Techstars Chicago announced the 10 startups selected to participate in its 2020 accelerator program Monday.
The accelerator program spent months connecting with "hundreds" of founders located throughout the country, though it especially emphasized companies from the Midwest, Neal Sáles-Griffin, managing director of Techstars Chicago, said in a statement.
“After joining Techstars Chicago last year, we set out to showcase the power of Chicago as a major technology hub," Sáles-Griffin continued. “The founders we’ve selected for Techstars Chicago 2020 are passionate, embody a #GiveFirst approach in their leadership, are deeply connected to their customers and are committed to leveraging Chicago’s unique startup ecosystem.”
Over the next three months, these companies will receive funding, resources and mentorship from more than 150 entrepreneurs, executives and investors, including the founders of Basecamp, Uptake and Grubhub, according to the Techstars Chicago website. Then, the companies will present on their demo day, April 21.
The 2020 class is listed below. Descriptions were provided by Techstars but have been edited for length and clarity:
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Bottlecode: An online platform that helps men find personal grooming solutions and products.
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Havoc Shield: A cybersecurity program specifically made for startups.
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Pairi: A beauty services marketplace for freelance beauty professionals.
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NutriSense: An AI-powered, personalized nutrition coach.
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Elite Personal Chefs: An app that provides in-home dining and personal chef experiences.
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ReelCrafter: An online tool for artists to create and share trackable audio demo reels.
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Visual Feeder: An online marketplace that connects landlords with opportunities to monetize their vacant spaces by projecting dynamic ad campaigns.
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ToDoolie: A marketplace that connects local students with homeowners who need help with tasks like yard work and household maintenance.
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GoNanny: A B2B SaaS platform that trains, pairs and shares childcare providers.
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Contract Cloud: An automated workflow and content management platform to make government procurement simpler.
