The Portland Incubator Experiment (PIE) returned with a new cohort in May 2018, three years after ending its accelerator model. Its revised approach made participation and shared office space free, removed the fixed three-month schedule, focused on underrepresented founders, and stopped investing in participating companies. This was a historical change—not a current reopening: PIE’s official site lists its SaaS and mobile, manufacturing, and consumer-products programs as “On hiatus for 2026,” with no restart date stated.
What changed when PIE returned in 2018?
Founded in 2009 as a coworking space associated with advertising agency Wieden+Kennedy, PIE later became an accelerator. It ended that accelerator model in 2015. In May 2018, it announced a fifth cohort and a new location in The Dairy Building, in Portland’s Central Eastside Industrial District. The effort was part of a collaboration supported in part by Prosper Portland and the Inclusive Business Resource Network.
The relaunch changed both the financial terms and the shape of the program. Companies paid nothing to participate or use the office space, and PIE did not invest capital in that cohort. Rather than require every company to complete a standard three-month accelerator, PIE allowed founders to stay for as long or as little as they needed. The program also emphasized attracting underrepresented founders.
Why did PIE stop investing in the cohort?
PIE co-founder Rick Turoczy described the decision as an experiment, not a proven conclusion about what makes startups succeed. He said the organization wanted to test whether its historically small investments were beneficial: “Our hypothesis is that the small amount of capital we have traditionally invested wasn’t a factor in startup success, but we need to test that.”
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PIE’s revised approach also responded to its experience with a fixed program window. Turoczy wrote that enforcing an artificial three-month period could add stress and emotional hardship rather than support, while overlooking founders’ family responsibilities. Program Manager Chevonne James said the experimentation had shown the team that shared workspace mattered: “Through that experimentation we’ve determined that providing a shared workspace where founders can collaborate with one another is critical to our program.”
The change did not settle how PIE would pay for the program over the long term. Turoczy said it was still looking for a sustainable funding model; the program had support from Built Oregon.
Which startups were in PIE’s fifth cohort?
GeekWire’s May 2018 report listed ten companies and attributed the descriptions to PIE. They worked across a range of sectors rather than a single product category.
| Company | PIE’s description, as reported by GeekWire |
|---|---|
| Additive Care | A push-button 3D-printing solution for healthcare |
| AllGo | Insights on comfort and accessibility of public places for plus-size people |
| CMDsense | Technology for the construction industry |
| De Las Mias | Health initiatives for Latinas |
| Modern Adventure | Immersive travel experiences |
| Nocturne Collective | Systems for brands |
| Praxis Department | Resilient company cultures |
| Varcity | A social network connecting student athletes with community |
| Werkhorse | On-demand staffing |
| Workfrom | A database of workspaces for remote professionals |
How did PIE’s program evolve?
PIE has described its work as an evolving experiment rather than one permanent accelerator format. Its history includes a coworking space, a fixed-term accelerator for startups, the flexible shared-space cohort introduced in 2018, and collaborations involving companies or the broader community. The 2018 version was distinctive for pairing free participation and space with flexible duration and no investment.
The timeline helps distinguish that return from later changes:
- 2009: PIE began as a coworking space.
- 2015: PIE ended its accelerator model.
- 2018: It announced a fifth cohort under a nonprofit, free-participation model with flexible duration and no cohort investment.
- 2023: Portland Business Journal reported that PIE planned a final software-accelerator Demo Day for August 10 and would drop that program to experiment elsewhere. Its accessible preview said the software accelerator had operated since 2011.
Is PIE open to startups now?
As of October 8, 2026, PIE’s official homepage marks its SaaS and mobile, manufacturing, and consumer-products programs “On hiatus for 2026.” The site does not give a restart date. The 2018 cohort’s free participation, flexible stay, and no-investment terms describe that historical program; they should not be taken as current enrollment terms.
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Sources
- GeekWire: PIE’s 2018 return and fifth cohort
- PIE official homepage and program status
- PIE’s account of its evolving purpose and formats
- Portland Business Journal: 2023 software-accelerator update
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