"On fire in 2020 could mean a lot of things, because there were literally times when the world was on fire."
Those are the words of Elizabeth O'Day, founder and CEO of biopharma startup and Inno on Fire honoree Olaris. O'Day was one of the speakers at BostInno's 2020 Inno on Fire event, honoring the dozens of innovators that have managed to blaze a path forward this year — and acknowledging the unique difficulty of that achievement.
In the age of Covid-19, Inno on Fire (formerly known as 50 on Fire, for those of you who have been following BostInno for years) looked a little different. Rather than celebrating in person with drinks and music and mac and cheese, we had to replicate the pomp and circumstance of the awards ceremony onscreen. The qualifications for winning the award looked different, too. The pandemic has challenged Boston-area startups, threatened their futures and made growth that much harder.
For some, the pandemic created opportunity. For others, it issued a major test — which these players have passed.
"It's been an exciting year," said Patrick Kinsel, CEO of remote notarization startup and Inno on Fire honoree Notarize, during a fireside chat. "I want to acknowledge it's been a really challenging year for everyone — myself personally, our team — but it's been exciting for us. We, for years, have been fighting to bring our service to market. A thing I think a lot of people don't appreciate is an online notarization doesn't occur for fun. It occurs as part of a business transaction."
This year, Notarize found itself bolstered by the need for remote transactions. The company experienced 400% growth in a 90-day period in the spring, a trend that Kinsel thinks will only continue. Traditionally analog deals like car purchases, real estate transactions and more have been forced to go digital, and they're not likely to go back now.
All of the speakers at Inno on Fire — O'Day, Kinsel, Karolina Starczak of Nutrimedy and Le Zhang of Squadle — experienced something similar in their own businesses. Covid-19 required all kinds of pivots, as customers' needs changed, the world of work went mostly remote and corporate leaders began to look to startups for innovative solutions.
Inno on Fire provided an opportunity to look back on what these business leaders have accomplished over the last year, but it also offered the chance to look forward to the projects and endeavors they are working on for the future. (Watch our entire panel discussion in the video below!)
Although we announced our Inno on Fire honorees in October, it wouldn't have been a BostInno awards ceremony without a big reveal. At the end of the event, we announced the Inno Blazers in each category: the 11 hottest startups of 2020.
Many congratulations to this year's Blazers:
- Food and Agtech: Squadle
- Security Tech: Evolv Technology
- Software: Luminoso
- Cleantech and Greentech: Radical Plastics
- Impact Investors: One Way Ventures
- Ecosystem Supporters: Massachusetts Biotechnology Council (MassBio)
- Biotech: Talaris Therapeutics
- Health Tech and Medtech: PatientPing
- Early-Stage: VODA.ai
- Inno Picks (Other): Alyce
- Alumni: Notarize
You can watch the video revealing the Blazers below:
Our Inno on Fire celebration would not have been possible without the support of our sponsors, Amica, Poppin and Rue Gilt Groupe. Thank you so much for supporting local innovation.
Couldn't make the event, or just want to experience the magic again? We've got the whole thing on video below. Check it out.
