Pittsburgh-based homebuilding startup Module Design Inc. has been named among the latest cohort of housing-related startups from The Housing Lab, a national accelerator program that aims to make homes and communities more affordable, accessible and sustainable.
The program is run by Terner Housing Innovation Labs, an Oakland, California-based nonprofit with backing from the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, Wells Fargo & Co., JPMorgan Chase & Co., The Hilton Foundation and other philanthropic organizations.
Module is one of six startups named to the latest cohort, all of which will receive $75,000 in seed funding as well as six months of coaching and technical support aimed at helping each startup lower housing costs and eliminate the systemic racial and economic barriers to housing equity around the country. The other startups named include Frolic Communities, The Guild, The Kelsey, Parity and Pronto Housing.
"The Housing Lab’s network of affordable housing developers and impact investors present an incredible opportunity for us to deepen our commitment to alleviating the housing shortage," Brian Gaudio, CEO and co-founder of Module, said in a prepared statement. "Their mentorship and support network is unmatched in the affordable housing realm."
Since its launch in 2019, The Housing Lab has backed 11 housing-related startups, which combined have gone on to raise $340 million in additional funding.
"The ventures selected for the 2022 Housing Lab Cohort address some of the root causes of our housing affordability, equity, and climate crises in the U.S.," Carol Galante, co-founder of The Housing Lab and founder and advisor of the University of California Berkeley’s Terner Center for Housing Innovation, said in a prepared statement. "Their models and solutions are diverse, innovative, and can be scaled to reach communities all over the country, not just in their metro areas of origin."
Module's recognition in the program has led it to the second major investment in the startup since the start of the year. In May, the Richard King Mellon Foundation formally recognized 16 startups that received investments from its first-ever pitch competition. Module placed third in that competition, earning it a $300,000 investment as a result.
