The Central Coast Innovation Awards recognize the emerging technology in Ventura, Santa Barbara, and San Luis Obispo counties. This event, hosted by Pacific Coast Business Times in partnership with UCSB CNSI, celebrates the Central Coast as a distinct innovation hub and puts the spotlight on the region’s entrepreneurs. As an integral part of the Innovation Awards, Startup Village has historically provided a place for early-stage companies to make connections, initiate deals, and in some cases, make their first public appearance among a hometown group. This year, Startup Village showcases 25 startups from three sponsoring Universities – UC Santa Barbara, Cal Poly, and Cal Lutheran. Explore this year’s collection of exciting startups below!
UC Santa Barbara
Beni
While today most of us understand the financial and environmental benefits of resale, it still takes too much time and energy to find the pre-loved items we want. Beni solves this problem by making the secondhand shopping experience frictionless so that buying new is no longer the default. The Beni browser extension is a FREE and easy-to-use browser plug-in that scours the internet and finds you the best secondhand swaps while you’re shopping online. We partner with 25+ leading resale marketplaces (eBay, The RealReal, Vestiaire Collective, Grailed, Kidizen, etc.) and show you their best listings in one place. Beni is available on Chrome, Safari (macOS and iOS), and Brave.
Matabowlite
Metabowlite utilizes optics and chemistry to identify whether users have a urinary tract infection (UTI). UTIs are extremely prevalent in the elderly population and often results in severe health complications. Current approaches rely on dated or technically complicated procedures such as urine test sticks or bacterial cultures, the latter requiring a technical expert. The MBlite device fits into the standard toilet bowl and when a user urinates, a sample is automatically harvested and transferred to our system for assessment. Through seamless integration and cloud-based analysis, users can assess their own urine biometrics from the comfort of a smart phone or tablet.
Luxe Scientific
Samples are one of the most wasteful aspects of the beauty industry because of the non-recyclable, single-use sample packaging. Although sampling is the top method for customer acquisition, some eco-conscious brands and retailers refrain from participating because it is so wasteful. Luxe Scientific’s service allows retail spaces to introduce refillable samples into their existing beauty rewards programs. We are building elegant, space-efficient countertop dispensers that sanitize containers before filling them with the product. We install and service the dispensers in the retail space, work with brands to get bulk products and sell brands' consumer data that will allow them to analyze if their sample program was successful. Retailers can share the monthly cost of the service with brands by charging them slotting fees in the machine. This is also a great way for retailers to highlight indie brands (i.e., BIPOC and female-founded brands) to decide if they are popular and profitable through our consumer insights. Then, the retailers can offer them coveted shelf space in the store. The time is right for this service because it provides a much-needed infrastructure to help retailers and brands comply with new Bills like SB54, which will heavily tax producers for any packaging that is not recyclable or refillable starting in 2027.
SciKare
SciKare is developing non-invasive devices and a data platform to enable timely diagnosis and monitoring of renal diseases.
Cal Poly San Luis Obispo
Novocuff
Novocuff is a medical device startup working to reduce infant mortality caused by preterm birth. Preterm birth is the leading cause of infant death worldwide. The Novocuff System is intended to prevent preterm birth caused by cerivcal insufficiency. It is also intended to improve fetal outcomes for patients who have experienced early rupture of membranes (when a woman's water breaks early). Here at Novocuff, we believe we can drastically improve health outcomes for newborns while decreasing the gross expenditures caused by preterm birth.
The Farm to Table Co
The Farm to Table Co. is a startup organization with a primary goal of pioneering a sustainable agricultural industry through the development of economically viable climate-smart produce. The global food system is vulnerable to projected changes in climate- primarily changes in the timing and amount of precipitation and rising air temperatures. At The Farm to Table Co., foods will be grown in a way that uses minimal natural resources while simultaneously combating climate change. Construction of North America's first fully sustainable controlled environment agriculture farm will result in increased food production without expanding agricultural land, thus protecting valuable natural resources and reducing agriculture-related greenhouse gas emissions.
