Alabama Startups present at Consumer Electronics Show (CES) 2021 + other tech news

Did you know that several Alabama startups represented the state at the renowned Consumer Electronics Show (CES) 2021 in January? Every two weeks, we’ll be pulling together several promising tech stories from Alabama to help you stay in the loop.

Voltage Accelerator Announces Inaugural Cohort

Birmingham

On February 8th, Innovation Depot announced 11 entrepreneurs taking part in its inaugural Voltage accelerator program. Similarly to the Techstars Alabama EnergyTech Accelerator and the Bronze Valley Accelerator, Voltage is a brand new tech incubator presented by Birmingham’s Innovation Depot.

“We are very excited about launching Voltage because we believe it fills a unique gap in Birmingham’s startup ecosystem. A lot of entrepreneurs in the area have great ideas, but they’re not quite sure if their idea is an opportunity. We are providing them with the space to ask questions, gain resources and learn the viability of their ideas before they go all in.”

Kellie Clark, Director of Programs, Innovation Depot

Over the nine-week program, Voltage staff will help participating entrepreneurs transform their idea into a viable prototype. The 11 entrepreneurs are:

• Danielle Baskins
  • Problem: The time and effort necessary to find and coordinate vendors for large scale events. 
• Daniel Bolus
  • Problem: Never knowing what to order for dinner. 
• Milan Dekich
  • Problem: Mainstreet businesses and local restaurants suffer the most during hard economic times.
• Rashad Grimes
  • Problem: Needing safe, quick and simple task assistance for an affordable price. 
• Terrance Ingram
  • Problem: The lack of a specialized support system for children in under-resourced communities. 
• Tyler Kuyrkendall
  • Problem: The time and effort needed to coordinate with all parties for a new home purchase. 
• Calinda Joy McCampbell
  • Problem: The emotional and administrative labor of navigating the many phases of divorce. 
• Reggie Murray
  • Problem: The logistics of moving in and out of student housing. 
• John Goode Price IV
  • Problem: Wasting time running last minute errands while on vacation. 

• Maria Underwood
  • Problem: Channeling reactions to what you read in the news into positive action. 
• Nathan Vosicky
  • Problem: Finding an accessible and sustainable solution for high-quality childcare products that reduces waste and saves space 

Shipshape plans to open Alabama hub

Birmingham

In 2020, the inaugural Techstars Alabama EnergyTech Accelerator hosted its first class of startups focused on innovative electrical and utility solutions in Birmingham, Alabama. Among the participating startups was Shipshape, a startup that aims to connect critical systems for your home’s wellbeing to a simple, easy to use dashboard.

Shipshape was founded and remains headquartered in Austin, Texas by Ryan Dalton and brothers Alex and Beckett Linn. However, both Linn brothers grew up in Birmingham. After the team’s three-month stay in Birmingham during the Techstars Alabama EnergyTech Accelerator, they’ve decided to open a new hub in The Magic City. Shipshape plans to open a Birmingham office in June 2021, in order to continue to build their presence in the Southeast.

10 Alabama Startups Present at CES 2021

Alabama

In January, ten startups with connections to Alabama represented the state’s creativity at the all-virtual Consumer Electronics Show (CES 2021). CES is an annual trade show hosted each year by the Consumer Technology Association, during which thousands of entrepreneurs show off their businesses, products and ideas to the world.

This year, five Alabama institutions sponsored the Alabama Start-up Pavilion to help showcase the hard work of ten Alabama-related startups. Those sponsors are:

• Made in Alabama
• Alabama Power
• Economic Development Partnership of Alabama (EDPA)
• Techstars Alabama Energytech Accelerator
• The University of Alabama

The ten startups featured at the Alabama Start-up Pavilion are:

• Virimodo
• Resilient Power Systems (RPS) 
• Elektrik
• Con.doit
• Linq 
• Fledging 
• Purilan
• Porch Pod 
• Mixtroz 
• OWL

Know about startup news in your community? 

What did we miss? Reach out to our team at hello@bhamnow.com to help us stay up-to-date on all the great tech news in your corner of the state.

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