The 23 Startups to Watch in Boston in 2023

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Each year, BostInno looks back at our coverage from the last 12 months — at launches, funding rounds, new deals and partnerships, awards and more — and tries to identify the startups that are on the verge of something big.

All of the companies we're highlighting here have different goals, products and team cultures, but the common thread is that they are on the verge of really breaking out.

Here's our 23 startups to watch in 2023:

AOA Dx Inc.:

This startup is developing a blood test for ovarian cancer and has a new $7 million seed round to bring its tech to the market. The company was founded in 2020 and plans to begin its clinical trials in 2023. Co-founder Oriana Papin-Zoghbi is also an advocate for women pursuing work and founding companies in the life sciences.

Deets:

Paul English’s latest app is one to watch in the year ahead. The co-founder of Kayak and Lola.com has focused on his Boston Venture Studio in recent years. Its latest project is Deets, an app where users can get suggestions on the best eateries in specific places from their network of friends. Over time, the app seeks to be a recommendation hub for any place, including coffee shops, museums, tourist attractions and hotels, but also products ranging from computers to automobiles.

DetraPel:

This Shark Tank company is channeling its early success from appearing on the TV show into long-term growth. DetraPel sells water- and stain-repellent treatments online through Amazon and Walmart and was featured on QVC and Good Morning America. The company said it plans to fuel its growth into 2023 with a new $7 million Series A funding round it will be announcing soon. 

Dexai Robotics:

Alfred the robot may be coming to a restaurant near you this year. The Charlestown company’s automated food-preparation robot made its public debut in 2022 at Bonapita and will start shipping out to more customers in December. Dexai has an agreement with the Department of Defense to send 10 Alfred robots to multiple U.S. military bases across the country and raised $6.7 million in equity funding this summer.

Eascra Biotech:

This startup's work is about to be out of this world — literally. The one-year-old Boston company recently won $1.8M in NASA grants to test the manufacturing processes for its unique nanomaterials in space. Co-founder Mari Anne Snow said Eascra is already in talks with potential licensing partners. 

Folx Health:

This LGBTQ health care service provider expects to roll out some new offerings in the next few months. In late 2022, the startup raised a $30 million Series B round. The money will go towards investment in virtual health and product offerings that support mental health, including new expert-led support groups. In this setting, the company will provide support for fertility and family planning and parental support, with more categories expected to come next year.

GenH:

This company is creating a rapidly deployable, modular hydropower system to electrify non-powered dams and canal heads. The system doesn’t require construction and can move as needed to match water resources. This startup is co-located in Boston and Los Angeles and GenH said it is close to deploying its technology in Greater Boston.

Halo Braid:

Harvard graduate student and engineer Yinka Ogunbiyi is building an automated hair braider, designed especially for Black women like her in mind. Ogunbiyi said the company’s product can cut down the time it takes to braid hair from hours to minutes. Next year, the startup plans to raise capital, launch its product and begin selling to stylists to increase the number of customers they can serve.

The Heritage Club:

At age 30, Nike John became the first Black woman — and youngest person — to be the sole owner of a cannabis dispensary in Boston. The Heritage Club opened on Cambridge Street in Charlestown in September with plans to change the course of the industry through education, diversity and quality products.

High Time Foods:

This startup, founded by two Babson College MBA students, is commercializing a plant-based minced chicken that is shelf-stable and preservative-free. High Time Foods was in this year’s Techstars Boston program and recently had its product added to the menu of a downtown Boloco. Over the next few months, the company’s focus will be on selling its product to Boston restaurants.

Hilma:

This Boston startup, founded by marathoner and ultramarathoner Brooke Torres, is looking to shake up the running-shoe industry. Hilma is a direct-to-consumer running shoe company that offers more personalized shoe fits for women. Torres launched the company at the end of October after several years of product development, testing and building with support from leaders from companies like Nike and Runkeeper. Just a month before, Hilma announced a $3 million seed round from investors including Brand Foundry Ventures; Jeanne Jackson, former president at Nike; and Roth Martin, co-founder and president of Rothy’s.

HourWork:

Rahkeem Morris co-founded HourWork in 2018 to provide recruitment and retention tools for quick-serve restaurant franchise owners. The Boston startup has grown rapidly since then. In 2021, HourWork added 4,000 franchise locations to its customer base, for a total of over 6,000 locations. Its customers include franchises of popular fast-food chains, including McDonald's, Burger King, Taco Bell and Dominos. Fueled by a Series A round, this company’s next play is building a job-training platform.

