According to EU-Startups, the Angers-based tech accelerator Cube has closed a €700k funding round. The investment came from a diverse group including Bpifrance, Banque Populaire Grand Ouest, Ledger co-founder Nicolas Bacca, and notably, TV personality Jean-Pierre Nadir and YouTuber Amixem. Launched in 2023, Cube has a hybrid model merging business acceleration, financing, and its own media production. To date, it has supported 20 startups from over 300 applications, claiming to have facilitated €7 million in funding for them. The accelerator also reports 35 million impressions from its media outputs, with early episodes of its “Plan Cube” show already catalyzing €400k in investments.
The Visibility Gap
Cube’s whole thesis is pretty interesting. They’re basically arguing that a lack of cash isn’t the primary killer of startups—it’s a lack of visibility. And in today’s noisy market, you can see their point. Anyone can throw a bit of seed money at a problem, but getting anyone to pay attention? That’s the real trick. So they’ve built six studios and produce shows like “Spotlight,” filmed in a giant immersive cube, where startups pitch to juries for €50k. It’s accelerator meets reality TV. Whether that’s genius or gimmicky probably depends on the startup, but it’s certainly a distinct pitch in a crowded field.
A Shifting Accelerator Landscape
This funding round lands in a European accelerator scene that’s actively experimenting. We’re seeing a move away from the classic, short-term cohort model towards deeper, more operational involvement. Corporate programs are focusing on pilots and validation, not just equity. Cube’s media-heavy approach is another variation on that theme of specialization. They’re not just offering mentorship and a demo day; they’re offering a production crew and a potential audience of millions. For certain consumer-facing or B2B2C startups, that kind of amplified narrative could be more valuable than another intro to a VC. But for a deep tech firm? Maybe not so much. It shows how fragmented the support ecosystem has become.
Stakeholder Impact and The Creator Economy
For the startups in Cube’s portfolio, the impact is direct. They get strategic legal and HR support, which is table stakes. But the added layer is immediate media asset creation and exposure to government figures and corporate innovation heads they’d struggle to reach alone. A company like Dowgo credits Cube’s network and visibility push for its credibility. For the investors—especially the YouTubers and TV personalities—this is a savvy way to leverage their personal brands into the tech investment world. They’re not just writing a check; their association *is* part of the visibility service. It blurs the line between investor, advisor, and content creator, which feels very 2025.
The Bottom Line
Here’s the thing: Cube’s model is a specific bet. It assumes that for a meaningful slice of early-stage companies, marketing and storytelling are the critical bottlenecks, not product development or initial capital. And look, in a world where attention is currency, they might be onto something. The €700k raise, with backing from traditional and non-traditional sources, validates there’s interest in this hybrid path. But it also raises questions. Does this create startups that are good at performing for cameras versus building fundamentally sound businesses? Only time and their portfolio’s long-term success will tell. For now, it’s a fascinating experiment at the intersection of tech acceleration and the creator economy, and one worth watching.
