Iowa State University Startup Factory Announces Cohort Fifteen
AMES, Iowa (January 24, 2024) – The Iowa State University Pappajohn Center for Entrepreneurship is proud to announce the participants selected for the ISU Startup Factory’s fifteenth cohort.
Cohort 15 consists of 17 members running 10 business ventures, either individually or in teams. The cohort showcases a diverse range of ideas and businesses emerging from innovators across the state of Iowa.
“The diversity of innovations and inventions of the participants of each ISU Startup Factory cohort is an exciting challenge of the program. Cohort 15 is no exception, with many ideas coming out of funded university research and several ideas from inventors from around the state,” said Peter Hong, director of the ISU Startup Factory. “As the founders progress through the program, each seeking to find their path to successful commercialization, the Startup Factory teaching team looks forward to presenting opportunities at the spring Demo Day that will have a positive impact on society and Iowa’s economy.”
Cohort 15 includes:
Signup Casa (Nick Miller): An app that enables volunteer organizers to simplify their sign-up process and increase engagement.
Alethi (Denis Bjelica): A mobile app that allows the user to scan a barcode and understand a company’s legal and environmental history.
SmartGridAI (Ravikumar Gelli and Sai Chandana Vallam Kondu): A pioneering cloud-based software platform that enables power utilities to seamlessly balance fluctuating power from renewables; ensuring enhanced grid reliability, resilience, and security.
Work Truck (Jacob Bruggeman): Work Truck makes modular racks with removable panels to maximize the use of truck beds for any adventure.
Wave Energy Technology (Ossama Abdelkhalik, Paul Mario Koola, and Andrea Boord): Providing efficient and optimized controls for ocean wave energy companies to produce power economically.
imPETEus (Dhananjay Dileep and Aahdi Subbiah): imPETEus offers a true solution for PETE (polyethylene terephthalate) plastic waste, making it infinitely recyclable.
HARMONI (Micah Mundy): An app that helps music producers create richer, more organic vocal harmonies by tuning voice recordings to non-standard intervals.
Conformal Electronics Solutions (Jeremy Rurup and Ethan Secor): Providing the aerospace industry with hardware and software to additively pattern electronics onto 3D surfaces, enabling users to meet weight and volume reduction targets.
Reality-to-Virtual Reality (Andrew Lawson, Nir Keren, and Ashwin Jacob): For time-constrained law enforcement agencies, Reality-to-Virtual Reality offers innovative VR solutions with customizable modules and an interactive web review portal, providing an efficient and cost-effective way to enhance officer readiness through adaptive training anytime, anywhere.
CornGro Limited (Wilson Kimani): Revolutionizing agriculture in Africa by commercializing biotech seeds to empower farmers with resilient and high-yielding sorghum varieties.
Since its inception in 2016, the Iowa State University Startup Factory has supported 125 ventures across 14 cohorts that have collectively raised $65 million in funding since participating in the program.
To learn more about each of these ventures, join us at the Startup Factory Demo Day event held at the Iowa State University Research Park Core Facility Atrium on May 21 at 5:30 pm. The Pappajohn Center for Entrepreneurship is excited to support Cohort 15 and each member’s new and innovative technologies and businesses.
About the Iowa State University Startup Factory
The Iowa State University Startup Factory is a comprehensive, intensive program fostering the development of innovative, technology-based products and services. It provides a unique blend of resources, access to a network of business mentors, and hands-on experiences to help entrepreneurs navigate the path from concept to commercialization.
