Co-Founders Manan Mehta and Nitin Pachisia started Unshackled with one goal in mind: to help really good entrepreneurial ideas flourish, uninhibited by borders.
“At Unshackled Ventures we know innovation and new ideas aren’t constrained by geography. It’s important to seek out and foster that entrepreneurial spirit, wherever it is,” says Manan.
Drawing inspiration from personal experience––Nitin is an immigrant himself––and from their time in the tech-world, the two realized that, due to the sticky immigration system, many brilliant ideas were fizzling out before they even had a real chance to root.
Inclusion and diversity are fuel for innovation. Immigrants and veterans working together showcase strong complementary skills #VetCon2017
— Unshackled Ventures (@UnshackledUS) March 23, 2017
Unshackled Ventures actually has a very market-based platform. They help foreign-born entrepreneurs continue their US-based biz ideas by giving them funding and visa sponsorships in exchange for equity. Not only do they dish out the dough, but they also provide a lot of resources, like legal and design help, and working spaces. A win-win if you ask us.
Their strategy is really working. Now, Unshackled has more than 80 investors, including hotshots like Laurene Powell Jobs.
She says, “While our national dialogue around immigrants deteriorates, Unshackled’s model showcases the kinds of conversations that we ought to be having–conversations about removing impediments to opportunity, investing in extraordinary intellectual capital and spurring innovations that will benefit all of us.”
A pretty good counter-narrative to the banter about immigrants stealing our jobs, eh?
