An early-stage Milwaukee startup building an app that would connect basketball players with indoor courts recently won $5,000 in a local pitch competition.
The startup, called I Got Nxt, would have an Uber-like model of pairing idle gyms with competitive or recreational players who want to rent them, founder Monte Eady said. Users could include coaches, trainers and individual players.
"I would love it to be a huge basketball ecosystem," Eady said. "The community that is there for basketball could be a lot larger than what it is. It's only a matter of connecting people."
Eady presented I Got Nxt in late June at the Launchpad Pitch Competition co-hosted by the Milky Way Tech Hub and the Milwaukee Founders Community, two local groups focused on growing Milwaukee's startup and technology sector.
I Got Nxt was officially incorporated as a Wisconsin business on July 14. Eady had the idea for the company years ago but only recently started focusing on it, he said. The recent pitch competition was his first public debut of the concept.
Moving forward, Eady is working on a minimum viable product for I Got Nxt, getting early feedback from users and setting up a website, he said.
Eady, 37, is involved in technology and entrepreneurship in many capacities. A professional graphic designer, he does contract design and branding work through his company ME Design Studios. He also teaches local science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) classes.
He's also the founder of LikeMinds, a software company focused on helping organizations develop communities and find talent. Eady started it as a student at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee but it's currently "on hold" while he focuses on I Got Nxt and other projects, Eady said.
Other startups that pitched at the June Launchpad Pitch Competition were:
- AppEase, founded by Nicole Tilot, digitizes medical records retrievals to modernize underwriting for life, long-term care and disability insurance.
- BetterPlay Studios, led by Michael Sapiro, makes video games designed to improve mental health without sacrificing gameplay or fun.
- Atomix, represented by Andrew Webber, is a logistics startup that leverages software and its unique micro-pod model to provide customized shipping fulfillment for e-commerce brands.
- Internship on Demand, led by Keegan Moldenhauer, is a pre-internship hiring platform that connects employers with early-career talent.
