1,057 Applications, 15 Places: Google Names Its 2026 South African Accelerator Cohort

Google received 1,057 applications for 15 places in its 2026 South African accelerator — its largest pool to date, and a ratio of roughly 70 to one. All 15 selected companies are South African-led and revenue-generating. Each receives up to R1 million in equity-free funding, with no equity or fee taken, alongside access to Google’s AI models and cloud infrastructure and one-on-one mentorship from Google engineers and industry experts.