What started with 32 startups across the commonwealth has been whittled down to just two companies left vying for the championship title in our second annual KY Inno Madness tournament, following more than 2,300 votes in the semifinal round.
In the semifinal between Region A upstart No. 8 BumptUp out of Bowling Green, Kentucky, and No. 5 Farmers Plus from Region C, it was the latter company representing Leitchfield, Kentucky, that came out on top with 52% of the vote.
On the other side of the bracket, the remaining No. 1 seed, Wicked Sheets out of Louisville from Region B, fell to No. 6 Feedcoyote from Region D after the Paducah, Kentucky-based startup claimed 61% of the vote.
Click here, or on the bracket below, to vote in the final round.
Founded by Tressa Fisher, Farmers Plus features an app with a digital marketplace designed for the agriculture tech industry, which includes the capability of conducting e-commerce transactions. The app launched recently, following more than a year of development
“This app is for an intended market and could open up so many opportunities in the world of agriculture,” one nominee said.
“It brings farmers together, into the future,” said another nominee.
Founded by Stevens Bonhomme, Feedcoyote serves as a collaboration platform for freelancers. It was created to address both the increasing numbers of freelancers in the digital space, and the resulting increased need for connections to other freelancers.
“We realized we had a common problem, so we decided to put the platform together, which is great because we use our own platform to solve our problems,” Bonhomme told me back in December.
Bonhomme arrived in Paducah in September as one five winners of the 1ST50K competition with Paducah-based Sprocket and Codefi, based out of Cape Girardeau, Missouri. Back then, he also said that he was in the middle of trying to raise $3 million for a seed round following the $50,000 he won from the competition and a $50,000 match from Keyhorse Capital.
So who will end up on top? The choice is yours. Vote now through 11:59 p.m., Sunday, April 2. We’ll announce the winner on Monday, April 3.
