New $2.7M Macomb Innovation Fund Awards $275K to five Startups

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five startups from Southeast Michigan have been today awarded a complete of $ 275,000 from a new $ 2.7 million innovation fund that may be a joint effort between Macomb neighborhood school (MCC) and JP Morgan Chase, as a part of the latter’s $ one hundred million, 5-yr initiative to stimulate Detroit’s revitalization.

the aim of the fund, organizers said in a press unencumber, is to encourage entrepreneurial task in the region by way of nurturing startups with excessive boom doable.

The fund is open to tech corporations positioned in Genesee, Livingston, Macomb, Monroe, Oakland, Shiawassee, St. Clair, Washtenaw, and Wayne counties, and dealing within the industries of evolved manufacturing, knowledge expertise, different power, healthcare, and provide chain and logistics.

firms are first eligible for up to a $ 25,000 supply for prototype building, market analysis, and other early startup actions. individuals who get launch funds can also receive as much as $ a hundred,000 in non-collateral loans for additional proof-of-idea work; all recipients of funding from the Macomb Innovation Fund must agree to provide process reports and undergo mentorship from MCC’s center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship.

these firms eligible for the extra funding must also agree to provide a paid internship to an MCC student, fit the award on a 1:1 foundation from a different investor, and pay back the funding if the corporate proves a hit.

the businesses receiving cash as a part of the Macomb Innovation Fund’s inaugural round of funding, who have been chosen from 30 applicants, are:

TurtleCell, $ 100,000: Ann Arbor-based totally TurtleCell has developed smartphone cases with built-in, retractable headphones that get rid of the issue of perpetually tangled headphone wires.

MyFab5, $ 100,000: understanding of Ann Arbor, MyFab5 streamlines and automates on-line social media marketing for eating places so they are able to higher have interaction clients and generate certain opinions.

—Aquasight, $ 25,000: The Rochester Hills-based Aquasight is developing a “real-time intelligence answer” for floor and wastewater pumping methods to identify water-wasting performance considerations.

—hole quality techniques, $ 25,000: Southfield-based totally gap high quality systems has created an automated inspection process for chrome-plated and excessive-gloss elements within the auto trade—a course of currently completed by means of human inspectors. the company’s computer-assisted system reduces waste and environmental affect.

KTISIS, $ 25,000: Sterling Heights’ KTISIS leverages NASA developed composite supplies technology to enhance natural gasoline-powered engines for use in fleet automobiles.

The Macomb Innovation Fund will dangle a free informational session for applicants at 5:30 pm on July 29 at Bizdom’s place of business in downtown Detroit; click here to register to attend. the subsequent round of funding purposes are due on July 31; click here to apply.

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