AWS Activate Providers and Org IDs: how to get one and apply for Portfolio.

IWhat is an AWS Activate Org ID?

It is the unique identifier of an AWS Activate Provider. You enter it in your Activate Portfolio application to show that the provider backs you.

AWS's FAQ puts it plainly: each Activate Provider "has a unique identifier called an Org ID." The same answer says an Org ID is confidential and "not a promotional code." Do not post it or pass it on. (AWS Startups FAQ)

The Org ID is what makes your application a Portfolio application. Without one, the tier open to you is Activate Founders, which you also apply for yourself.

AWS checks the link between you and the provider. If it cannot confirm it, AWS declines the application. The fix, per AWS: ask your provider to answer the Activate verification email. If the provider cannot find that email, it should contact its AWS representative.

You can use an Org ID once. To apply for more credits later, you need a different Org ID or a larger offer from an Activate Provider.

IIWhat is an AWS Activate Provider?

A VC firm, angel investor, accelerator, incubator or other startup program that has partnered with AWS Activate to offer credits to the startups it backs.

That is AWS's own definition (AWS Startups FAQ). Each provider gets an Org ID and access to Provider Central. There it can see and share its Org ID, invite startups by email and track their credit applications.

Who can become one: AWS says it accepts VC firms, seed investors and accelerator programs that are actively investing in startups. It does not take non-investing groups such as co-working spaces. A firm applies on AWS's Activate Providers page.

AWS sets each provider's credit packages and reviews them every year. That is why two investors can offer different amounts.

An Activate Provider is not the same thing as an AWS consulting partner. Providers back startups and hand out Org IDs. Consulting partners do technical work on AWS. A consulting partner cannot give you an Org ID, and it cannot apply for Activate on your behalf.

IIIIs there a list of AWS Activate Providers?

Not a full public one. AWS names a few featured providers and does not publish the rest.

AWS's providers page features NVIDIA, Carta, Y Combinator and Andreessen Horowitz, and says AWS works with hundreds of accelerators, angel investors and VC firms. AWS's credits page puts the network at thousands. Neither page lists them all.

So the fastest way to find out is to ask. Four places to check:

• Your investors: Email each investor's platform or portfolio team. Ask two questions: are you an AWS Activate Provider, and can you send me an Activate invite? Angel investors count if they are providers.
• Your accelerator or incubator: Check the perks page or program portal, or ask the program team.
• Startup programs you belong to: Some programs that are not your investors also hold Activate offers. NVIDIA is one of AWS's featured providers. Our directory notes the AWS angle of each program, for example NVIDIA Inception.
• Our credits directory: The CloudRoute directory lists 62 startup credit programs and how each relates to AWS. Its AWS Activate page covers every tier.

If none of your backers is a provider, you can ask them to apply. Until then, Activate Founders and the partner routes in section VII are open to you.

IVHow do you get an Org ID or an email invite?

You ask your provider. AWS recommends the email invite over typing in the Org ID.

Providers can send you a personal invite from Provider Central. The invite link pre-validates your link to the provider, and AWS says invite applications are approved faster than applications that use the Org ID. For Org ID applications, the AWS FAQ gives 7 to 10 business days.

Three rules from the AWS FAQ:

• Use the same email: Apply with the exact email address the invite went to. Otherwise the pre-validation does not work.
• Use it soon: Email invites expire after 30 days. If yours lapsed, ask the provider to send a new one.
• Keep the Org ID private: If you get the Org ID instead of an invite, treat it as confidential.

Send your provider your company name and the email you will apply with, and ask for the AWS Activate Portfolio invite. If it has more than one AWS offer, ask which fits your stage.

A provider's offer sets your amount. The AWS FAQ uses $5,000, $25,000 and $100,000 as examples of offers from one provider, and the maximum is $200,000.

VHow do you apply for Activate Portfolio with an Org ID?

You apply yourself, on the AWS Startups site. It takes four steps, and you need an AWS account on a paid plan.

Check that you qualify first. AWS lists these conditions:

• Stage: Pre-Series B. The AWS FAQ says applications are open to startups up to and including Series A.
• Age: Founded in the last 10 years, with a working website or public profile.
• Funding date: For Portfolio, apply within 12 months of your most recent funding round.
• AWS account: An account on the Paid plan. AWS says Free plan accounts are not eligible for Activate credits.
• Credit history: New to Activate credits, or asking for more than you received before.

VICan you use more than one Org ID?

Yes, if each new application asks for more than you already received. AWS then pays the difference.

AWS lets you apply for Portfolio again when three things hold: the new offer is larger than your last approved award, you have not reached the lifetime maximum, and you have a valid Org ID you have not used. You must still be linked to that provider when you apply.

AWS's own example: a startup that received $10,000 and then applies for a $100,000 offer receives $90,000. If the new offer is smaller than what you already have, AWS declines it.

There are two other ways to get more AWS credits: your AWS account team, and, for AI startups past Portfolio, AWS Credits for AI Startups at $200,000 or more, by invitation. Invite only. Talk with your AWS account manager. There is no open application.

VIIWhat if no Activate Provider backs you?

Then Activate gives you the Founders tier, and the larger money for a startup without a VC usually comes from a vetted AWS partner who files MAP, POC or IW funding.

AWS Activate Founders: $1,000 to start, up to $5,000. Apply yourself at aws.amazon.com/startups/credits. No investor, accelerator or partner needed. It is a sensible first step, and applying is free.

Partner-filed funding works differently. When you migrate to AWS, test something new or launch new work on AWS, a vetted AWS consulting partner can request MAP, POC or IW funding from AWS for that project. For startups it is usually $50K to $150K. Depends on the workload; AWS approves. You do not need an investor or an Org ID for it.

Partner funding is an AWS Partner benefit. AWS's partner funding page says partner funds help "explore proof of concepts, and accelerate migration projects." A startup cannot open that request itself. AWS's MAP page lists "financial investments" among the help MAP gives.

You can do both. Apply for Activate yourself, and have a partner check whether your workload qualifies for partner-filed funding. They are separate programs with separate filers, and AWS decides each one.