Two local early-stage startups have been named the winners of a quarterly Community Fund pitch competition offered by San Antonio coworking space, incubator and accelerator Geekdom.
The first company, StackIQ, is an educational technology software platform that enables users explore different careers, won $25,000 from Geekdom. SAFETech, which creates software to help schools communicate better during emergencies and crisis situations, received a $20,000 investment.
StackIQ winners Gabe Ruiz and Taylor Henry met at another coworking space in San Antonio and realized they both had a passion for creating a technology that could relieve career frustration and confusion for job-seekers.
Ruiz and Henry moved to Geekdom in 2021 for more startup resources and their project was "pressure-tested and refined" by Geekdom's pre-accelerator program, said Ruiz. The pair credit Geekdom with much of their success.
The new platform has three pillars, according to Henry — the first is called "#Adulting," free to all users. It features "easily digestible" information about financial literacy ranging from topics like credit, credit cards and budgeting, to student loans, taxes and interest rates.
The second pillar is an exploration tool within StackIQ called MiniStack, which offers seven- to 10-minute micro-modules — a "peek behind the curtain" hearing about the day-to-day experience in careers users are interested in, whether that's data science or brand design.
The third pillar, the Career Closet, allows users to select industries that fit their interests most, and over 30 days they can work on developing hard skills through expert-led modules, as well as work on the portfolio needed for an entry-level position.
Henry told the Business Journal the $25,000 in prize money will be used to fast-track the fledgling company's go-to-market revenue-generating products, MiniStacks and Career Closet, as well as to pay experts for their time, expertise and content producing modules. With the Community Fund won, they hope to see an official launch in Fall 2022.
Each quarter, Geekdom member startups can apply to the pre-seed funding compeititon and if chosen, will pitch their idea to a guest panel to win the investment as a SAFE note. They are evaluated based on the quality of their business model, their use of funds and how well the startup aligns with Geekdom's mission. In this competition, guest investment panelists included LisaGillespie of HearstLabs, David Fonseca of VelocityTX and Ben Jones of Skipcart.
Other finalists this quarter were Zeus App, a rewards credit card that applies to any health or fitness purchase; PrintNet3D, a software platform that helps manage 3D-print form workflows; and Special Leaf Tea, a niche beverage company that brews olive-leaf tea.
Geekdom was founded in 2011 and offers member resources and programming for entrepreneurs and startups of all kinds. Applications for the 2022 Q3 Community Fund open August 1.
