With mentors, accelerators, angel investors, venture capital, and seemingly no shortage of brilliant founders, North Texas earns its title as a growing hub for tech and innovation.
Each year, Inno aims to shine a spotlight on and honor some of the region’s startup and tech companies that have been on a tear in recent months with our Fire Awards. Some have secured large funding rounds and others have emerged from stealth with big plans and lots of traction, while a number have been on a growth trajectory that has really taken off. This year’s Fire winners also include ecosystem supporters, helping local entrepreneurs hone their ideas and connect with resources in the community.
The Inno on Fire winners were pulled from nominations, and the Blazer winners for each category were chosen by a panel of local judges, including Martín Martinez, Founder Institute’s Texas executive director; Hubert Zajicek, Health Wildcatters CEO and co-founder; Bryan Chambers, VP of ventures at Capital Factory; Steve Guengerich, associate VP of innovation and commercialization at UT Dallas; and Simon Mak, executive director of SMU’s Caruth Institute for Entrepreneurship.
At an event honoring the Fire companies, we heard pitches from a couple founders and sat down for a panel with three of the Fire winners. Check out our conversation in the video below. And, if you missed out, scroll down to meet the Blazer winners from each category.
See the full list of 2021’s Fire companies here.
Lifestyle & Workplace | Gig Wage
The gig economy-focused fintech startup launched in 2016 as a data company, quickly turning its focus to payroll solutions and rebranding as Gig Wage. By 2020, the company was gaining serious traction, seeing 30% month-over-month growth in all business facets when it landed a $7.5 million Series A round led by Green Dot Corp. – a strategic partner serving as an infrastructure bank for the company. It extended that round earlier this year and took on more funding, bringing the total amount it has raised to $16.5 million. With that, Gig Wage is planning to bring its employee count to between 30 and 40 by the end of the year. Among those hires its brought on some big players, including former Tech Wildcatters CRO Clarisa Lindenmeyer as chief brand officer and chief of staff and former Techstars Western Union managing director Ethan Austin as its chief strategy officer.
Software | o9 Solutions
With big name clients like Google, Walmart and Starbucks, along with a more than $1 billion valuation, it’s not surprising the cloud-based software provider’s CEO Chakri Gottemukkala told the Dallas Business Journal earlier this year that it sees an IPO in its three-year future. Last year, o9 Solutions reached unicorn status with a $100 million investment from KKR. This year, the company, which launched in 2009, landed in the No. 728 spot on the Inc. 5000 list, with a three-year growth of 674%. In 2019, the company reported $55 million in revenue. That boost in funding has allowed o9 to expand its presence globally. With additional offices in India, Germany and China, o9 started the year with more than 800 employees and plans to reach above 1,100 before the year’s end.
Community Support | Impact Ventures
This spring, the Dallas-based nonprofit accelerator landed its largest gift to date with a $450,000 three-year grant from the Communities Foundation of Texas’ W.W. Caruth, Jr. Fund. And as it has done in the past, Impact Ventures has used that funding to help early-stage startups and small businesses through its recently-expanded BIPOC-focused program. Furthering that mission, the organization and its Founder and CEO Benjamin Vann launched the Dallas Inclusive Capital Fund, an integrated capital fund designed for underrepresented founders with flexible loans and “patient equity” investments. Ultimately, the fund is aiming to raise $20 million, with pre-seed investments of about $100,000 and seed-stage investments between $250,000 and $500,000.
Health/Medical/Biotech | Mark Cuban Cost Plus Drug Co.
“We’re going to f--- the pharmacy industry,” Dallas serial entrepreneur Mark Cuban has said about his foray into the space. The company started in 2018 as Osh’s Affordable Pharmaceuticals, named after CEO Alex Oshmyansky. Cuban became an early investor and the company took on his name and relocated to Dallas, where it’s been gearing up for production. It’s aiming to produce low-cost versions of high-cost generics, starting with the antiparasitic drug Albendazole. After that, it’s planning to introduce 100 other drugs, taking a flat 15% margin to achieve wholesale prices. It’s planning to manufacture those in a new $11 million, 22,000 square-foot laboratory facility in Deep Ellum that, according to filings, is slated to wrap up next year.
Agtech & Environmental | Skyven Technologies
The Dallas-based climate tech startup initially launched in 2013, focused on using its proprietary smart solar thermal mirror array to help industrial facilities reduce fossil fuel consumption. But Founder Arun Gupta says his life’s mission is to “move the needle on climate change” at all costs, and as the company visited sites, the team realized each one presented its own unique challenges. Now, Skyven focuses on decarbonizing emitted heat, helping facilities save between $200,000 and $5 million. Its technology has been recognized by places like the New York State Energy and Research Development Authority and the National Science Foundation. And it’s looking to scale with a $1.1 million grant from the California Energy Commission, which will help it build out an AI engineering platform that will be able to handle much of the front-end work Skyven would typically do on-site and in-person, analyzing the site, as well as the technologies available to solve the site’s specific needs.
