Given the public investment in pre-incubation programs to support new venture creation, it is key to assess their effectiveness. Literature acknowledges their impact, yet the extent of their effect still needs to be quantified. To fill this gap, using a regression discontinuity design, we estimate the effect of receiving an entrepreneurship training treatment on subsequent firm creation. Our sample consists of 318 applications (accepted and rejected) to a pre-incubation program between 2017-2020 in Italy. Evidence suggests that the effect of the Pre-Incubation Program is positive and marginally significant for all entrepreneurial projects. It gets stronger and more pronounced for digital projects (software and hardware) and non-significant for non-digital ones (e.g., manufacturing, food). We offer implications for entrepreneurship research and public policy.
