Momentum for expansions to the USA in 2025 was stronger than ever: We ran ground-breaking government-backed expansion programs, formed cohorts of startups to enter the USA together, supported portfolio companies on behalf of their venture capital investors, and created fresh ecosystem partnerships. We’ve been busy deepening our global collaborations, re-vamping our technology with AI, and guiding a record number of the world’s most ambitious founders into the U.S. market. It’s been a busy, good year.

Whether you're exploring U.S. expansion, building traction, or actively scaling, this newsletter captures what’s happening in the USA, across our programs and where global innovation is headed next.

If you’re interested in expanding across borders or helping others do so, read on.

What We’ve Been Up To

Scotland’s Innovative Support for Scaleups: The Next Wave Arrives in the USA

Our partnership with Scottish Enterprise continues to be one of the most effective examples of government-supported U.S. expansion.

After the inaugural cohort set a strong benchmark, we’re thrilled to welcome the next group of six cutting-edge Scottish tech companies. A powerful example of how governments can successfully create programs to accelerate their most promising scaleup companies to ramp up sales (and jobs):

🌎 Glitchers: Their Sea Hero Quest is a serious game to help monitor cognitive health and is played by 1.6 million people every day. And soon even more in America!

🌎 ePass: Solving the fragmented licensing tools market for authorities and businesses. Winners of the CivTech Award and masters of tobacco and vaping licensing all over Scotland!

🌎 ESG360: Support to automate and optimise ESG data collection, governance, and reporting. Mandatory or soon mandatory for many companies in California, or for suppliers to European corporations!

🌎 Fanbase: An all-in-one platform for sports teams to consolidate fan engagement, ticketing, merchandise sales, and more. You don’t have to be a famous NFL team to use the best digital tools!

🌎 HaloDrive: Management software for automated vehicle fleets. Not all autonomous vehicles are Waymos, and significant benefits can be had in the trucking sector!

🌎 Neuranics: Is redefining gesture recognition with its magnetoresistance technology. Let us know if you’d like to meet them at CES in January!

How We Partner With Governments to Build Global Competitiveness

Around the world, governments are shifting from traditional trade missions to evidence-based, traction-focused expansion programs, and USA Launching Pad is proud to be a key partner in that evolution. Through our highly structured Market Access, Market Discovery, Market Activation, and Market Penetration programs, we work closely with government agencies to help their companies enter the U.S. market with clarity, confidence, and strategies validated directly with potential U.S. customers.

Our work spans trade agencies, innovation agencies, economic development boards, and university-linked entrepreneurship offices, all united by one objective: to accelerate their ecosystem’s ability to compete in the world’s largest and most demanding market.

Case Study: Scotland’s U.S. Scaleup Program “MarketBooster”

Our partnership with Scottish Enterprise is a strong example of what’s possible when government-backed innovation meets U.S.-grounded execution.

Scotland has a long history of high-tech innovation rooted in its excellent universities. Having created a robust startup ecosystem, Scotland’s government recently shifted some of its focus to helping its most promising companies grow bigger, faster, with a dedicated scaleup program for U.S. expansion. The inaugural cohort included five companies during the first half of 2025. The impact clearly demonstrated the benefits of such a scaleup program:

• £23.4M forecasted new sales over 3 years

• 60+ new jobs created

• U.S. revenue achieved 6–12 months faster than unsupported U.S. entries

This fall, Scotland doubled down and selected a second batch of high-growth companies for a customized version of our Market Discovery and Market Access programs. You can read more about the six companies above. 

Government partners choose USA Launching Pad because our approach is not theoretical: It is real conversations, real validation, real traction, all delivered by seasoned U.S.-based experts. Our approach is unique in its scale and breadth: We source feedback directly from tens of thousands of potential customers for each company. The method is proven effective with over 50 companies from 4 continents.

