Minnesota Technology Association's Tekne Awards go to Revel Health, Medtronic, Code42, others

The 23rd annual Tekne Awards were presented Wednesday by the Minnesota Technology Association, honoring Minnesota companies that have distinguished themselves with their tech.

The awards were held virtually because of the Covid-19 pandemic, a first for the Teknes. Winners included emerging startups like Phenomix Sciences, growing firms like Revel Health and established public companies like Medtronic; the only qualification for entry is that companies are innovative.

Awards were presented in 16 primary award categories, with three additional awards going to companies for their response to the Covid-19 pandemic. Winners in the Covid-19 category included 3M Co. and the University of Minnesota's technology commercialization department.

“The Tekne Awards honor the innovators and tech leaders powering Minnesota’s growing science and technology economy. This year we were especially excited to honor organizations that showed swift and innovative responses to the COVID-19 crisis," said Jeff Tollefson, the president and CEO of the Minnesota Technology Association, in a statement.

Many of the award winners were newsmakers in 2020, including health care member-engagement company Revel Health, which announced last month it was merging with Novu Inc. Revel won for its Revel Connect platform, which provides personalized messaging to members using AI.

Another newsmaker was Phenomix Sciences, which was named the Most Promising Startup of 2019 by readers of the Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal. And gener8tor was recognized for its gBeta Medtech accelerator, which is supported by major ecosystem players like Boston Scientific and the Mayo Clinic.

Code42 is the only repeat winner from 2019, when it took home a prize for cybersecurity

The full list of Tekne Award winners is below.