Columbus typically doesn’t experience the extreme economic highs and lows seen in other major cities across the U.S.
We saw that clearly during the housing downturn brought on by the Great Recession. (Doesn’t that seem like a quainter time anymore?) When that downturn hit, Central Ohio didn’t see housing prices collapse as extremely as in some other regions, in part because we didn’t have the extreme price run-ups that those places saw before the economy turned.
I bring this up because the local tech industry has not been immune to the dramatic slowdown in venture capital investing that we’ve seen nationwide for more than a year. But at the same time, there hasn’t been widespread carnage either. Some companies are still pulling in outside funding while others have retrenched to conserve cash in this new reality.
It’s important to keep that perspective when something major does happen, such as the collapse of Olive AI in November, not two years after the Columbus company raised $400 million in a funding round that valued it at $4 billion.
That was certainly a shock, especially to the 115 people still working there when Olive made the announcement in late October.
The company peaked at about 1,400 employees in early 2022, and those are a lot of potential entrepreneurs with experience at one of the fastest-growing startups the region has seen.
It’s impossible to predict which company might become the next Olive – the successful version – but one of the lessons from the coasts with much deeper tech and VC histories is that the failure of one company can lay the seeds for many more.
The companies highlighted in this year’s BizTech Awards are all finding their way in the market and some are farther along in that journey than others. Still, they all have potential and are led by energetic leadership teams.
Keep an eye on them as they build their road to success.
Check out the slideshow with this story for a look at our honorees. Having trouble? Slideshows on this page autoplay, or you can find the small white arrow midway down the photo.
2023 BizTech Awards
Wolf Starr, CEO
Based: Columbus
Employees: 8
Website: theventureatlas.com
Description: We are committed to opening doors and eliminating barriers to access for partners, entrepreneurs and funds. Our network is making venture capital accessible to all, regardless of race, gender or sexual orientation.
What does Columbus need to help grow your business? Columbus is on the right track. We could just learn from some of our neighbors that we do not need to be the next Silicon Valley, New York City or anything. We just need to be the best Columbus we can be and that will create the opportunities for the next generations to build the opportunities that they dream of.
Brandon Bornancin, CEO
Based: Dublin
Employees: 265
Website: seamless.ai
Description: Seamless.AI helps professionals create new relationships, opportunities and revenue faster than ever before.
What does Columbus need to help grow your business? Everything we need is right here in Columbus. This is where we got our start and we couldn’t have done it without a community that celebrates entrepreneurs and fosters amazing talent and world-class education. ... The accessibility of Columbus is incredible. It’s easy to fly into and easy to fly out of. Real estate developers have taken notice, with amazing office spaces cropping up throughout greater Columbus, all with walkable access to hotels and restaurants. There’s not much we need from Columbus to grow our business because it’s a city that’s already on the rise and thriving.
John and Pamela Gregory, CEO and CFO
Based: Columbus
Employees: 45
Website: ncustec.org
Description: NCUS Tec is a state-assisted institution of higher learning offering viable credentialed programs.
What does Columbus need to help grow your business? Columbus is a city that prides itself on its diversity and innovation. However, there is still room for improvement when it comes to creating more opportunities for minority-owned businesses to participate in the city’s growth and development. Minority entrepreneurs face many challenges and barriers that limit their access to capital, markets, networks and resources. These challenges not only affect their individual success, but also the economic and social well-being of the entire community. Therefore, Columbus needs to be more open to creative solutions that can foster a more inclusive and equitable business environment.
From left, VP Kristen Muenster, CFO Pamela Gregory, SVP Perry Gregory
Ronak Patel, CEO
Based: Hilliard
Employees: 200
Website: thesunflowerlab.com
Description: We help businesses turn their ideas into reality with our custom digital solutions and services.
John Bair, CEO
Based: Hilliard
Employees: 10
Website: convergetechs.com
Description: Converge Technologies is a commercial engineering and business advisory services firm created to support efficient development and commercialization of innovation.
What does Columbus need to help grow your business? It would be great to have more manufacturing and engineering groups that create some new forums for best practices.
Brian Zuercher, general partner
Based: Columbus
Employees: 15
Website: 1870ventures.com
Description: 1870 Ventures is a company-building studio bringing IP to market. We discover, fund and build companies around breakthroughs originated at universities and institutions.
What does Columbus need to help grow your business? It is imperative for the broader business ecosystem to step up and support early-stage companies from Columbus as customers. For startups, customer capital is the most crucial form of capital, as it provides them with the necessary experience and credibility to succeed. We can achieve a triple bottom line approach consisting of startup support, business connectivity and local capital investment to ensure that early-stage companies get the customer capital they need to thrive. This approach will undoubtedly have exponential payoffs and it’s time for us to take action.
Peter Coratola Jr., CEO
Based: Dublin
Employees: 305
Website: easelogistics.com
Description: Ease is a full-service logistics solution leader, delivering success 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.
What does Columbus need to help grow your business? Our business hinges on the community around us – the community that has supported us since the very beginning and has allowed us to grow and thrive in Central Ohio. What our region needs now is continued innovation in the way we collaborate with each other – businesses, local government, nonprofit organizations, schools and, of course, residents. ... A commitment to fostering collaborative innovation is key to propelling us forward and creating better workplaces, better supply chains and even a better world. Together, we can pioneer solutions to both age-old and emerging challenges, including the development of infrastructure crucial for supporting our expanding workforce. This collaborative effort seeks sustainable advancements in transportation and supply chain logistics, addressing issues of equity and representation within our community.
Founder and CEO, The Be W.I.S.E Initiative
Inno Under 25
What attracted you to your field? (It) all comes back to my dream of becoming an aerospace engineer. As a child, I had the privilege of having a wide range of opportunities as well as supportive parents who helped me embark on my engineering journey. However, I quickly realized that I was in fact one of the lucky ones. Many kids around me ... did not have the same experiences that I had access to. This realization fueled not only my passion for pursuing my personal aspirations, but also for ensuring that future generations could embark on a similar journey.
CEO and co-founder, ReHeva Biosciences Inc.
Individual honoree
What attracted you to your field? Both of my parents are cancer researchers and I grew up in their laboratory. Looking at cancer cells through their microscopes was a part of my childhood. As I got older, I naturally gravitated to the sciences and from there during my post graduate studies to cancer research. That culminated in my PhD and fellowships in cancer and studying the aging process. Yet my attraction to fighting cancer goes beyond its being ‘the family business.’ Cancer is such a global problem because it is so varied, so adaptable, so aggressive and so homicidal. It is a fascinating opponent. And it is a personal one. Like everyone else in the world, I have friends and family who are its victims.
CEO, Esports Foundry
Individual honoree
What attracted you to your field? Passion. I grew up around gaming. I was fortunate to have a front-row seat to seeing my Dad build and run his own business within the industry, focused on retail and B2B sales. From the time I was 7, I’d get home from hockey practice and rush to get online and play. It was a massive part of my life that didn’t have many outlets available until I was through high school and most of college. My goal became clear. I would build and deliver world-class products and solutions to meet the needs of gamers everywhere.
