The first occurred when his government scholarship to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) was canceled a month before the trip, and he had to struggle to keep his spot. The second occurred years later, when he sought to immigrate to Canada and encountered problems related to renting a home. And the third would happen again in the United States, where he nearly lost US$20,000 dealing with lawyers who wanted him to apply for a Green Card for which he wasn't eligible.

These financial, legal, and bureaucratic difficulties during his studies and international relocation led Fabiano to identify the need for a fast, reliable, and accessible immigration service that combines specialized human review and artificial intelligence.

Jumpstart: Technology and AI to democratize immigration

Jumpstart was founded in late 2023 by Fabiano Rocha and Mateus Nobre, both friends from the same university. Fabiano, with experience at multinationals such as Ambev, Johnson & Johnson, and Solvay, has also worked at social impact startups such as Quero Educação, VTEX, Isaac, Stoa, and Principia. Mateus has experience at various startups, such as Stone, Provi, and Wildlife, and was even part of the founding team of the startup Enter.

Jumpstart's proposal combines artificial intelligence trained in immigration with specialized human review. "We've achieved a balance between AI agents and human specialists. We're different from a traditional law firm, which often lacks transparency and speed, but we're also different from artificial intelligence solutions that operate without any oversight," Fabiano explains.

The startup's process involves three layers of review to increase the likelihood of success: artificial intelligence, paralegals, and attorneys specializing in US immigration. The petition is delivered in just two weeks, and some clients have even managed to file in less than a week.

Jumpstart offers prices up to 50% lower than traditional law firms and operates on a success-based model: visa application approved or your money back.

The "founder package" for Latin American entrepreneurs

Jumpstart offers immigration consulting for Latin Americans seeking to immigrate to the United States. Its flagship product is the "founder package," specializing in O-1A visas and green cards via EB-1A or EB-2 NIW.

This package includes not only the visa or green card process, but also business opening, accounting and tax planning, employee relocation, and even pet immigration through partner companies. The startup also offers visas for investors (E-2), business transfers (L-1), students (F-1, J-1), and their families (CR-1, IR-1).

Accelerated growth and regional expansion

In its first year and a half of operation, more than 1,100 people have used Jumpstart's services.

Initially focused on both immigration and financial services for immigrants, Jumpstart evolved to focus on immigration consulting after identifying the largest opportunity in this segment. It began operating in Brazil but now serves founders throughout Latin America.

The startup raised US$450,000 in a pre-seed round with angel investors Brian Requarth (Latitude) and Matthew Allan (former head of credit at PayPal and Google). These investors have provided both capital and strategic advice, following a philosophy of efficient capital raising.

Vision of the future and international expansion

In the short term, Jumpstart seeks to facilitate the immigration of more Latin American startup founders. Its long-term vision is to become the go-to platform for entrepreneurs in the region seeking international expansion.

The startup plans to include more partners in its "founder package." "We believe there is still plenty of room for growth throughout Latin America," the founding team notes.

With the immigration services market traditionally expensive and opaque, Jumpstart seeks to democratize access to formal immigration, facilitating the mobility of Latin American talent and boosting startup creation in a competitive global market.

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