InStride Health:

As mental health troubles continue to skyrocket among young people, this startup is launching virtual mental health treatment programs for children and teens. Clinical co-founders Dr. Mona Potter and Kathryn Boger, two McLean Hospital-affiliated clinicians, created InStride Health to provide a virtual solution for more convenient access to comprehensive, evidence-based care for children and adolescents. InStride also has plans to expand its services outside of Massachusetts.

Liberty Defense Holdings Ltd.:

In the last year, Wilmington-based Liberty Defense has been testing its ‘ghost gun’ detectors at locations like one of the largest Hindu temples in the United States and Toronto Pearson International Airport. The company’s technology uses panels that emit radio frequencies that bounce off peoples’ bodies. The reflecting frequencies create a 3D image of a person’s body to detect metal and non-metal weapons. CEO Bill Frain said this technology will be commercially available in the first quarter of 2023, setting the stage for its rollout as a new security measure at airports, sports venues and more.

Little Leaf Farms:

Devens-based Little Leaf Farms is pioneering a greenhouse that grows lettuce and other leafy greens hydroponically using 90% less water than would typically be needed in a field and without any pesticides, herbicides or fungicides. In the short time since Little Leaf opened in 2016, spanning just 2.5 acres, the company has not only significantly expanded its footprint in Devens, but also it opened a second 10-acre greenhouse in July, northwest of Philadelphia. Another greenhouse is planned to begin construction next year in North Carolina, and an expansion of the Pennsylvania space is already underway with plans to be open by next spring.

Nix Biosensors:

Be prepared to see this company’s products worn by more and more endurance athletes in the year ahead. Nix makes single-use, wearable patches that analyzes athletes’ sweat. The patches can tell them when, what and how much to drink by looking at fluid and electrolyte levels. The company celebrated its commercial launch this month, but its patches have already been tested by the likes of Boston Marathon race director Dave McGillivray and Paralympic athlete Tatyana McFadden.

Normunity Inc.:

This startup is trying to figure out how to break down walls that prevent the body's immune system from getting inside and attacking solid tumors. Normunity launched in 2022 with a $65 million Series A round. CEO Rachel Humphrey, a former director and global clinical leader of R&D at Bayer, said the funds will enable her team to take up to two drugs through preclinical studies and potentially even get one of those into Phase 1 trials. It will also enable the team to nominate two additional drug candidates.

Orbital Therapeutics:

This startup is planning to bundle together nearly all the RNA advances of the 21st century under one roof. Orbital Therapeutics launched this year with backing from the likes of Arch Venture Partners and Andreessen Horowitz's health care fund a16z Bio + Health. The company spun out of Beam Therapeutics Inc. and is led by Giuseppe Ciaramella, Beam’s president and chief scientific officer. Ciaramella was also once the chief scientific officer of the infectious diseases division of Moderna Inc. Ciaramella has big plans for the startup, including growing headcount by about 100 employees each year and testing new drugs in clinical trials every 12 to 18 months.

Paragonix Technologies Inc.:

Paragonix has been transporting organs between donors and recipients for several years, starting with hearts, lungs and liver. In the first quarter of 2023, this Boston startup plans to launch its medical device for kidney transport. This will open up the largest transplant market for Paragonix and mean that the company serves all transplantable organs.

PreVeil:

Watch for this seven-year-old company to make a bigger splash in the Boston tech scene in the year ahead. PreVeil provides encryption services for businesses that need to meet compliance requirements to work with the government, either directly or as third parties or sub-contractors. With a new $20 million Series C funding round, PreVeil plans to move to a new space in Boston and double its workforce of 40 people.  

Rogue Space Systems Corp.:

This New Hampshire-based company is creating robots to declutter space and safely service or remove satellites or other “space junk.” Rogue recently announced a partnership with Virginia-based SAIC to integrate two Rogue orbital robots on a planned 2023 mission. With Raytheon Technologies moving its headquarters from Massachusetts, this might be a moment to watch other space technology companies spring up in New England.

Seaspire:

Octopus-inspired skin care? This startup says its new ingredient, inspired by a molecule found in cephalopods, can absorb and scatter natural light, is a powerful antioxidant and helps with hydration, collagen and keratin production. In 2022, Seaspire raised $3 million to develop and launch its first direct-to-consumer line, which seeks to address pigmentation disorders and skin hydration. The three-part skin care regimen is set to launch in the spring of 2023, initially through Seaspire's direct e-commerce platform. 

Smile Technologies Corp.:

This new dating app has got the attention of Drew Barrymore. Smile, created by Boston College alumna Melissa Mullen, uses machine learning algorithms to create matches based on their sense of humor. The startup launched its app in 2022 and was featured on Barrymore’s show, where the movie star said she was really looking forward to seeing how the app works.