Now Accepting Applications for FbStart: Helping Mobile Startups Grow

We recently announced FbStart, a program that provides mobile developers with free tools and services worth up to $30,000 to help their startups succeed. Initially, only developers who attended f8 were eligible to apply, but today, we’re opening up our registration for FbStart to everyone.

At f8, we showcased new ways Facebook can help you build, grow and monetize your apps with our platform tools. FbStart is an extension of this mission, with the help of some leading partners in the industry.

Any mobile developer with an app that’s been live at least 30 days can apply to participate in FbStart—there’s no need to be integrated with Facebook to participate. If you’re selected, you’ll receive credits for Facebook and Parse, plus free tools and credits from our partners to help you with product testing, recruiting, customer care, video conferencing, document management and more.

Since f8, we’ve added a couple new partners to the program, including Transifex to help with your app’s localization, and HootSuite for social media monitoring. Our intention is to continue to expand the number of partners in the program. Here’s a full list of current FbStart partners:

• Adobe – Creative services
• Appurify – Mobile app testing
• Asana – Project management
• Blue Jeans – Cloud-based video collaboration service
• Desk.com – Customer support app
• HootSuite – Social media monitoring
• MailChimp - Email marketing
• Proto.io – Mobile app prototyping
• Quip – Mobile productivity suite
• SurveyMonkey – Online survey platform
• Transifex – Localization
• UserTesting – Usability testing
• Workable – Recruitment

In addition, FbStart will offer events, programs, and best practices for participating developers, with the expectation of year-round opportunities to engage with the Facebook team. By providing mobile app developers with the essential services you need to get your business up and running—or to take it to the next stage of growth—we’re hoping to help expand the overall app ecosystem.

When you apply to FbStart, you can choose between two tracks: Bootstrap, for apps that are just starting out, and Accelerate, for apps that have shown initial traction are now trying to grow and scale. We want to make FbStart a great solution for developers of different sizes.

Any developer around the world with a public iOS or Android app is eligible to apply for FbStart today—just fill out a simple form to tell us a little about your app and we’ll respond within a few weeks. To learn more and start your application now, go to fb.me/start.