{"id":337783,"date":"2017-04-06T20:38:52","date_gmt":"2017-04-06T12:38:52","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/techcrunch.com\/?p=1473371"},"modified":"2017-04-06T20:38:52","modified_gmt":"2017-04-06T12:38:52","slug":"meet-the-14-startups-in-techstars-nycs-winter-class","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/people.utm.my\/asmawisham\/meet-the-14-startups-in-techstars-nycs-winter-class\/","title":{"rendered":"Meet the 14 startups in Techstars NYC\u2019s winter class"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/tctechcrunch2011.files.wordpress.com\/2017\/03\/gettyimages-160429443.jpg?w=738\" class=\"\"\/><\/p>\n<p>The entrepreneurs in the <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"http:\/\/www.techstars.com\/programs\/nyc-program\/\">TechStars NYC<\/a> program are going to spend today meeting with investors, reporters and other folks from the tech industry \u2014 but luckily, I had a chance to do rapid-fire interviews with most of them on Tuesday.<\/p>\n<p>Though Techstars may be increasingly known for the industry-focused startup accelerators it creates with companies <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/techcrunch.com\/2017\/03\/06\/comcast-nbcuniversal-lift-labs\/\">like Comcast<\/a> <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/techcrunch.com\/2015\/10\/18\/target-retail-accelerator\/\">and Target<\/a>, it still runs <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/techcrunch.com\/2017\/03\/20\/techstars-launches-a-new-program-in-paris-at-the-partech-shaker\/\">broader \u201ccity programs\u201d<\/a> \u2014 including Techstars NYC, which this winter included startups working on everything from display technology to disappearing tattoos.<\/p>\n<p>Ten-minute interviews aren\u2019t exactly enough time to make me an expert in any of these subject areas, but they do provide a little more opportunity for in-depth discussion than a quick on-stage presentation (uh, <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/techcrunch.com\/startup-battlefield\/\">not that we have anything against those<\/a>). Here\u2019s an alphabetical rundown of the companies I talked to and what I learned about them.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/techcrunch.com\/2017\/04\/06\/techstars-nyc-winter-2017\/iphone-27\/\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-1473567\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-1473567\" src=\"https:\/\/tctechcrunch2011.files.wordpress.com\/2017\/04\/iphone.png?w=483&#038;h=680\" alt=\"Conductor iPhone\" width=\"483\" height=\"680\" srcset=\"https:\/\/tctechcrunch2011.files.wordpress.com\/2017\/04\/iphone.png?w=483&#038;h=680 483w, https:\/\/tctechcrunch2011.files.wordpress.com\/2017\/04\/iphone.png?w=106&#038;h=150 106w, https:\/\/tctechcrunch2011.files.wordpress.com\/2017\/04\/iphone.png?w=213&#038;h=300 213w, https:\/\/tctechcrunch2011.files.wordpress.com\/2017\/04\/iphone.png?w=768&#038;h=1082 768w, https:\/\/tctechcrunch2011.files.wordpress.com\/2017\/04\/iphone.png 880w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 483px) 100vw, 483px\"\/><\/a><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"http:\/\/getconductor.com\">Conductor<\/a>\u00a0provides transit directions, starting in New York City. Of course, you can already find transit directions in mapping products from Apple and Google, but co-founder Bharat Ayyar noted that they\u2019re\u00a0usually based on inaccurate or incomplete data from the public transit agencies \u2014 any New Yorker can recall times they\u2019ve spent 10 or 15 minutes at the station while the announcer\u00a0kept\u00a0telling them their train was just two minutes away. In contrast, Conductor collects real-time location data to provide more accurate travel estimates.<\/li>\n<li><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.trydossier.com\">Dossier<\/a>\u00a0is trying to reinvent document collaboration, borrowing Slack-style features like notifications, slash commands and a channel-based file system. It also allows teams to embed outside media like Trello Cards into documents. \u00a0Co-founder Daniel Schwartz said the parallels with Slack are no accident \u2014 just as the messaging\u00a0company has become an \u201coperating system for communication,\u201d he\u2019s hoping to turn Dossier into \u201cthat same thing,\u00a0but for collaboration \u2014\u00a0we want to build an operating\u00a0system where anyone can hook in and push data in or pull\u00a0data out.