The Hyperdrive program, the $30-million incubator launched by Waterloo, Ont.-based Communitech, announced its second cohort today with 11 technology start-ups participating. The incubator is welcoming its second cohort less than one year after its creation, thanks to strong investor and start-up response.
“Building on the success of the first cohort in which five of the seven participating companies obtained follow-on financing, our second cohort will see enhanced programming with much greater focus on generating revenue to help companies get from ‘Seed to Series A’ as quickly as possible,” said Doug Cooper, managing director of Hyperdrive, in a statement. “We received applications from 16 countries around the world for the second cohort, making the 11 companies selected truly the cream of the crop.”
Hyperdrive’s program can onboard up to 30 companies annually in a three-month “sprint” program that aims to take startups from concept to angel and VC investment-ready. It also includes a two-year mentoring program, to provide ongoing support to help founders scale their business.
The 11 companies of Hyperdrive’s second cohort are:
WellRead – a news gathering service that learns what is most important to the user and makes it simple to keep up with what matters to them, cutting out the need to search multiple sources.
The Dandy Co. – a community driven app developer which involves the community from initial pitch to completed product. Profits are divided amongst the community based on each user’s level of contribution.
The Open Doors Network – a developer of web applications for homeowners so they can better maintain their investment. Emails are sent to users to remind them when different maintenance issues should be addressed and provides solutions.
CreamHR – an accurate top-of-the-filter employment assessment service. CreamHR provides businesses with a way to quickly and accurately hire the right person for the job, eliminating inaccurate recruiting.
PumpUp – a personalized fitness coach that gives individuals the guidance and motivation they need when it comes to working out. Answering a few simple questions provides the user with a personalized routine that shows them exactly what to do, how to do it, and adapts their routine to help them reach their goals.
GroupNotes – a collaborative tool that can be used to easily share, annotate, and comment on websites. It allows its users to form a digital group online, enabling its members to leave virtual sticky notes and annotations on webpages so that as other members browse those sites they see the notes others left behind.
BeanEvo – a web-based application offering an easy-to-use, cost-effective and customizable online accounts payable automation solution tailored to the size of any business.
ViewsIQ – a medical technology company that makes microscope imaging solutions. ViewsIQ has created a way to digitize lab samples so that anyone with a standard microscope can create and send an image of the sample to a pathologist anywhere in the world for diagnosis.
ESL Explorer – an online marketplace, catalogue of schools, niche social network and a ratings and review site for English language schools. The website makes it simple for students to pick the right courses in the right location for them.
Inception Mobile – a “friction free” multi-platform mobile application development tool. It allows developers to simultaneously target multiple mobile platforms without having to rewrite a single line of code.
Oikoi – a matchmaking platform for tenants, landlords and property managers. Rather than a general purpose marketplace approach employed by Kijiji and Craigslist, Oikoi specializes in quickly connecting tenants to highly relevant apartments, and providing pre-qualified leads to landlords.
Source | Hyperdrive by Communitech
