A good idea is just a lonely spark -- unless you have the right elements around it. Sputnik ATX, an Austin-based startup accelerator, is aiming to give a new batch of companies a better chance of catching fire as it kicks off its winter program.
Sputnik, which launched in Austin in 2017, said it had 700-plus applicants for its winter cohort. The program includes $100,000 in seed funding via SAFE notes and three months of mentorship and office space at Sputnik's downtown offices.
“The five that we have selected to invest in are those who are tackling big problems in their markets and making a difference in the world," Sputnik ATX CEO Oksana Malysheva said in a news release.
Below is a look at the four cohort companies, followed by one entrepreneur-in-residence startup that was selected as part of a partnership with the University of Texas. (Company descriptions were provided by Sputnik.)
- Kanthaka brings personal trainers and one-on-one yoga instructors to any location on demand. Through the Kanthaka app, exercisers can summon a highly vetted instructor within as little as 90 minutes; the app is currently available in 8 cities throughout the United States.
- Mod Tech Labs serves production studios by streamlining the process for creating 3D assets; it makes 3D creation effortless through a processing software that cleans, refines and enhances imagery from photogrammetry to volumetric video. Mod Tech Labs' assets integrate easily into any workflow and minimize man-hours and infrastructure costs.
- RxThat was founded by physicians and experts in pharmacy operations to improve the health of patients by making prescriptions more transparent and clinical operations more efficient. There is a high toll of unaffordable medications: Half of all patients forgo prescriptions due to cost, and 10% of annual hospitalizations are due to missed medications. RxThat's proprietary mobile platform empowers patients by providing immediate, accurate prescription copay pricing at multiple pharmacies. It's free to patients, accommodates all insurance and requires no new technology investment for physicians. RxThat is also a 2018 MIT Hacking Dermatology Award Winner.
- Trashbots helps K-12 educators teach hands-on STEM affordably. Their kit includes a programmable robot, software to learn coding, and ready-to-go lessons for students and teachers. Its structured curriculum employs an engineering process, which encourages kids to iterate and take risks to learn. Since its founding two years ago, Trashbots is now in 30+ schools and has been named Top 10 EdTech Startup in the USA by the Global Edtech Startup Association.
- Sandbox Systems (Entrepreneur-in-Residence) is the creator of a cloud-based integrated development environment that takes the traditional process of creating apps from a desktop program to the web. Within the software industry, the lack of mobility has limited the true potential of new solutions. Sandbox's flagship product, Makai, provides collaboration and mobility to both novice programmers and top enterprises. The company's unique platform is designed to be a flexible tool to augment an engineer's ideal experience through custom solutions.
Kanthaka appears to be based out of Houston. Mod Tech Labs is based out of Underminer Studios in Austin, its website shows. RxThat receive grant funding from MIT. And Trashbots was founded in Austin by Paul Austin, Rohit Srinivasan and Sidharth Srinivasan. It was one of Austin Inno's 2019 50 on Fire companies.
Editor's note: This post has been updated to correct RxThat's connection with MIT.