\u201d<\/li>\n<li><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/eevo.com\">Eevo<\/a>\u00a0is building streamable\u00a0virtual reality experiences for online publishers. The idea is to allow those publishers to experiment with VR without having to invest enormous resources. They just need 360-degree video and a few other media assets, then they can use tools like Eevo\u2019s \u201cinteractivity composer\u201d to build experiences without needing technical expertise. \u00a0The VR can then be streamed into Eevo-powered apps, or eventually to the publishers\u2019\u00a0existing apps. And outside the publishing world, customers also include New York City\u2019s New Museum.<\/li>\n<li><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.ephemeraltattoos.com\">Ephemeral<\/a> is creating disappearing tattoo ink. Don\u2019t think of those\u00a0temporary tattoos that rub\u00a0off after a few showers. Think instead of a real-looking tattoo, except it disappears after months or years. The\u00a0company said it will be starting with\u00a0three-to-four month tattoos, which can be applied using the same tools as regular tattoos. In fact, the startup is already <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.ephemeraltattoos.com\/nyc-launch\/\">taking signups<\/a> for sessions with its first two tattoo artists in Summer 2018.<\/li>\n<li><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.leansystems.co\">Lean Systems<\/a> is building\u00a0route optimization algorithms. The initial customers\u00a0are door-to-door <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Paratransit\">paratransit<\/a>\u00a0services for passengers with disabilities, but co-founder Graham Mann said the company eventually plans to work with any large transportation fleet. The technology includes a \u201ccore solver\u201d for general routing and scheduling optimization, then overlays geographic and industry-specific rules.\u00a0\u00a0And unlike other <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/techcrunch.com\/2015\/06\/18\/routifics-route-optimization-tools-helps-local-businesses-offer-on-demand-delivery\/\">route optimization startups<\/a>, Lean isn\u2019t trying to build its own user interface \u2014 instead, it\u2019s focused entirely on the optimization, delivering the results to a customer\u2019s\u00a0existing software, or just straight into Google Sheets.<\/li>\n<li><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"http:\/\/www.haliondisplays.com\">Halion Displays<\/a>\u00a0is developing low power displays that remain visible outdoors. (Like Amazon\u2019s Kindle, but with video and color.) The startup is still in the research and development phase, with plans to license the technology to larger device manufacturers if the R&#038;D pans\u00a0out. And if it does,\u00a0Halion\u00a0could significantly improved battery life \u2014 co-founder and CEO Ryan Marchekwa\u00a0estimated that an iPhone with a low-powered display could double battery life for the average user.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/techcrunch.com\/2017\/04\/06\/techstars-nyc-winter-2017\/narmi-online-banking\/\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-1473570\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-1473570\" src=\"https:\/\/tctechcrunch2011.files.wordpress.com\/2017\/04\/narmi-online-banking.jpg?w=650&#038;h=433\" alt=\"Narmi online banking\" width=\"650\" height=\"433\" srcset=\"https:\/\/tctechcrunch2011.files.wordpress.com\/2017\/04\/narmi-online-banking.jpg 650w, https:\/\/tctechcrunch2011.files.wordpress.com\/2017\/04\/narmi-online-banking.jpg?w=150&#038;h=100 150w, https:\/\/tctechcrunch2011.files.wordpress.com\/2017\/04\/narmi-online-banking.jpg?w=300&#038;h=200 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 650px) 100vw, 650px\"\/><\/a><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.narmitech.com\">Narmi<\/a>\u00a0works with credit unions and other financial institutions to create web and mobile banking experiences. Co-founders Chris Griffin and Nikhil Lakhanpal previously led\u00a0the student-run Georgetown Credit Union (now a Narmi customer), and they argued that while smaller organizations don\u2019t have the resources of large banks, they still need to offer a compelling online experience if they want to attract customers. And Narmi isn\u2019t just building websites and apps \u2014 it also includes security features like support for multi-factor authentication and user risk scoring.