Our Seattle Inno Madness competition is here. And we have 16 local startups vying for the coveted title of 2023 Seattle Inno Madness champion.
Inno Madness is our friendly, bracket-style challenge where readers vote to advance companies based on one question: Who would you invest in? How you answer that question — 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 — is entirely up to you. The bracket is designed to shine a spotlight on 16 innovative, fast-growing local businesses.
The bracket is assembled based on reader nominations, as well as editorial input from the Seattle Inno team. Seeding was determined by factors like funding, mission, business focus and company size. Meet the participants below and read the contest rules here.
The goal of Inno Madness is to give a snapshot of some of the most promising tech companies in the Seattle area. It is by no means a complete list of the Puget Sound region's best startups, which is a testament to the size its tech scene. It's also not just a list of the 16 most-funded startups in the region.
Instead, the bracket is meant to represent the full breadth and diversity of the ecosystem. In the end, think of the bracket as just a fun look into local tech companies you need to know in 2023. You can see a longer list of startups to keep tabs on here.
First-round voting begins now and continues through Wednesday, March 15, at 2:40 p.m. Readers can cast one vote per round. We'll open up voting round by round, ultimately crowning an Inno Madness winner in early April.
Let's get into Round 1...
Meet the companies
Helion: A fusion energy company focused on clean electricity
Group14 Technologies: A battery technology company focused on making batteries smaller, cheaper and longer-lasting
Proprio: A medical imaging company that relies on computer vision and doesn't use radiation
Boundless: A startup that connects immigrant families with attorneys and simplifies complex forms
JaxJox: A home gym startup that offers adjustable weights and a rotating touch screen
Ridwell: A recycling startup that picks up and recycles hard-to-recycle items like batteries and plastic bags
USAFacts: A not-for-profit that offers nonpartisan government data
Ventrk: A fitness and physical therapy app company led by former Seahawks wide receiver Doug Baldwin
Parse Biosciences: A biotech focused on single-cell sequencing technology
Artly Coffee: A barista robot company that uses mechanical arms to make speciality drinks at multiple West Coast locations
Zócalo Health: A startup that offers virtual health care appointments in both English and Spanish
Oggvo: A reputation management startup that helps clients use email and text to prompt reviews from customers
Talus Bioscience: A biotech focused on drug development for gene regulators
Opala: A health care data company focused on making data more accessible for providers and payers
Strike Graph: A compliance and cybersecurity company that uses artificial intelligence
Stack Moxie: A startup focused on testing and monitoring for sales and marketing operations
