Andy Hakes believes his startup is ready to take flight.
The Buffalo-based firm Hakes founded in 2018 is getting a boost from Launch NY to get there.
Launch NY is investing $125,000 in AireXpert ($75,000 from its nonprofit seed fund; $50,000 from its for-profit limited partner fund).
AireXpert's software manages the complex series of maintenance tasks that are required before commercial planes can take flight.
Hakes said that regional airlines have become full customers. He is targeting bigger accounts with major U.S. and international airlines, with several beta projects in the works.
He said that airlines are beginning to stabilize following two years of pandemic-related disruption. In the process, he said, there is a growing acceptance that digital tools can make their operations more efficient.
“We have a global opportunity in front of us,” Hakes said. “We have all the pieces in place to become a very large company with employees that are doing cool work.”
Hakes said Launch NY’s funding will lead into a full seed round sometime this year. He works closely with ACV Auctions co-founder Jack Greco, who has invested in AireXpert in the past.
AireXpert has a handful of employees and is headquartered in the Incubator@CBLS on the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus.
The investment is Launch NY’s largest in a single startup company and comes during Black History Month. Hakes is Black.
Launch NY hopes the investment “instills confidence among Black and underrepresented founders who aspire to launch their own startup companies here in Upstate New York, especially given our dedicated Founders Go Big program that provides exactly the kind of support to help diverse entrepreneurs build a high-growth enterprise,” CEO Marnie LaVigne said.
