A key value proposition of startup accelerators is the creation of social networks among participating entrepreneurs. The formation of these so-called “peer entrepreneur networks” is assumed to be strengthened by physical proximity within the accelerator, which facilitates the creation of trust and opportunities for informal, and often serendipitous, interactions. However, in response to the global spread of COVID-19, accelerators abruptly shifted their programs online, thereby allowing a rare opportunity to test the veracity of the assumption that physical proximity drives social connectivity. To understand how this shift affected peer entrepreneur networks, we compare longitudinal network data of two consecutive cohorts of the same accelerator: one offline-before, and one online-during, the COVID-19 pandemic. Drawing from the literature on physical proximity and interaction ritual theory, we show that in the online (compared to the offline) program, peer entrepreneur networks became less dense, entrepreneurs reached fewer peers via indirect connections, and clustering increased. We discuss contributions to theory on peer entrepreneur networks and startup accelerators.

创业加速器的一个关键价值主张是在参与的企业家之间创建社交网络。这些所谓的“同行企业家网络”的形成被认为可以通过加速器内的物理接近得到加强，这有助于建立信任和非正式的、通常是偶然的互动机会。然而，为了应对新冠肺炎 (COVID-19) 在全球的传播，加速器突然将其项目转移到线上，从而提供了一个难得的机会来检验物理距离驱动社交连接这一假设的准确性。为了了解这一转变如何影响同行企业家网络，我们比较了同一加速器的两个连续群组的纵向网络数据：一个是在 COVID-19 大流行之前离线的，另一个是在 COVID-19 大流行期间在线的。根据有关物理接近和互动仪式理论的文献，我们表明，在在线（与线下相比）项目中，同行企业家网络变得不那么密集，企业家通过间接联系接触到的同行更少，并且集群增加。我们讨论对同行企业家网络和创业加速器理论的贡献。