Local Startup Showcase Returns Friday
Hawaii's three most prominent startup accelerator programs are again joining forces to showcase the best and latest companies in their respective programs. Friday's Startup Paradise Demo Day will put company founders on stage, but rather than making pitches to judges, they will be trying to earn "investor dollars" from attendees.
The last Startup Paradise Demo Day was held in January and featured 11 companies.
The three programs are Blue Startups (founded by Henk Rogers, named by TechCrunch as one of the nation's top twenty best accellerators in March), the Energy Excelerator (funded by the U.S. Department of Defense’s Office of Naval Research and the U.S. Department of Energy to find solutions for energy challenges in Hawaii and the Asia Pacific region), and XLR8UH (a "proof of concept center" aimed at commercializing research and development from programs and people with ties to the University of Hawaii).
Although Friday's final lineup has yet to be announced, the following startups have been featured in recent Startup Paradise Demo Day announcements from each program. Each program will have 15 minutes to its stuff.
From Blue Startups' fifth cohort:
Benjamin gives the user targeted deals and sixty seconds to decide whether to buy or pass.
CandyBAR drives people to businesses using branded, location-aware mobile apps.
Huedoku is building upon an addictive color puzzle to enhance perception and aesthetics.
NaluTrip is an online activity marketplace for young Chinese living abroad.
Ujoin helps pass laws by using data analytics and innovative communication tools.
VRCHIVE is a virtual reality content hosting and sharing company.
From the Energy Excelerator's 2015 cohort:
Bandwagon connects passengers to share rides and taxi fares through their mobile app.
Go Electric delivers microgrids to attach to or detach from utility power at a moment’s notice.
Kunoa Cattle Company enables large-scale local food production powered by renewables.
Prota Culture produces biodiesel and animal feed from organic waste.
Rebound Technology turns supermarket freezers into batteries.
Spider9 develops smart controllers that improve large battery systems.
And from XLR8UH's second cohort:
Adnoviv builds intelligent occupancy sensing technology for energy conservation.
Akabotics develops autonomous robotic solutions for waterway maintenance.
Bio-Logic is a drug platform to treat inflammatory bowel disease and colorectal cancers.
Comprendio provides actionable analytics for real-time education.
Jun Innovations offers supercooling technology that resists "freezer burn."
Morphoptic develops advanced telescope mirror technology for solar energy.
The event will be held from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. on Friday, May 29 at the YWCA of Honolulu at 1040 Richards Street. Tickets are available online for $25 (plus $1.62 Eventbrite fee).
