When we started Chicago Inno Madness last month, there were 64 competitors vying for the title. Now only eight remain.
By this time next week, we'll be closing in on our winner from each region and heading into the semifinals, but first, a quick recap of what happened last round:
Region C had the tightest race of the Round 3 with #14 seed Science on Call, one of Chicago VC firm LongJump's first 15 investments, barely squeaking out a win over #15 seed ShowingHero, with a vote of 597 to 588. In the healthy foods matchup of the week, Farmer's Fridge (#8) and Aqua Cultured Foods (#12) went back and forth until the end before Aqua Cultured Foods pulled away with 605 to 580.
In Region B, New Era ADR (#13) took down last year's winner Doorage (#16) with more than 55% of the vote, and mental health app Stigma (#15), named one of Google's Best Apps of 2022, pulled off one of the biggest upsets of the round, taking down Foxtrot (#3), a grocery store concept that currently has 26 locations across Chicago, D.C., Dallas and Austin.
Oak9 (#11) advances to the finals of Region A after beating the only top-two seed left Nature's Fynd (#2) with a vote of 626 to 559. The cybersecurity will face off against BriteCo (#12), an online jewelry insurance with big plans in 2023.
And finally, Out of Office (#13) secured the most votes in Round 3 as the travel app advanced over the cannabis software startup Leaf Trade (#9) in Region D, 698 to 487.
Check out the bracket below to see all the companies that made it to the next round, and keep the votes coming!
Meet the remaining players, broken up into four regions. We'll update this list of companies with each round's participants.
BriteCo: An online jewelry insurance platform that lets users quickly see quotes and purchase coverage online.
Oak9: A cybersecurity startup that integrates into a firm's development pipeline and continuously scans new code for vulnerabilities, sends alerts when there's a problem and can automatically remediate the code.
New Era ADR: A software startup that allows arbitrations and mediations to take place completely virtually.
Stigma: A mental health app that crowdsources videos from people battling a range of conditions.
Aqua Cultured Foods: A startup that's making alternative seafood made from mushrooms.
Science on Call: A platform that provides 24/7 on-demand tech support to restaurants.
Out of Office: A travel app that helps you plan trips based on recommendations from your friends.
Mezo: A technology platform for property maintenance.