Artifex
Artifex is an early-stage building technologies company eliminating the need for design professionals to start drawings from scratch. The Artifex platform is a web-based data processing tool that allows architects and designers to easily visualize their 3D data and export CAD-ready drawings. Artifex recently launched an open beta program with professionals who are giving feedback on how the tool integrates with their everyday workflow. This feedback will be implemented into the next round of product development planning before a seed funding round in Q2 2023.
Demo
Demo Studios is a web3 platform that simplifies licensing and building on content by turning licenses to NFTs. By turning licenses into NFTs that can be easily sold and built upon, we are making it easier for creators to track and manage their IP rights. This allows them to monetize their contributions to IP without incurring high legal fees. We've started with music. Our 65 music creators sell rights to their music and source collaboration by linking their NFTs in their social channels. By solving this problem, we hope to encourage creativity and make it frictionless to collaborate.
Vetama
Vetama is a new mobile veterinary franchise. With Vetama, veterinarians build their own full-service mobile veterinary business with back-end support. Founded by two veterinarians and a technician, Vetama offers veterinarians the opportunity to work independently by knocking down funding and administrative hurdles. Upon joining, veterinarians receive a fully built mobile exam room, personal practice territory, Vetama technologies, and support team to help run their business. Vetama veterinarians are a convenient, professional, personal veterinary care option for pet owners.
Quantum Energy Inc.
Quantum Energy Inc. is developing the TotalView Energy Platform, a novel cloud-based software for optimizing corporate, utility and government clean energy decisions based on financial, environmental and human health impacts.
Zoetic Motion
Zoetic Motion is a digital health platform that combines computer vision and physical therapy to improve patient outcomes and streamline the therapy process. Our platform provides patients with a unique, gamified experience to support their home recovery, using motion tracking to ensure proper form during exercises and a range of games to keep them motivated. At the same time, our platform offers physical therapists a comprehensive, data-driven solution to monitor and document patient progress, reducing administrative burden and improving clinical outcomes. By using artificial intelligence (AI) and data analysis, Zoetic Motion is leading the way in innovative physical therapy solutions, delivering benefits to both patients and therapists. "With Zoetic, you’re never alone in your recovery at home.”
Ryde
Ryde is a peer-to-peer travel marketplace that connects student drivers with student riders for long-distance travel. Through our app-based service, students can find travelers with similar trip criteria to share a ride with and split the cost of gas. Our vision is to enable people to travel affordably and conveniently wherever they want, whenever they want, with people they can trust. Ryde currently operates out of San Luis Obispo, California where it focuses its operations at the California Polytechnic State University.
Zeste Farms
To help solve the evolving food and sustainability crisis, Zeste Farms created the Anaconda™, a configurable, scalable indoor vertical farming system to grow a variety of hydroponically capable plants. In the years ahead, we believe what can be grown indoors, will be grown indoors. Zeste Farms™ is currently a grower-shipper of premium living leafy greens and herbs employing the innovative Anaconda™ in it’s initial pilot facility located in Paso Robles.
TRIC Robotics
TRIC Robotics is an agricultural technology company helping farmers control pests and disease using ultraviolet light in place of chemical pesticides. Our solution is like a tractor-sized Roomba that we provide to farmers as a service, so they can produce higher yields and healthier food without damaging the planet.
ACREcloud
ACREcloud is a software as a service company developing revolutionary software products at the intersection of fintech and agtech to solve the problems of modern farmers. Our premier product is a farm management platform which is currently helping to manage 3 million acres of ag land in California, Oregon, Texas, and Mexico. We had the honor of winning AngelCon 2022 for a farm worker payroll product we plan to release in the third quarter of 2023, in time for harvest. We are making it easier for farmers and farm labor contractors to schedule labor, control expenses, and comply with California's strict labor laws, all while saving money.
