The Dayton startup scene continues to heat up with greater venture capital, innovative technology and new ideas. More businesses than ever are attracting outside capital and young entrepreneurs are disrupting their industries. Today, there are rising stars in categories like military defense, technology, food service and medical.
Dayton Inno has been following all the storylines with heightened interest. As a way to recognize the region’s fastest-growing, most innovative and impactful startups, we're introducing our annual “Fire Awards," formally Inno on Fire. It's a recognition for the companies and people setting the local innovation economy ablaze.
Candidates — 15 in total across two categories — were sourced by nominations within the startup Dayton ecosystem and selected by the Dayton Inno editorial team.
This year's winners will be announced in the July 8 print edition of the Dayton Business Journal.
Here are the Inno on Fire nominees in the Startup Category:
Battle Sight Technologies - This veteran-owned rapid research and development company is geared toward communication, opting for an innovative approach to low-tech search and rescue products, utilizing night vision capabilities. Founded and run by company president Nick Ripplinger, Battle Sight is finalizing its current product line as it works steadily toward a new set of products, all to be commercialized prior to the end of 2024.
“I truly feel like my time in the fight got cut short. This is my way of staying in the fight and trying to help defend this country… I don't want our men and women to go into a fair fight at all. I want them to always have the upper hand,” Ripplinger said.
Website: https://battlesighttech.com/
Get Dished - A woman-owned meal kit and prepared meal service which just jump started its grab-and-go station. About two years into business, Get Dished opened its first brick-and-mortar location in Kettering, incorporating local venders on site like Val’s Home Bakery which doubled sales in a few weeks. Founder and owner Katie Easton is looking to perfect her menu with a taste test kitchen for the remainder of the year.
“I just want to continue to grow and help the local community be able to enjoy fresh, healthy food that tastes great, is convenient for them and just allows them to focus on all the things that really matter,” Easton said.
Website: https://get-dished.com/
Sentinel Occupational Safety – This Fairborn-based technology startup personalizes safety monitoring through sensors, software and artificial intelligence to provide an “intelligent guardian” for those in risk-prone settings. Sentinel Occupational Safety recently raised $2.1 million in venture capital to expand the development of its platform for industrial safety and personal health monitoring. Company co-founder and CEO Zachary Kiehl recently offered his advice on raising venture capital.
“You constantly have to remind yourself to keep building products that customers are willing to pay for. And if you do that well enough, the funding situation will take care of itself,” Kiehl said.
Website: https://www.sentinelofsafety.com/
Drone Express – A local woman-owned logistics and drone package delivery service. The company is partnering with major players like Kroger and Papa John’s for pilot testing periods, expected to be extended. Drone Express is closing in on its FAA drone package delivery certifications among companies like Amazon and Google in preparation for its next steps.
“There's nobody that we speak to that doesn't know drone delivery is coming,” Flippo said. “You can't add more trucks to the road. We really see that the future is going to be soon and we're just excited to be a part of it.”
Website: https://droneexpress.com/
Cognovi Labs Inc. - A technology company using an artificial intelligence (AI) analysis software to predict and affect decision-making. Cognovi Labs’ Emotion AI enables companies to better understand how their target audience will make decisions, anticipate what it means in terms of outcome and determine how engagement can change that outcome. The software has been used to track and alleviate public anxiety about the pandemic and measure public motivation toward the vaccine.
“Human beings, we're not as rational as we think we are,” said Beni Gradwohl, co-founder and CEO of Cognovi Labs, Inc.
Website: https://cognovilabs.com/
True Concepts Medical Technologies LLC – This medical device innovation company has created two new syringe prototypes designed to save lives and reduce cost of care while minimizing the opportunity for human error. One syringe is intended to increase accuracy for sepsis diagnoses. The other is a two-in-one dual chamber syringe to help treat cardiac arrest and eliminate errors in administration.
True Concept Medical Technologies is gearing up for a $15 million Series A funding to finish development and pursue clearance.
“It's been a tremendous experience, to see your idea come all the way through to fruition and actually have a working prototype. It was a catalyst to take everything to the next level, build out the business, and really prepare us for an exciting 2022 and 2023,” said company founder Mick Hopkins.
Website: https://trueconceptsmedical.com/
The Cookieologist - A self-proclaimed local cookie dealer company with a fresh cookie and milk back-door pickup and delivery service. The Cookieologist Founder and Owner Isiah Davis said by the company’s second anniversary in August, he hopes to open a second location for a full-production kitchen.
“For me, it’s all about quality,” Davis said. “If you want a cookie that is made by someone who was focusing on that and that alone, focusing on the texture, the quality, the taste, supporting local business, this is the cookies we make. This cookie is for someone who loves cookies.”
Website: https://www.thecookieologistdyt.com/
