In this installment of our Accelerator Series, hosts Kelvin Crosby and Chris Maher sit down with Molly Lazarus, Director of the U.S. accelerator at Remarkable—a global nonprofit funding and supporting startups building innovative solutions for the disability community.

Molly’s path to Remarkable is anything but conventional. From growing up alongside family members navigating ALS, to running summer camps for children with disabilities, to becoming a special education teacher-turned-startup founder backed by Y Combinator—each chapter shaped her belief that accessibility demands both empathy and innovation. A cold email to Remarkable’s team in Australia ultimately brought those worlds together.

In this episode, Molly shares what it really takes to build—and support—mission-driven companies:

•  Why some accelerators are actually “decelerators”—and how Remarkable is different 
•  How their nonprofit model creates regenerative capital for the disability tech ecosystem 
•  The two universal challenges every startup faces—and how coaching helps solve them 
•  Why vulnerability and psychological safety are critical for founder growth  

Throughout the conversation, Molly offers hard-earned insights for founders at any stage: building a company is hard, often lonely, and full of trade-offs—so choosing the right problem to solve matters.

Whether you’re building in accessibility, evaluating accelerators, or navigating the emotional and strategic realities of entrepreneurship, this episode offers an honest and refreshing perspective on what it takes to grow something that truly matters.

Links & Resources

•  Molly Lazarus: LinkedIn 
•  Remarkable: Website

COMING SOON!

American Sign Language (ASL) and Captioning for each episode will be provided on our YouTube channel. Go to handle @SamaritanPartners.