<\/li>\n<li><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"http:\/\/stan.fit\">Stan Group<\/a> is working to commercialize the open source statistical modeling language called <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"http:\/\/mc-stan.org\">Stan<\/a>. Founder and CEO Eric Novik explained that while Stan has a devoted following, the company is focused less on \u201cevangelizing the language directly\u201d and more on building products that use the technology to help make difficult decisions based on data. For example, some of the initial customers include a large pharmaceutical company developing cancer treatments, and baseball teams looking to predict the performance of players.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/techcrunch.com\/2017\/04\/06\/techstars-nyc-winter-2017\/thinkloot\/\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-1473573\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-1473573\" src=\"https:\/\/tctechcrunch2011.files.wordpress.com\/2017\/04\/thinkloot.jpg?w=680&#038;h=503\" alt=\"ThinkLoot\" width=\"680\" height=\"503\" srcset=\"https:\/\/tctechcrunch2011.files.wordpress.com\/2017\/04\/thinkloot.jpg?w=680&#038;h=503 680w, https:\/\/tctechcrunch2011.files.wordpress.com\/2017\/04\/thinkloot.jpg?w=150&#038;h=111 150w, https:\/\/tctechcrunch2011.files.wordpress.com\/2017\/04\/thinkloot.jpg?w=300&#038;h=222 300w, https:\/\/tctechcrunch2011.files.wordpress.com\/2017\/04\/thinkloot.jpg?w=768&#038;h=568 768w, https:\/\/tctechcrunch2011.files.wordpress.com\/2017\/04\/thinkloot.jpg 1000w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 680px) 100vw, 680px\"\/><\/a><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.thinkloot.com\">ThinkLoot<\/a> offers a videoconferencing product\u00a0that helps salespeople figure out which calls did and didn\u2019t go well through tools like transcripts and facial recognition software. You\u2019d think a good salesperson would already know how their presentation went, but founder Romanos Fessas pointed out that they can\u2019t pay attention to everything when they\u2019re actually pitching \u2014 and if a potential customer isn\u2019t speaking, is it because they\u2019re entranced or because they\u2019re bored? The goal, Fessas said, is to provide that extra piece of analysis that \u201chelps good salespeople become great.\u201d<\/li>\n<li><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"http:\/\/threadgenius.co\">Thread Genius<\/a> says that by focusing on fashion and interior design, it goes beyond existing visual search technologies in its ability to match products, and to find complementary products with a similar aesthetic feel. It can\u00a0combine that analysis with data about the visual content that people have already interacted with on social media, allowing marketers to target\u00a0the right audience when they\u2019re promoting a given product. Co-founder Ahmad Qamar previously worked as an engineer at Spotify, where he developed the technology behind the Discover Weekly recommendations. He said that at Thread Genius, he\u2019s still building technology to understand taste: \u201cThe spirit of the algorithm is the same.\u201d<\/li>\n<li><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"http:\/\/vidrovr.com\">Vidrovr<\/a> is a video search startup focused on helping news organizations find video content \u2014 like\u00a0if you\u2019re a reporter writing an article and want to see if there are any relevant videos to include. Co-founder and CEO Joseph Ellis said his team\u2019s advantage is its focus on news, rather than \u201ctrying to solve a really hard problem \u2014 one-size-fits-all video understanding.\u201d He told me the technology combines different approaches like transcripts, face detection and scene detection, and that he\u2019s been spending more time recently to make it easy for publishers to search for a video in their library, and then embed it using their own video player.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>In addition to those 11 startups, there are three more that I didn\u2019t get a chance to meet wth. In the interest of completeness (and not making anyone feel too left out), here are brief descriptions provided by the companies themselves.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>De-Ice<\/strong> <span class=\"c4\">is developing an electric de-icing technology for airplanes that is 30 minutes faster and 50% cheaper than the incumbent solution.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.litimetrics.com\">Litimetrics<\/a> <span class=\"c4\">is an analytics platform that gives attorneys an unfair advantage in litigation with competitive data-driven intelligence on attorneys, judges and opposing parties.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.vitaeindustries.com\">Vitae Industries<\/a> <span class=\"c4\">is building 3D printing technology that helps pharmacies make personalized medications on-demand.