The Way Out, a Milwaukee startup that created a digital platform to connect employers with justice-involved individuals, won the top prize at the $15,000 P5 Project & Milky Way Tech Hub Pitch Competition on Tuesday, one of the more than 140 events happening across the state for Startup Wisconsin Week.
The Way Out won first place and was awarded $10,000 to help develop its personal profile and assessment platform that matches job seekers with employers. The company also created a support network to help formerly incarcerated individuals.
The company was co-founded by Eli Rivera and Ruben Gaona.
The Way Out was among five finalists selected for the national pitch competition, which was supported through a partnership between Madison-based P5 Project, the American Family Insurance Institute for Corporate and Social Impact, and Jet Constellations, a Milwaukee software and consulting company founded by Nadiyah Johnson. The Milky Way Tech Hub is an initiative under Jet Constellations to diversify Milwaukee's tech industry.
Clocr Inc., an Austin, Texas-based computer software company that is developing an estate planning and disbursement platform, won the second-place cash prize of $5,000. The three other finalists were JusticeText, a Chicago startup that developed an audiovisual evidence management platform for the justice system; Carbon Reform, a Delaware-based company that is building carbon dioxide absorption technology; and Everlaunch Inc., a Los Angeles startup that is developing an interactive web platform that helps entrepreneurs through the business building process.
The Way Out, along with JusticeText, recently were selected for gener8tor's gBeta Social Impact accelerator, a free seven-week intensive program that helps social impact entrepreneurs refine their business model.
