DivInc has selected 10 companies to join its Spring 2024 Sports Tech Accelerator, attempting to tap into a broadening market of sports technology.
Three Texas-based companies, including one from Houston, are part of the new cohort. The 10 companies span a variety of subsectors within sports, including human performance, fan experience, fantasy sports and betting, stadium and venue innovation, and sports media:
- Detroit-based Athlytic, was founded by Ashton Keys to connect college athletes with brand partners under name, image and license — commonly called NIL — rules.
- Tulsa, Oklahoma-based Ballin AI, founded by Nyla Pollard, is an artificial intelligence-driven platform that generates scouting reports based off game footage.
- Austin-based Cache AI, founded by Kobi Wu & Malur Narayan, is an AI and machine learning model that informs athletes on their brand strengths and market values.
- Prosper, Texas-based Drafted, founded by Jennifer Blundell and Karina Martinez, is a company that connects players and brand partners while highlighting influential Latinas in sports.
- New York City-based Drip Tech Co., founded by Karishma Bali and Eneko Gonzalez, is an app that creates a “hydration profile” for users to monitor and track biometrics.
- Coquitlam, British Columbia-based Drive Hockey, co-founded by Adam Nathwani and Mike Dahlstedt, is a software company aiming to bring professional-level analytics and equipment to amateur players.
- Cincinnati-based LunchTable, founded by Joshua Reid, uses AI to create and organize content drawn from fans, sponsors, players and teams.
- Parscape, based in Chicago and Los Angeles and founded by Michael Webb and Andrew Wenum, is a marketing platform aimed at golf players, courses and sponsors.
- Houston-based Trainr, founded by Abdul Foster, is an app designed for sports trainers that allows them to schedule and collect payments.
- Rochester, New York-based Wevolv, founded by Jori Davis and Julie Wojta, is an app that provides contract analysis and agent matchmaking services for players.
The accelerator program will run for 12 weeks, with in-person programming held at the Ion in Midtown.
DivInc Houston has launched a series of accelerator cohorts in different verticals since its 2021 expansion from Austin, but its augural sports tech accelerator was DivInc's most successful cohort overall, according to DivInc Houston Managing Director Ashley DeWalt.
“Now, we are building on that initial success,” DeWalt said. “With the addition of amazing new strategic partners, including Rice University and Underdog Venture Team, we know these founders are ready to make and undeniable impact in the sports technology market projected to be $55 (billion) by 2030.”
Some of the accelerator's other partners include Bank of America, JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Houston-based venture capital firm Mercury. Nate Thompson, co-founder of HTX Sports Tech, is serving as the entrepreneur-in-residence, or mentor, for the program.
“The future of sports tech hinges on empowering the next generation of innovators, and DivInc’s focus on creating that space is exactly what the industry needs to truly thrive,” Thompson said in the announcement.
HTX Sports Tech was a programming partner for the first Sports Tech Accelerator in 2022.
Trends in artificial intelligence and fan experience innovation have resulted in a few Houston-based success stories in the startup world. Rivalry Tech, which was founded in 2018 by Aaron Knape, has raised multiple rounds of funding for its platform sEATz, which allows fans to order concessions without leaving their seats.
Last year, Rivalry Tech’s myEATz platform expanded beyond sports to health care and hospitality, launching at several Houston Methodist campuses to allow employees to schedule meal pickups.
Other DivInc accelerators that have been run in Houston include its Women in Tech Accelerator, which launched in 2022; its DWeb for Social Impact program, which began in 2023; and its Clean Energy Tech Accelerator program in partnership with Chevron Corp. (Nasdaq: CVX).
Sign up here for the Houston Business Journal’s free morning and afternoon daily newsletters to receive the latest business news impacting greater Houston. For more business intelligence, follow us on LinkedIn, Facebook, X (formerly known as Twitter) and Instagram.
