Local tech startups pitch to be next big thing
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A group of startups made their pitch Wednesday to the region's burgeoning AI, robotics and life science industries.
Why it matters: Pittsburgh wants to expand its tech industry and create an AI hub to rival bigger markets like Silicon Valley and Boston.
Driving the news: The AlphaLab cohort of 21 local startups showcased their technology to potential investors in Oakland on Wednesday afternoon.
- Each was awarded $100,000 in February to build out their platforms, devices and robotics.
Zoom in: The cohort includes five members in software, five in the health industry and 11 in the hardware and robotics fields.
- Clear Solar is integrating autonomous dust removal technology developed by NASA for solar panels to keep them more efficient.
- Inductive Robotics created technology installed on poles to enforce parking rules more cheaply than fare gates or in-ground sensors, said CEO Madhav Ayyagari. Their technology goes live at Carnegie Mellon later this month.
- Concordare created a patented fully digital platform to speed up the process and help users make fewer errors in their clinical trials.
- Bl!nk ensures that small businesses' and retailers' Shopify pages run quickly. CEO Bryan Brown said one of their clients, The Truffleist, saw significant increases in revenue the day after the company improved its Shopify account.
- Conopi uses AI to improve cost estimates for large-scale infrastructure projects.
What they're saying: Concordare founding account executive Sam Rapp said she was inspired to improve clinical trials because she was diagnosed with diabetes as a child and has been consistently told a cure is "just five years away."
State of play: Not every startup to come out of AlphaLab's cohort succeeds, but 2010 cohort member NoWait successfully sold to Yelp in 2017 for $40 million.
- Since 2008, the group has supported over 300 companies that have raised a total of $1.6 billion, said Innovation Works director of accelerator programs Aaron Tainter.
What's next: AlphaLab is accepting applications for the 2027 cohort, which starts in February.
Applications are due by July 17. Apply here.