure of sky-high burn rates.
Tulsa has created several programs to attract entrepreneurs, including Tulsa Remote which offers financial incentives for remote workers and founders. Connect with these programs early — they often provide workspace access, networking events, and connections to the local business community.
Tulsa's startup community thrives in collaborative spaces. Places like 36 Degrees North, community meetups, and local tech events are where founders connect, share ideas, and find collaborators. The community is tight-knit and welcoming — show up consistently and you'll quickly become part of the network.
If your startup touches energy tech, oil and gas innovation, or industrial software, Tulsa has deep expertise you can tap into. The city's history in energy means there are experienced professionals and potential customers who understand these sectors intimately.
Tulsa's business community is accessible. Local business leaders, successful entrepreneurs, and corporate executives are often willing to meet with founders. These connections can lead to partnerships, early customers, or valuable advice from people who know the region well.
Tulsa operates on relationships and trust. Take time to build genuine connections rather than rushing into transactional asks. The pace may feel different from Silicon Valley, but the relationships you build here tend to be deeper and more long-lasting.
Tulsa offers something many startup hubs can't — a real quality of life. Short commutes, affordable housing, parks, trails, and a growing arts scene mean you can build your company without sacrificing your wellbeing. Use that balance to stay energized for the long journey ahead.
Tulsa's startup ecosystem operates on a culture of generosity and knowledge sharing. Experienced founders and business leaders regularly give back by mentoring new entrepreneurs, hosting workshops, and sharing hard-won lessons from their own journeys. This creates an environment where every new founder has access to practical advice from people who've already navigated the challenges of building a business.
In programs like 36 Degrees North and other local accelerators, it's common to see successful Tulsa entrepreneurs running office hours, leading roundtables, or simply grabbing coffee with early-stage teams. These aren't formal consulting sessions — they're genuine conversations where founders learn about fundraising strategies, hiring in Oklahoma, working with local enterprise customers, and building sustainable growth.
For example, a founder working on energy software might connect with a former oil and gas executive who now advises startups. That conversation could reveal industry insights, potential pilot customers, or regulatory considerations that would take months to figure out independently. A SaaS founder might learn from someone who successfully scaled a remote team from Tulsa, discovering what works and what doesn't when hiring across different time zones.
This culture of sharing extends beyond formal programs. Tulsa's startup community regularly organizes meetups, founder dinners, and informal gatherings where knowledge flows freely. People genuinely want to help each other succeed, recognizing that a thriving ecosystem benefits everyone. When someone raises a round, launches a product, or overcomes a major challenge, they often share what they learned publicly so others can benefit.
In Tulsa, joining an incubator or accelerator means joining a community that believes in lifting each other up. You'll find that experienced founders are approachable, willing to share, and invested in seeing the next generation of Tulsa startups succeed.
Tulsa's startup accelerators and incubators play a vital role in keeping the local entrepreneurial community connected and energized. Rather than operating in isolation, these programs actively organize events, workshops, and gatherings that bring founders, investors, and business leaders together. This consistent community-building helps Tulsa's ecosystem feel cohesive and supportive, even as it continues to grow.
Organizations like 36 Degrees North and other local accelerators regularly host networking nights, pitch competitions, founder meetups, and industry-focused discussions. Their calendars are filled with opportunities for entrepreneurs to learn, share experiences, and make meaningful connections. Whether it's a casual Friday gathering or a structured workshop on fundraising or product development, these events create spaces where the startup community can thrive.
These gatherings serve multiple purposes. They help new founders meet potential co-founders and early team members. They give startups visibility among local investors and corporate partners. They create opportunities for experienced entrepreneurs to share advice and lessons learned. And they remind everyone that they're part of something bigger — a growing movement to make Tulsa a serious player in the national startup landscape.
What makes Tulsa's approach special is the genuine sense of community. Events feel less like networking obligations and more like gatherings among people who genuinely care about each other's success. This Midwest authenticity creates an environment where founders can be honest about their challenges, celebrate wins together, and build lasting relationships that extend well beyond any single program or event.
By consistently organizing these community touchpoints, Tulsa's accelerators ensure that founders never feel isolated and always have access to the support, connections, and energy they need to keep building.
One of the most valuable services Tulsa's startup incubators provide is connecting founders with the specific people who can help them succeed. Rather than sending entrepreneurs to generic networking events, these programs make intentional introductions to mentors, potential customers, investors, and industry experts who understand the founder's specific challenges and opportunities.
