Startups today are increasingly looking for ways to create a positive impact on the world, and the tech industry at large is taking notice.
Google announced this month that it's launching a startup accelerator focused on sustainability, where it will help social impact startups that are working to create a healthier and better future. Well-known tech accelerator Techstars operates a social impact program to boost startups that are driving community impact. And deep-pocketed tech investors like Bain Capital and TPG Growth have created funds to invest hundreds of millions---and in TPG's case billions---of dollars on social impact businesses.
Whether it's due to millennials' increasing commitment to corporate social responsibility, the fact that sustainable investing funds have met or exceeded the returns of traditional equity funds, or simply because it's the right thing to do, impact startups---and impact investing---is on the rise.
Social impact startups have also taken hold in Wisconsin, as several programs have launched in recent years to provide support to local upstarts that are looking to make the world a better place.
StartingBlock, a Madison-based tech hub and co-working space, launched a Social Impact Initiative earlier this year to give workspace and resources to companies that are giving back. Social Good Madison operates an accelerator aimed at ventures that are solving community issues. And last year AmFam launched the American Family Insurance Institute for Corporate and Social Impact to support impact startups and other leaders of social change.
Wisconsin-based gener8tor, one of top startup accelerators in the U.S., has also made social impact a priority through its gBETA Social Impact accelerator, a free program for startups that are committed to creating positive change in the world.
gener8tor's Social Impact accelerator officially launched in 2018 and has held several cohorts, including a program last summer that set out to develop new ideas to address recidivism and ultimately help formerly incarcerated people launch new businesses.
"Increasingly, companies are realizing that in order to be successful in terms of getting customers and attracting talent, they need to think of social impact in some way," said Lauren Usher, the director of gener8tor's gBETA Social Impact program.
"A lot of the people I work with are helpers at heart," she continued. "They found a way to (build a business) in a way that makes money and allows them to help more people down the line. They’re not focused on profits to make a lot of money, but they’re focused on profits so they can put it back into the business and grow and help more people."
With the holiday season approaching, we wanted to take a look at some startups that are focused on giving back. Here are five social impact startups to keep your eye on in Wisconsin.
Founded in 2015, Madison startup NovoMoto distributes solar-powered electricity kits to communities in sub-Saharan Africa. Working primarily in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, NovoMoto's rent-to-own electricity kits help provide power to off-grid populations, providing five hours of light to two interior lamps and a full day's charge to a cell phone.
The company, led by co-founders Olson and Mehrdad Arjmand, won the 2018 Wisconsin Governor’s Business plan contest and participated in StartingBlock's first Social Impact Initiative. The startup has also received two grants from the U.S. Department of Energy, and it's backed by Chicago-based Clean Energy Trust.
Like NovoMoto, Madison-based Elektrifi is working to bring electricity to the developing world, as well as disaster relief areas. The startup, a spin-out of UW-Madison, is working to increase the reliability of microgrids, which are smaller, independent electricity networks that serve small groups of users. Elektrifi is developing the hardware and software for an energy management system to help keep people powered and use electricity more efficiently. It's currently working to power rural homes in India.
Elektrifi is currently participating in the WERCBench Labs Accelerator in Milwaukee, and previously went through gener8tor's Social Impact program.
Milwaukee startup Agricycle makes organic dried fruits while empowering rural women farmers in developing countries. The startup was one of eight startups this year selected to the Target Incubator program. The Target Incubator works with impact businesses, giving each company a $10,000 stipend and access to Target’s resources and mentors.
Agricycle partners with rural farmers in Sub-Saharan Africa, Central America, and the Caribbean to make organic dried fruits. The company makes passive solar dehydrators, which work without electricity, to make dried fruit from produce that would have otherwise gone to waste. It also makes sustainable charcoal using 100% coconut, as well as gluten-free flours made from fruit.
Founded in 2017 by Milwaukee entrepreneur Nadiyah Johnson, Jet Constellations is a software startup that provides tech solutions to medical, financial, and "socially responsible" companies. Jet Constellations is also working to diversify Milwaukee's tech community through its Milky Way Tech Hub initiative, a partnership with the American Family Insurance Institute for Corporate and Social Impact to make sure people of different racial backgrounds are part of Milwaukee's growing startup scene.
Earlier this month, Jet Constellations and AmFam awarded over $12,000 to startups founded by diverse entrepreneurs during Startup Milwaukee Week.
Wausau-based ERbin is creating an app that makes it easier to recycle. Users can scan items and get information on if the item can be recycled, as well as other recycling-specific information based on your location. Founded by Michelle Goetsch in 2018, the startup's iOS and Android app aims to help people recycle more, and recycle right.
The company received grant funding through the University of Wisconsin-Extension’s Ideadvance Seed Funding Program and is beta testing the app in Weston.
