After six rounds, all the votes have been cast and we now have our Chicago Inno Madness champion for 2023.
But before we celebrate the only Chicago startup left standing, let's take a moment to recognize all those that fell before it.
Voting in this year's Inno Madness competition began in March with 64 companies at various stages of growth representing industries across Chicago. Some had been established names in the city's tech and startup ecosystem for years, raising hundreds of millions of dollars over their lifespans, while others had only just introduced themselves.
No top seed made it past the second round as this year's bracket was filled with Cinderella stories and massive upsets every week.
Last year, #16 seed Doorage, a tech-enabled storage and moving startup led by Sean Sandona, took home the top prize, so it may be no surprise that a #13 seed was crowned victor this year.
Out Of Office, a Chicago startup that aims to help users plan trips based on recommendations from their friends, is our new reigning champion after securing nearly 56% of the overall vote. More than 4,700 were cast in the championship round as the travel app took down cybersecurity startup Oak9.
Out Of Office joins past Inno Madness winners Doorage, Choobs (2021), Leaf Trade (2020), 2ndKitchen (2019), SpringCM (2018), GetSet (2017), SpotHero (2016) and Kapow Events (2015).
"We’re excited and honored to have made it past some truly impressive competitors," Alex Pedenko, CTO at Out of Office, told Chicago Inno. "We owe our success here, and as a company, to our world class team, and the incredible users we’ve been able to attract to the platform. We’ve got a lot planned for the rest of the year, including some really cool AI use cases that combine the strength of our user base and data, with generative AI’s true strengths."
Founded in 2020, Out Of Office launched in 2021 after raising a $1.6 million pre-seed round led by Austin VC firm Brand Foundry, along with with Cameo CEO Steven Galanis and former Orbitz Chief Product Officer Chris Brown, among other investors. The pre-seed round was followed by a $3.5 million raise in new seed funding last year led by Chicago's Hyde Park Venture Partners.
The startup wants to create a one-stop-shop for trip planning, from choosing a destination to developing an itinerary to booking the trip. Founded by Jan Seale and Coabi Kastan, the app allows users to add their own travel history and recommendations and allows them to invite and follow their friends, thereby creating a social network where users can decide where to go and what to see based on their friends' recommendations.
Learn more about Inno Madness and all 64 companies in this year's field here.
Check back in with Chicago Inno to learn more about what's ahead for startups recognized in this year's competition, and thanks for voting.