New Partnerships

VarsityScape × USA Launching Pad: Connecting Africa’s Top Universities to U.S. Innovation

Our new partnership with VarsityScape, Africa’s “Academy OS,” opens a direct innovation bridge between leading African universities and the world’s most advanced U.S. tech ecosystems.

Through the co-branded U.S. Market Access Program, students and faculty gain:

• 1–2 week immersion in Silicon Valley & other U.S. innovation hubs

• Hands-on venture validation

• Direct access to U.S. buyers, investors, and field experts

• A “Learn Before You Launch” approach to global entrepreneurship

Africa is home to one of the world’s fastest-growing talent pools, and this partnership is designed to connect that talent with the U.S. ecosystems capable of accelerating their global impact.

Explore the program here, and if any university that might benefit comes to mind, please pass it along.

GoGlobal × USA Launching Pad: Global Hiring Meets U.S. Market Entry

We are excited to partner with GoGlobal, a world-leading provider of Employer of Record (EOR), payroll, entity setup, and compliance services spanning more than 80 countries.

This partnership bridges two essential sides of international expansion:

• GoGlobal enables companies to hire worldwide with compliant EOR and payroll infrastructure.

• USA Launching Pad equips founders to enter the U.S. market with customer-ready messaging, strategy, and validation.

Through this collaboration, companies expanding into the U.S., or scaling globally, can access:

• Global EOR services without establishing local entities

• Unified payroll and multi-country compliance

• U.S. market validation, GTM readiness, and sales enablement

• Coordinated partner support and co-marketing initiatives

Together, we’re enabling founders and enterprises to scale across borders with speed, operational clarity, and customer-driven traction.

OneValley × USA Launching Pad: Expanding Global Startup Access Through Passport

Our partnership with OneValley connects international startups and innovation programs to the Passport platform: a powerful marketplace and ecosystem infrastructure used by accelerators, universities, foundations, and governments worldwide.

This collaboration unlocks:

• Free, global access to the Passport marketplace for startups

• A modern application and program management engine for ESOs

• Seamless discovery of pitch events, accelerators, and innovation programs

• A bi-directional channel partnership expanding opportunities across both ecosystems

OneValley’s PassportOS powers end-to-end entrepreneurship ecosystems, while USA Launching Pad delivers the strategic, market-facing side of U.S. expansion. Together, we’re simplifying how founders find programs, engage communities, and scale into new markets.

Interested in partnering with us? Get in touch with our team.

Top of Mind

Thought Leadership for Founders & U.S. Expansions

1. Your Network is Your Growth Engine
   TL;DR: Strong relationships accelerate traction, funding, and partnerships far more than cold outreach. Being in the right rooms over time creates real opportunities for founders.

   Read more here.

2. U.S. VCs Take Data, Not Assumptions
   TL;DR: U.S. VCs don’t assume international traction will translate. Founders who start collecting U.S.-specific proof points early, from American followers and pilots to localized messaging and small demand tests, signal seriousness. You don’t need to relocate to validate the market, but you do need data that proves U.S. buyers actually care.

   Read more here.

GTM, Scaling & Fundraising Insights

3. Start building U.S. VC relationships 12–18 months before you raise

   TL;DR: Don’t wait for your round to start networking. U.S. investors back people they’ve seen over time, early relationship building creates familiarity, trust, and stronger conviction when the time to fund arrives.

   Read more here.

4. Myth: a strong pitch deck wins U.S. investors
   TL;DR: Investors aren’t sold on slick slides, they want proof that real users care and your model works. Real traction beats a pretty deck every time, and early validation tells a stronger story.

   Read more here.

Stay Connected!

If you’d like to learn more about how our programs help founders test, validate, and scale in the U.S. market, reply to this email or get in touch with our founders at [email protected] and [email protected].

Follow us on LinkedIn for founder wins, market insights, and program launches - and on Instagram for a behind-the-scenes look at what it really takes to break into the U.S. market.

Thank you, and see you next time.

Gert, Matt, and the entire USA Launching Pad team 🚀