Beating out hundreds of applicants from across the country, a D.C. startup has been selected to join the newest cohort of the Comcast NBCUniversal LIFT Labs Accelerator.
D.C. coworking startup WorkChew will join 10 others in the third cohort for the Techstars-powered accelerator program.
“The entire Comcast NBCUniversal family is excited to learn from this diverse group of talented entrepreneurs, and help elevate their companies in new ways," said Sam Schwartz, chief business development officer at Comcast, in a statement.
The 13-week accelerator program, which kicked off Wednesday, focuses on startups working in connectivity, media and entertainment. The program includes mentorship and product development expertise through Comcast NBCUniversal’s and Techstars’ network of leaders. It will also include workshops on fundraising and communicating through the media.
Due to the pandemic, the accelerator has taken its programing online. And this year, the accelerator said it has focused on diversity and inclusion, with more than half of the companies having founders that self-identify as underrepresented or female.
WorkChew, led by co-founder and CEO Maisha Burt, turns restaurants and hotels into coworking spaces during non-peak periods, connecting remote workers to them via an online marketplace. The 2-year-old company offers a membership model for $20 a month, with an option to drop in for $10 a day. D.C.’s HalfSmoke, Bar Deco, Chaia, Shaw’s Tavern and District Doughnut are among the businesses on board with WorkChew, though some are closed during the pandemic, per the company’s website. It also runs at Red’s Table in Reston, and a handful of restaurants in Chicago.
“We are incredibly excited about the opportunity to work with two prestigious organizations like Comcast NBCUniversal Lift Labs and Techstars. We believe their support, mentorship and resources are going to be instrumental in our growth and rapid expansion,” Burt and co-founder Allyson McDougal said in a statement to DC Inno.
“Covid significantly affected our business initially but since reopening our restaurants we’ve seen 30% [month-over-month] growth in both signups and visits,” they said.
The company is not foreign to the accelerator atmosphere, either. WorkChew went through Chicago-based Relish Works’ Food Foundry accelerator last year. The business has raised $100,000 in funding, according to PitchBook.
“Entrepreneurial passion is more important than ever. Curiosity and different thinking can help society and businesses emerge to what’s next — and we’re ready to start working with these companies focused on areas that are important to our company and customers,” Schwartz said.
Here are the other startups joining the accelerator:
- AfroLandTV: The Dallas media platform streams Pan-African TV shows and movies.
- Beam Health Group: The New York company provides telehealth services to health care professionals and health systems.
- Cast: The San Francisco startup generates audio and video reports from data, to make financial information such as revenue data easier to understand.
- Covatic: The London-based business helps media companies improve their apps and how consumers engage with their content.
- Glow Up Games: The Brooklyn company creates mobile games for underrepresented individuals, gathering data to inform the development of diverse characters in the gaming industry.
- Introvoke: The San Francisco startup’s technology fuels virtual events and other branding services.
- Kidas: The Philadelphia-based artificial intelligence service notifies parents about their kids’ digital interactions, aiming to protect them from online predators and cyberbullies.
- Percepta: Another Philadelphia company, Percepta’s computer vision tech analyzes security camera feeds to monitor shoplifting.
- Seshie: The third Philadelphia startup in the cohort, Seshie runs live and virtual team-building to foster company culture.
- Showcase: The New York platform helps companies recruit and hire through its platform.
