Fuel Accelerator from Fayetteville’s Startup Junkie Foundation has been named one of America’s Best Incubators and Accelerators of 2026 by TIME and Statista.
Fuel, the only Arkansas program to make the list, ranked No. 59 nationally on the inaugural list of 80 programs.
“Our inclusion on this list only further validates the work done to help put Fuel cohort companies in the best position to succeed,” said Caleb Talley, executive director of Startup Junkie. “No smoke and mirrors, no ceremony or performative programming, but real work for real founders that have delivered real results — as recognized by TIME.”
The recognition dropped as Fuel opened its 13th cohort in northwest Arkansas with 12 artificial intelligence/machine learning companies. Fuel launched in late 2018 with a supply chain and logistics cohort and shifted to AI/ML in 2020, adding a HealthTech track in 2023 and a cybersecurity cohort in 2024. Since 2025, Fuel has run two cohorts annually: HealthTech in the spring and AI/ML in the fall.
“Continuous improvement has always been a key piece of our ongoing strategy with Fuel as we grow — not just in the delivery of the program, but in the areas we touch, having expanded into other verticals to better serve the founders and enterprises in the Heartland,” said Grace Gill, director of Fuel Accelerator. “We’re excited about this announcement, not just because of the validation of that effort, but because of the new benchmark it sets and how it pushes us to continue to strive to do better.”
Across 12 previously completed cohorts, Fuel has supported more than 100 portfolio companies from 11 countries and 20-plus states, according to a press release. Those companies have raised more than $260 million in capital and secured more than 150 enterprise pilots and commercial contracts, with several relocating their headquarters to northwest Arkansas and adding jobs in the region.
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