California Lutheran University
Modern Football Technology
Modern Football Technology is an analytics platform that takes the unintelligent, inefficient, and incomplete way coaches track insights and transforms it into real-time intelligence to help coaches optimize their practice, preparation, and game-time decisions. MFT gives coaches an AI-powered partner that has proven to help them win games.
tlali•pani
We are a lifestyle brand that partners with skilled women-led artisan families to co-create premium quality, sustainable and ethically handcrafted home goods rooted in centuries-old slow processes, curate learning experiences, and gives back to the communities behind each craft to promote socially conscious living.
Elite Robotics
Elite Robotics started out as an automation company. Since the death of one of the founders, the company made a pivot into analytic tools. Our mission is to give businesses and consumers "a lab in their hand" and a "scientist in the cloud" to be able to quickly test the content of foods, cosmetics, supplements and more. Our patented technology uses sophisticated science and analysis tools matched with quality design to provide actionable data in a device that has the simplicity of an iPod.
Note Router
NoteRouter is the definitive communications platform for the real estate industry. NoteRouter's powerful AMS + MLS integrations and marketing automation make engagement easy and effective for real estate teams of all sizes. We're on a mission to Reconnect Real Estate™ and currently power communication to over 400,000 real estate professionals.
KeynotesAI
KeynotesAi Drives efficiency through intelligent note taking. We automatically highlight important points in your conversations and provide smart search to find keywords, insights, and conversations across your library of recorded meetings – all without changing your current process. Streamline your meeting process so you can focus on the content & substance of your meetings. We are meant to be invisible – your Ai assistant working diligently in the background. KeynotesAi starts working whenever your video conferencing solution does so you can minimize repetitive follow up calls, shorten your sales cycle, more quickly identify user stories, catch project scope creep, and reduce repetitive conversations if your team members missed something.
Frendii
Frendii is a mobile, social club for women over 50. We organize monthly social outings like dinners, hikes, museum outings, and more. We are building community where women come together on a regular basis, connect, build trust, and forge meaningful relationships. Frendii wants to empower women to live a healthier and happier life through more frequent social and human connection.
Holler
The office is gone, and we love the flexibility of not having to commute. But "work from home" isn't perfect; we're increasingly isolated, uninspired, and lonely. The solution: connect remote workers to great, inspiring local workspots & work communities where humans can do remote work & thrive, near our homes. But, few great local work spots exist, and local home workers don't understand what co-working is, don't know it's available, and have barriers to even trying it. Meanwhile, local bars, restaurants, hotel lobbies, community/church spaces and traditional office spaces go empty or underutilized throughout the day. We're building a federation of beautiful, inspiring places to work in your neighborhood - with one simple consumer experience. That's Holler Workspots - the AirBnb/Uber for your remote workstyle.
A Fox and His Robot
A Fox and His Robot' is a action adventure video game developed solely by Joshua Janik. On planet Delta 7, Alpha, one of the last remaining foxes in the universe plans his escape from Bio-Prison-9. Unwittingly aided by an Artificial Intelligence, the duo breaches containment and searches to escape from the biohazard planet. With every other Artificial Intelligence gunning for his existence, Alpha must use his wit to out-fox robots in an action adventure not too far in our future... 'A Fox and His Robot' is available on Nintendo Switch, Steam, and Steam Deck starting March 1st, 2023.
MMA BetClub
MMA BetClub is building and entertaining a community of MMA fans while enabling smarter and more responsible gambling. We offer a fantasy-style MMA/UFC predictions site, giving users a chance to compete against friends for fun while getting valuable insights into betting strategies from top performers if they're interested in real action.
FindEdj Inc
FindEdj Inc represents a new generation of intelligent academic evaluation, tracking and counselling systems tailor-made for struggling middle school and high school students with a special focus on at-risk students and youth in foster care. FindEj aims to immerse youth more effectively in tracking and achieving their academic and graduation goals through customized data analytics, and automated artificial intelligence driven real-time engagement and resource matching. The FindEdj app is designed to scaffold effective academic tracking, intelligent blocker identification and resource matching powered by our trademark technology.
