Startups developing innovative ways to treat post-traumatic stress disorder will descend on Crystal City this weekend to compete in the first-ever Foundry Cup. The competition, hosted by co-working space and tech startup incubator Eastern Foundry will give the 14 finalists a chance to pitch their ideas for a $10,000 first-place prize while getting a chance to meet and interact with other people working on projects related to veterans.
Eastern Foundry is planning to make the Foundry Cup a bi-annual event. For the inaugural competition, they wanted to pick a veteran-related topic that has a huge impact on thousands of lives."There is no one direct approach to treating PTSD," said Eastern Foundry managing partner Andrew Chang. "We picked it partly because there are so many ways to work on it."
The competition will take place on June 20, with the demos running from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. and will be open to the public.
The final competitor list was narrowed down from over 50 applicants, and will be judged by Geoff Orazem, CEO of Eastern Foundry, Charles Engel, a health scientist with a specialty in traumas like PTSD and international business advisory firm executive Mark Brunner.
Founded in 2014, Eastern Foundry has worked to create pathways for small, veteran-led companies to secure government contracts. Chang said the competition is really an extension of their efforts to focus especially on veteran-related issues and their companies.
Besides the the $10,000 first prize there will be a $5,000 prize for the runner-up and $1,000 for the entrant chosen as the favorite by the audience. The finalists include startups that have designed innovative counseling and therapy techniques, tech platforms to connect therapists and patients and improved ways to measure and diagnose PTSD.
"We have some really exciting people coming," Chang said. "There will be all kinds of connections made and I'm really looking forward to seeing it all come together."
