Growth Stage Semifinalists
Economic Development for Central Oregon (EDCO) announces the eight semifinalist companies advancing in the Growth Stage Track for the 21st annual Bend Venture Conference (BVC) on Thursday, October 17-Friday, October 18, 2024.
As Central Oregon’s flagship entrepreneurship event, BVC creates an opportunity to connect investors and industry leaders with startups looking to scale. Each year, a new BVC Growth Fund is raised to invest in the most promising growth stage companies that compete in the annual conference. Since applications closed on August 9, investors and partners have evaluated each company to identify the most well-positioned startups to compete in each of BVC’s three tracks.
Brian Vierra, EDCO’s Venture Catalyst, explained, “The investors in the Bend Venture Conference Fund are passionate about supporting the growth of the Central Oregon startup ecosystem and bring a wealth of professional experience to evaluating the merits of new innovations. We’re excited to see the growth potential represented in this year’s semifinalist companies, and we look forward to the impact they will have.”
In alphabetical order, the semifinalists are:
- Beginly Health (Portland, Oregon) — An AI curated job matching platform for healthcare professionals.
- Canopii Inc. (Silverton, Oregon) — A technology company building robotic greenhouse farms to make local food production more viable.
- Green Canopy NODE (Seattle, Washington) — A company that addresses the complex challenges of affordable housing through configurable, prefabricated kits for residential housing.
- Health Elements AI (Bend, Oregon) — A technology platform that leverages AI to streamline health data abstraction.
- ProMedix Inc. (Portland, Oregon) — A revolutionary, noninvasive wearable sensor for accelerating sepsis detection at the patient bedside.
- Square Baby (Bend) — Dietician-designed, Oregonganic baby and toddler meals customized to age, stage and dietary needs including allergen introduction, vegan and animal proteins.
- Stiira (Portland, Oregon) — A specialized SaaS solution designed to help organizations effectively manage the complexities of government-regulated leaves of absence.
- Trace Biosciences (Portland, Oregon) — A biotech startup creating agents for surgery that highlight nerves in real time to eliminate surgical nerve damage.
The Bend Venture Conference is the longest standing and largest angel investment conference in the Pacific Northwest. BVC has served as a catalyst to mobilize capital for participating companies and since its inception, investments and awards to participating startups have totaled over $14 million. Tickets to the 21st annual BVC are on sale now and are available here. Attendees who register before Monday, September 30 will receive ten percent off their order.
Bend Venture Conference cannot guarantee that investments will be made in any specific amount because the final amounts to be awarded are dependent on investment commitments received from third-party investors and the ability of the winning companies and the investors to agree on the terms and conditions of the investment.
Early Stage Semifinalists
EDCO also announced the ten semifinalist companies advancing in the Early Stage competition.
In the next round of competition, the following Early Stage semifinalists will pitch against each other at the September 26 Central Oregon PubTalk: Road to BVC. This high-energy entrepreneurial event showcases the semifinalists as they deliver fast-paced, three-minute pitches to a live crowd. The audience, along with an expert panel of judges, will vote to decide which companies advance to present at BVC next month. In addition to influencing which companies advance to the BVC stage, the audience vote will determine which Early Stage company receives a $3,000 cash award, courtesy of Washington Trust Bank.
Speaking on behalf of EDCO, Venture Catalyst Brian Vierra said, “Congratulations to all of the semifinalists in this year’s Early Stage track for the Bend Venture Conference. We were thrilled to see such an extremely talented group of entrepreneurs apply, each showcasing innovative ideas and tremendous potential. Central Oregon PubTalk and the Bend Venture Conference serve to highlight new, emerging startups and provide opportunities for local investors and business leaders to engage with and witness the latest industry innovations firsthand.”
In alphabetical order, the BVC Early Stage semifinalists that will compete at the September 26th Central Oregon PubTalk are:
- Dayo (Portland, Oregon) — A free and frictionless app that rewards users for curbing their social media use.
- Ecobadlandsz, Inc. dba Ranger EV (Portland, Oregon) — A scalable software solution that allows vacation rental hosts to sell energy to guests with electric vehicles.
- Fordje (Portland, Oregon) — An AI software platform to help construction developers and cities clarify city codes, allowing both markets to build faster the first time.
- Howl at the Spoon (Beaverton, Oregon) — Portable, flavor-packed, single-serve artisan sauces for every meal.
- HumanKind Homes (Portland, Oregon) — Develops, builds and sells healthy and sustainable homes priced to be affordable to those making 80-120% Area Median Income (AMI).
- Kickplan, Inc. (Portland, Oregon) — A comprehensive SaaS solution that provides developer-friendly infrastructure for billing, pricing, feature access control, and metric instrumentation and an intuitive web console for management.
- Mesh (Bend, Oregon) — An iOS fitness, health and wellness application that increases personal accountability, improves mental health and brings community together through activity.
- Offer Haus (Eugene, Oregon) — A simplified online platform that allows buyers to purchase a home without a realtor.
- Prophetic (Portland, Oregon) — A SaaS platform that finds and analyzes real estate development opportunities in seconds, not hours.
- Rose City Robotics (Portland, Oregon) — Autonomous robotic disassembly that enables direct recycling of lithium-ion EV batteries.
Central Oregon PubTalk on September 26 will feature these Early Stage semifinalists pitching on the outdoor “Drink up Dream on” stage at Worthy Brewing in Bend.
PubTalk Agenda
- 4:30-5pm — Networking, drinks and appetizers
- 5-7:30pm — Early Stage company pitches, audience vote and winner announcement
PubTalk Cost and Registration
Register through Eventbrite here.
Ticket price is $32 for EDCO Members (become an EDCO member here); $48 for non-members. Attendance includes appetizers and a beverage (beer, wine or non-alcoholic options available).
About Bend Venture Conference (BVC):
The annual BVC, hosted by EDCO, is one of the largest and longest standing angel investment conferences in the country. Over the past 21 years, BVC has served to evolve and grow the startup ecosystem throughout Central Oregon and across the Pacific Northwest. Since its inception, more than $14 million has been invested in 59 companies as a result of the conference. This year’s conference will gather entrepreneurs, investors, business leaders, and students at the Tower Theatre in Bend, Oregon on October 17-18, 2024.
About Economic Development for Central Oregon (EDCO):
EDCO is a nonprofit corporation supported by private and public members and stakeholders, whose mission is to create middle-class jobs in Central Oregon by recruiting new employers to move to the region; helping entrepreneurs start new, scalable businesses; and working with businesses that are already here to grow their operations.
