Charlotte-based Task Force X Capital, a veteran-led venture capital firm, revealed two winners in its sixth annual Veteran Startup Showcase held last week.
Washington, D.C.-based Pyrra, a threat intelligence platform company, won top honors and $50,000 in non-dilutive funding to help advance its business. Second place and $12,500 went to Denver, Colorado-based Aclymate, a software solution startup.
The TFX Capital showcase, which was a hybrid competition this year, gave participating founders the opportunity to compete for funding to help grow their networks. To achieve that, participants met with invited investors, corporate executives, innovation leaders and network stakeholders.
“Each year, TFX welcomes an elite group of founders to participate in this Showcase, and every year we are consistently impressed with the caliber of finalists. The 2022 Showcase certainly was no exception,” said Kevin Eckert, partner at TFX Capital, in a statement. “The judges ultimately selected Pyrra due to their unique market opportunity to deploy a solution top of mind for government, media companies and enterprises with an exceptional team positioned to succeed.”
Three other companies also competed in the showcase. They include: Tampa, Florida-based accelEQ, a digital health-care platform; Wilmington-based Essential Personnel, a workforce management and wellness software solution; and Arlington, Virginia-based Phalanx, a data security provider.
All five participating finalists connected with TFX members for one-on-one coaching and mentorship to accelerate their businesses beyond the event.
Winning startup Pyrra was represented by co-founder and Army veteran Welton Chang. Second-place Aclymate was represented by co-founder and Navy veteran Mike Smith.
“I’m really proud of how our team’s work showed through at the Showcase," Chang said in a statement. "The TFX Startup Showcase was not just an opportunity for us to tell a new audience about Pyrra, but it was also a fantastic way to get to know four other dedicated and talented founders. This is one of the reasons why we competed — to connect into this community that TFX fosters and receive access to startup support that is hard for veterans to find."
The judging panel included Greg Brown, owner and president of Cardinal Finance and administrator at the Charlotte Angel Fund; Karl Hightower, chief data officer at Novant Health; and Jodi Hubler, board director and advisor at Gratum Ventures.
