When gener8tor and The Brandery combined forces back in February, they announced they would bring their unique pre-accelerator gBeta to the Cincy ecosystem.
In June, gBeta graduated its first cohort at Union Hall.
The "LiveBETA" event was the culmination of the free, seven-week accelerator, which works with five local early stage starts ups — no equity required. Groups are also granted access to top quality mentors, as well as other talent in the Cincy ecosystem.
Jeff Boeh, director of gBETA Cincy and program director at The Brandery, opened up the night. During his remarks, he highlighted the growth of the five startups in the first cohort, as well as the positive impact The Brandery and genera8tor were having after coming together.
Then, the participating startups took to the stage, demoing their respective companies.
The first group to present was Clancy Boyer, chief business officer of Frayt. The startup is an on-demand service that utilizes a web and mobile platform to ship from peer to peer. Boyer said that since starting the business in 2017, the company has acquired 494 drivers and 85 shippers and many happy customers who use the service to get their goods delivered.
SaferSit also presented. It's a company started by University of Cincinnati student Francie Ruppert and local mom Laura Borsky, when Ruppert was in high school in 2016. It uses an online booking service to connect parents with a sitter, and students with a flexible work opportunity; Borsky interviews the candidates to ensure they're high quality.
gBeta was an asset to the company, which plans to launch in Lexington and Louisville later this year, its team said.
“The mentors we’ve gotten out of the program are exceptional, as well as all the advice we’ve gotten from the gBeta and Brandery staff," Ruppert said.
Additional startups in the 2018 included (descriptions provided by the gBeat website):
- Zimmr: “Zimmr’s platform allows enterprises to easily monitor and manage their data science applications in real time.”
- Plantalytics: “Saves farmers up to 30 hours per week by simplifying digital record keeping for diversified and alternative farmers.”
- The Home Team: “[Its] automated platform connects customers who need moving help with local labor. The Home Team provides the moving muscle, and customers provide the truck for small-medium sized moves. The Home Team is a Delaware LLC, currently servicing Pittsburgh, Cincinnati, Columbus and Louisville.”
The gBeta has started accepting applications for its 2019 cohort.
