As the pandemic causes many live events to go digital, it has helped some accelerator programs to expand the geographical reach for their cohort members.
Joining a number of other programs announcing their fall program lineups, the Techstars-powered MetLife Digital Accelerator has unveiled the 10 startups of its third cohort, which includes Plano-based AI fintech platform InterGen Data.
“This year’s digital accelerator brings together a diverse cross-section of tech innovators and specialized financial wellness experts to respond to these needs,” said Meredith Ryan-Reid, senior VP of financial wellness and engagement at MetLife, in a prepared statement. “These startups will focus on developing compelling employee-benefit solutions that can flex to each customer’s needs while addressing the broader impacts of a challenging socioeconomic climate.”
Typically, the insurance industry-focused accelerator program would be hosted in North Carolina, but it moving to a virtual format this year due to the pandemic. And its cohort members come from across the U.S. and Hong Kong.
The three-month program kicked off this month and caps off with a Digital Accelerator Demo Day in December. Throughout the accelerator, the startups will receive mentorship and opportunities to experiment and scale their products. This year, the accelerator said it plans to focus on developing financial wellness and engagement solutions in the areas of debt, health, senior and child care and racial inequality.
Founded in 2017 by Robert Kirk, InterGen’s platform uses AI and machine learning technology that helps financial planners identify upcoming life events and their potential financial impact on their clients. Last year, InterGen was one of 34 startups in the 2020 Mass Challenge FinTech Program cohort. And in May of last year, the company landed a $800,000 seed round from angel investor Stan Thomas, putting its pre-money valuation at $4 million, according to Crunchbase.
“There is a significant opportunity for financial institutions to use AI to transcend the client experience and conversation,” Kirk said in a statement at the time of the funding. “By connecting data and mapping it to each life stage and life event, we can better plan for the unexpected. Today’s financial planning systems architecture must evolve to meet the needs of a digitally empowered and intelligent consumer.”
Check out the nine other startups joining the MetLife Digital Accelerator below with descriptions provided by MetLife.
- ChangEd (Chicago) - Accelerates repayment of debt at every stage of life (e.g., student loans, mortgages) to get borrowers out of debt sooner. ChangEd automates savings, payments and develops an intelligent debt repayment journey.
- Dot (New York) - Mobile-first robot financial advisor delivering personalized recommendations helping people increase savings, optimize spending and plan for retirement.
- FinGoal (Boulder) - Uses AI to analyze consumer behavior providing personalized, less expensive alternatives (e.g., a cup of coffee to insurance and everything in between).
- Holisticly (New York) - Provides employees with a monthly wellness stipend to choose from a range of team-wide experiences and fitness and mental health solutions (e.g., Calm, Audible, ClassPass, Headspace and Peloton).
- Kinside (Los Angeles) - Connects employees to a network of 1 million daycare and preschool spots, with pre-negotiated spaces and exclusive savings. Payments are made pre-tax via an application programming interface integration with flexible spending accounts and third-party administrators.
- LivNao (Sunnyvale, Calif.) - Passively measures mental health for delivery of behavioral nudges to improve wellbeing.
- Mellow (Hong Kong) - Resource for parents to teach kids, ages 6-18, how to build money habits and use digital payments across savings, spending and earnings.
- OfColor (Maplewood, N.J.) - Provides content, banking tools and AI advice built around how people of color save, spend and build wealth.
- VillagePlan (Boston) - Provides on-demand experts and technology tools to help families care for aging loved ones.
