We’re about midway through Boomtown Boulder’s fall 2018 accelerator program, and we’re super excited to tell you about the 11 startups in our 11th cohort. As with past classes, this is a skilled, diverse, and motivated group, and they’re working their butts off preparing to introduce their companies to you on Demo Day. Since that’s just a few weeks away, we thought we’d give you a quick introduction to these founders and the ideas they’re bringing to life.

Our eleventh class includes startups working on solutions for a wide array of global issues: from hospital staffing, home-buying, and natural disasters to asset management, transportation, and the farm-to-table supply chain.

The Future of Food

Food-related startups have always been booming here in Boulder, and it’s fascinating to see the ways companies are deploying technology to improve what and how we eat. One startup has designed an apiary-oriented operating system for honey producers. Another is working in entomophagy (go ahead, look it up) to create a novel type of snack with a network of partner farms that will supply and educate consumers. A third has created an online platform for building local food communities.

Boomtown invests in a host of other verticals, too — 32 technologies across 16 industries — and we run concurrent programs in Patient Safety Health Tech (in partnership with COPIC) and Hardware and Connectivity (in partnership with CableLabs and UpRamp.)

Health Tech, Hardware, and Connectivity

Health tech startups in the current class are working on solutions to streamline operational decision-making in medical settings, and help people with chronic conditions make better choices about their care. Hardware and connectivity startups are building products to help with asset management, urban population flow, and responding to catastrophes. Technologies powering this cohort include biogenetics, machine learning, blockchain, facial recognition, and the Internet of Things (IoT).

Strength in Diversity

The cohort is 23% female and 42% minority founders, and hails from the US, Chile, Canada, Puerto Rico, and the UK. Founders have master’s and doctorate degrees in public health, artificial intelligence, industrial engineering, mechanical engineering, and more. Their companies have partnered with organizations like Major League Baseball, the Denver Broncos, Pepsi, Microsoft, the United Nations, and the United States Department of Agriculture.

A Focus on Value

Boomtown customizes the curriculum for each cohort, so that every founder gets the resources they need to identify their market, find product / market fit, and build value for customers.