Announcing the Inaugural Coolest Companies 2018 Nominees

Perhaps one of the loveliest trends in the startup world — besides driving change for the better, duh — is the increasingly crazy ways companies make their cultures incredible.

For some, it's a beautiful environment. For others, its snacks, parties, cool trips and other swanky amenities that make ping pong tables look like relics. And then there's those who, while they may have an awesome culture, it's really their wild mission that sets them apart, or their heart for giving back to the community.

Regardless, we asked the Rhode Island startup and entrepreneurial community for input on which in-state companies were the coolest — and it answered the call. Together, with editorial insight, we developed a list of nominees.

You'll notice we used the term "companies" loosely. There's some awesome nonprofits and other entities on the list, but hey — cool doesn't discriminate.

We'll celebrate said nominees and debut the winners at the Coolest Companies Fest event at Sprout Coworking in Providence on Sept. 20. Haven't gotten a ticket yet? Jump on that now.

And without further ado, our Coolest Companies nominees are (in alphabetical order):

Don’t see your name on this list? Email us and let us know why your company deserves a spot.