From 32 teams down to four. We’re now just one week away from crowning an Inno Madness champion in Cincinnati – and Round 3 of our annual bracket-style challenge proved the most competitive yet. Nearly every matchup went down to the wire, but Safewave, Band Connect, Noxsano and Nichefire ultimately proved victorious.
Safewave and Band Connect will meet head-to-head in the first of two semi-finals, while Noxsano and Nichefire pair up on the opposite side of the bracket. All four teams narrowly advanced in Round 3 – Safewave by just 36 votes – while Band Connect showed the largest margin of victory with a 55% advantage.
Overall, more than 1,500 votes have been cast since the competition kicked off March 19. ICYMI: Inno Madness is our friendly, bracket-style challenge where readers vote to advance companies based on one question: Who would you invest in? Whether you believe in one mission or product over the other or would prefer to back a more established company versus an early-stager, how you answer that question is entirely up to you.
Meet the remaining participants below and catch up on the contest rules here.
The goal of Inno Madness is to give a snapshot of some of the most promising tech companies in the region. We'll open up voting round by round before crowning a winner April 9.
Don’t delay. Round 4 ends at the end of the day, Thursday, April 4.
Meet the players
- Band Connect is developing a digital health platform plus fitness equipment outfitted with sensors to promote in-home physical therapy. The company recently landed approval for its first U.S. patent and is in the process of raising a $1.5 million seed round.
- Nichefire, based in Covington, is building an artificial intelligence-powered platform to help companies understand and predict the impact of emerging cultural trends. The startup closed a pre-seed round last year.
- Noxsano is going to market with a wound care solution targeting the veterinary industry. The company, founded by a team of scientists and health care professionals from Procter & Gamble, McKesson and more, is backed by Cleveland’s JumpStart Ventures and individual angel investors.
- Safewave’s smart wristband connects via Bluetooth to fire alarms, Ring cameras, security devices, even the Owlet baby sleep monitor – turning any notification or alert into a vibration people can feel on their wrist. The device is tailored to customers who are deaf and hard of hearing, but there’s also a market for those with significant special needs, dementia and Alzheimer's.
