Danish Shipping Conglomerate Maersk Teams Up With Israel-Based Accelerator TheDOCK

Danish shipping conglomerate A.P. Moller–Maersk Group is teaming up with Israel-based maritime startup accelerator The Dock Innovation Hub (theDOCK), the two announced Monday. TheDOCK’s four-month-long acceleration program offers participating startups a seed investment of up to $100K, office space, mentoring and network opportunities with partner companies and investors.

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Founded in 2016 in the northern port city of Haifa, theDOCK is a technology hub and accelerator focused solely on maritime and port-related startups. Application is now open for the first cohort, scheduled to begin in April.

Headquartered in Copenhagen and founded in 1904, Nasdaq Copenhagen-traded transport and logistics company Maersk operates in 130 countries and has around 88,000 employees worldwide, according to company statements.

While the financial terms of the deal were not disclosed, Maersk will play a key role in the program and in mentoring startups in the domain of logistic technologies, theDOCK’s head of community and marketing Noa Schuman said in an email sent to Calcalist.

Maersk intends to use technologies developed within the program to solve issues related to its complex supply chain, Maersk chief digital officer Ibrahim Gocken said in a statement. Maersk is interested in startups focusing on logistics, supply chains, food waste reduction, and trade, Thomas Hougaard, a venture partner at Maersk, said in a statement. “We are looking for opportunities to co-create the next Unicorn,” he said, adding that the company is scouting for startups that are interested in Maersk as a partner and not just as a customer.