Tulsa's incubators and accelerators, including 36 Degrees North and specialized programs, actively curate their networks to match founders with relevant connections. If you're building energy technology, they'll introduce you to former oil and gas executives who can provide industry insights and potential pilot opportunities. If you're launching a B2B SaaS product, they'll connect you with local business leaders who might become early customers or advisors.
These programs organize structured networking opportunities that go beyond casual meetups:
– mentor matching based on your specific industry and stage
– investor introduction sessions with regional VCs and angels
– customer development workshops with potential enterprise buyers
– peer learning groups with founders facing similar challenges
– alumni networks that stay connected long after graduation
What makes Tulsa's approach effective is the focus on quality over quantity. Instead of collecting hundreds of business cards, founders build real relationships with people who can genuinely help. Incubators guide startups to prioritize the connections that matter most — whether that's a technical advisor who can help with product development, a potential investor who knows your market, or a peer founder who's been through similar challenges.
The relationships often extend well beyond the program. Alumni stay connected through ongoing events, Slack communities, and informal gatherings. Many founders report that some of their most valuable connections came through warm introductions from their incubator, sometimes months or even years after graduating.
In Tulsa, incubators don't just expand your network — they help you build the right network of people who can actually move your startup forward.
Startups graduating from Tulsa's incubators and accelerators are increasingly attracting meaningful investment from regional and national sources. As Tulsa's ecosystem matures, investors are recognizing that the city produces well-prepared founders building sustainable businesses with strong unit economics — often with significantly lower burn rates than coastal competitors.
Programs like 36 Degrees North and other local accelerators help prepare startups for fundraising by refining their pitch, validating their business model, and connecting them with investors who understand the regional market. Alumni often raise seed rounds from Oklahoma-based angel investors, regional venture firms, and increasingly from national VCs who are expanding their geographic focus beyond traditional tech hubs.
What makes Tulsa startups attractive to investors is the combination of capital efficiency and strong fundamentals. Because operating costs are lower in Tulsa, startups can achieve more with less capital. A company that might burn through millions in San Francisco can often reach similar milestones in Tulsa for a fraction of the cost. This efficiency, combined with solid execution, makes Tulsa startups compelling investment opportunities.
Local incubators facilitate investment connections through demo days, investor showcases, and direct introductions to funding sources. Many programs maintain relationships with angel networks, family offices, and venture firms specifically interested in Midwest and Southern startups. These warm connections often lead directly to investment conversations and term sheets.
Additionally, some Tulsa startups successfully raise from corporate venture arms and strategic investors, particularly in sectors like energy technology, enterprise software, and logistics where the region has strong domain expertise. These strategic relationships often begin as partnerships or pilot programs before evolving into formal investments.
While Tulsa's ecosystem may not yet match the massive funding rounds common in Silicon Valley, it's producing startups that raise appropriate capital for their stage and use it efficiently to build lasting businesses. For many founders, that's exactly what they need to succeed.
Tulsa's incubators actively promote their alumni startups, helping them gain visibility both within the local ecosystem and beyond. This ongoing marketing support gives early-stage companies a significant boost, connecting them with potential customers, partners, and investors who might otherwise never discover them.
Programs like 36 Degrees North regularly feature alumni success stories in newsletters, social media posts, and community updates. These highlights reach thousands of people across Tulsa's business community, including potential customers, local media, and regional investors. When an alumni company hits a milestone — a new product launch, a customer win, or a funding announcement — their incubator often amplifies that news, helping the startup gain momentum.
Tulsa incubators also create showcasing opportunities through regular events. Demo days, pitch nights, and community gatherings give alumni a platform to present their work to engaged audiences. These aren't just one-time graduation events — many programs offer ongoing opportunities for alumni to share updates, demonstrate new features, or recruit team members at monthly or quarterly gatherings.
The tight-knit nature of Tulsa's community amplifies this effect. When an incubator promotes an alumni company, that message often spreads through the local business network organically. A single newsletter mention can lead to introductions from community members, coverage in local press, or connections to potential enterprise customers within Oklahoma's business ecosystem.
Many incubators also maintain alumni directories and actively refer startups to potential customers or partners. If a local company is looking for a specific type of solution, incubators often connect them directly with relevant alumni. These warm referrals can fast-track sales conversations that might otherwise take months to initiate.
In Tulsa, your incubator continues working to raise your profile long after you graduate, ensuring you stay visible and connected as you grow.