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><small>Featured Image: Henrik Sorensen\/Stone\/Getty Images<\/small><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"680\" height=\"453\" src=\"https:\/\/tctechcrunch2011.files.wordpress.com\/2017\/03\/gettyimages-160429443.jpg?w=680\" class=\"attachment-large size-large wp-post-image\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/tctechcrunch2011.files.wordpress.com\/2017\/03\/gettyimages-160429443.jpg?w=680 680w, https:\/\/tctechcrunch2011.files.wordpress.com\/2017\/03\/gettyimages-160429443.jpg?w=1360 1360w, https:\/\/tctechcrunch2011.files.wordpress.com\/2017\/03\/gettyimages-160429443.jpg?w=150 150w, https:\/\/tctechcrunch2011.files.wordpress.com\/2017\/03\/gettyimages-160429443.jpg?w=300 300w, https:\/\/tctechcrunch2011.files.wordpress.com\/2017\/03\/gettyimages-160429443.jpg?w=768 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 680px) 100vw, 680px\" \/>&nbsp;The entrepreneurs in the TechStars NYC program are going to spend today meeting with investors, reporters and other folks from the tech industry &#8212; but luckily, I had a chance to do rapid-fire interviews with most of them on Tuesday. Though Techstars may be increasingly known for the industry-focused startup accelerators it creates with companies like Comcast and Target, it still runs&hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/techcrunch.com\/2017\/04\/06\/techstars-nyc-winter-2017\/?ncid=rss\">Read More<\/a><\/p>\n<div class=\"feedflare\">\n<a href=\"http:\/\/feeds.feedburner.com\/~ff\/Techcrunch?a=7KA0iwc2J-s:lfLYtAtO2MY:2mJPEYqXBVI\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/feeds.feedburner.com\/~ff\/Techcrunch?d=2mJPEYqXBVI\" border=\"0\"><\/img><\/a> <a href=\"http:\/\/feeds.feedburner.com\/~ff\/Techcrunch?a=7KA0iwc2J-s:lfLYtAtO2MY:7Q72WNTAKBA\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/feeds.feedburner.com\/~ff\/Techcrunch?d=7Q72WNTAKBA\" border=\"0\"><\/img><\/a> <a href=\"http:\/\/feeds.feedburner.com\/~ff\/Techcrunch?a=7KA0iwc2J-s:lfLYtAtO2MY:yIl2AUoC8zA\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/feeds.feedburner.com\/~ff\/Techcrunch?d=yIl2AUoC8zA\" border=\"0\"><\/img><\/a> <a href=\"http:\/\/feeds.feedburner.com\/~ff\/Techcrunch?a=7KA0iwc2J-s:lfLYtAtO2MY:-BTjWOF_DHI\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/feeds.feedburner.com\/~ff\/Techcrunch?i=7KA0iwc2J-s:lfLYtAtO2MY:-BTjWOF_DHI\" border=\"0\"><\/img><\/a> <a href=\"http:\/\/feeds.feedburner.com\/~ff\/Techcrunch?a=7KA0iwc2J-s:lfLYtAtO2MY:D7DqB2pKExk\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/feeds.feedburner.com\/~ff\/Techcrunch?i=7KA0iwc2J-s:lfLYtAtO2MY:D7DqB2pKExk\" border=\"0\"><\/img><\/a> <a href=\"http:\/\/feeds.feedburner.com\/~ff\/Techcrunch?a=7KA0iwc2J-s:lfLYtAtO2MY:qj6IDK7rITs\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/feeds.feedburner.com\/~ff\/Techcrunch?d=qj6IDK7rITs\" border=\"0\"><\/img><\/a>\n<\/div>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/feeds.feedburner.com\/~r\/Techcrunch\/~4\/7KA0iwc2J-s\" height=\"1\" width=\"1\" alt=\"\"\/> <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5817,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[25],"tags":[59,66,26],"class_list":["post-337783","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-technology","tag-media","tag-techcrunch","tag-technology"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/people.utm.my\/asmawisham\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/337783","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/people.utm.my\/asmawisham\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/people.utm.my\/asmawisham\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/people.utm.my\/asmawisham\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5817"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/people.utm.my\/asmawisham\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=337783"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/people.utm.my\/asmawisham\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/337783\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/people.utm.my\/asmawisham\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=337783"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/people.utm.my\/asmawisham\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=337783"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/people.utm.my\/asmawisham\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=337783"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}