Editor's note: Voting for this round of Inno Madness has closed. You can see the results and vote in the final round here.
Two underdogs prevailed in the same region of the bracket in Round 1 of this year’s PHL Inno Madness. The upsets set up a clash between the two startups in the next round.
Inno Madness is a friendly, bracket-style challenge where readers vote to advance companies based on one question: Who would you invest in?
Whether you believe in one mission or product over the other or would prefer to back a more established company versus an early-stage startup, how you answer that question is entirely up to you.
PHL Inno Madness launched on March 2 as a fun way to elevate tech-enabled startups in Greater Philadelphia and showcase the innovation ecosystem as a whole. We built a bracket of 16 companies based on reader nominations, as well as editorial input. Companies were seeded and divided into four categories: Unicorns, life sciences, emerging growth and up-and-comers. Nearly 600 votes were cast in the first round, which ran through March 7.
In the emerging growth section of the bracket, West Chester social media auditing startup LifeBrand won comfortably over top seed Crossbeam, marking the first of two upsets. In that same region, real estate startup Houwzer edged No. 2 seed Piano. Throughout the week, Houwzer and Piano exchanged leads in the most hotly contested matchup in the first round before Houwzer finally prevailed.
Elsewhere in the draw, it was business as usual with the higher-seed companies winning the remaining first-round matchups. In the unicorns region, delivery startup Gopuff defeated Ambler-based human resources tech platform Phenom, while Misfits Market took out dbt Labs. That sets the stage for an interesting matchup between the two food-based unicorns as they will vie for a spot in the semifinals.
In the life sciences region, the top-seeded Center for Breakthrough Medicines in King of Prussia defeated Temple University spinout ExpressCells, while Berwyn-based AscellaHealth prevailed over Picwell. That creates a second-round showdown between two suburban companies: the cell and gene therapy contract development and manufacturing organization versus the pharmacy benefit management startup.
In the up-and-comers region, Lula Delivery edged out Employee Cycle in a tightly contested match, winning with 55% of the vote, while Philanthropi knocked out xBound. How will the top-seeded Drexel-born delivery startup fare against the “401(k) for philanthropy” in their Round 2 matchup?
Here's a closer look at the remaining companies and Round 2 pairings:
Unicorns
- Gopuff: Delivery startup Gopuff is well on its way to going public after raising huge growth capital in the last year. Gopuff last raised a $1.5 billion convertible note that could lift its valuation to as much as $40 billion. The company was last valued at $15 billion.
- Misfits Market: Misfits Market has evolved from a startup solely selling “ugly produce” to cut down on food waste into a full-blown grocery vendor offering direct-to-consumer produce, proteins and dairy. The startup raised $425 million in 2021. With a valuation now topping $2 billion, Misfits Market is expanding quickly and hiring hundreds of individuals in Greater Philadelphia.
Life sciences
- AscellaHealth: AscellaHealth is one of Greater Philadelphia’s fastest-growing companies with revenue growth reaching 417% over the three-year period from 2017 to 2020. The Berwyn-based pharmacy benefit management startup was ranked at No. 299 on Deloitte’s 2021 Technology Fast 500 list and has raised $50 million since it was founded in 2013. AscellaHealth offers pharmacy management programs to provide access to specialty medications.
- Center for Breakthrough Medicines: The Center for Breakthrough Medicines is already having a busy 2022, entering deals with local organizations to research and develop gene therapy treatments and opening a lab that could add up to 2,000 jobs in Greater Philadelphia. The King of Prussia startup received $350 million in an equity investment from SK Inc., a South Korean conglomerate, to continue developing cell and gene therapy treatments.
Emerging growth
- Houwzer: Houwzer is challenging the traditional homebuying model while being one of the country’s fastest-growing companies. The real estate tech startup is set to add three new products to its roster, a move that will help Houwzer expand in its current markets. It recently raised a Series B comprising $18 million in equity and a $100 million warehouse line of credit.
- LifeBrand: If you’ve been to a sports event in Philadelphia in recent months, odds are you’ve seen LifeBrand’s logo. The West Chester social media auditing startup has partnerships with local teams including the 76ers, Eagles and the Phillies. Eagles wide receiver DeVonta Smith obtained equity in the company through an endorsement deal last year. LifeBrand raised a $27 million Series A in January, bringing its valuation to $110 million.
Up-and-comers
- Lula Delivery: Lula is on an upward growth trajectory. The Philadelphia startup, which offers delivery from convenience stores and bodegas through existing platforms like DoorDash, GrubHub and Uber Eats, as well as through its own platform, recently raised $5.5 million in an oversubscribed seed round.
- Philanthropi: Headed up by Keith Leaphart, the chair of the Lenfest Foundation, Philanthropi created a “401(k) for philanthropy” platform that lets consumers start their own personal foundations to support charities and nonprofits of their choice. The startup, among the newest in Greater Philadelphia, raised a $4 million seed round in December.
Now that you've met the remaining businesses in the running for the 2022 Inno Madness title, it's time to vote. Second-round voting begins today and continues through March 14 at 11:59 p.m. New rounds of voting will launch each Wednesday and close the following Monday. We'll hold voting round by round, ultimately crowning a winner at the end of March.
Vote in the second round here: Inno Madness, Round 2
Questions about Inno Madness? Read the contest rules here.
