Arizona Center for Innovation startup graduates gain national recognition

The Office of University Research Parks recently announced four technology startup companies that graduated from the Mentored Launch Program at the Arizona Center for Innovation. Some of their graduates have received national recognition for their companies.
The Arizona Center for Innovation is a business incubator and assist start-up companies by using a series of workshops, seminars and networking events. The companies also receive individual coaching from mentors and experts in their respective field. AzCI is a component of the Office of University Research Parks which is part of the initiative Tech Launch Arizona – a new approach to managing the commercialization of technologies at the University of Arizona.
AZ Tech Beat will be bringing you in-depth coverage from these companies in the near future. Now for the graduates:

EquiSight – developed by horse racing enthusiasts for a Kentucky Derby moment, this innovative Jockey Cam combines embedded helmet camera technology, fixed cameras, and proprietary transmission services to heighten sports-viewing through a user interface. They have produced over 100 HD Jockey Cam Videos that have been featured on ESPN and Breeders’ Cup and included in over 100 media stories. They recently partnered with IMTS, a military intelligence provider to manufacture a start-of-the-art helmet cam for horse racing. Mint Juleps all around for these founders!

Smartrek – Metropria, Inc. developed a mobile technology application Smartrek that rewards commuters for choosing better routes in order to help reduce and eliminate traffic congestion-they accomplish this by using real-time traffic data and highly sophisticated prediction algorithms to provide travelers with the clearest routes and the best departure to help alleviate traffic congestion and pollution citywide. The company has secured $1M+ in initial private financing and awarded several related projects totaling $2.5M after just one year of inception. Smartrek is scheduled to be up and running in five cities by the end of 2013, and 20 more cities in 2014.

YourLabs, LLC – this company has developed the Knowledge Evaluation System (KES), a next-generation assessment platform that puts real-time learning data into the hands of students and teachers anytime, anyplace, and on any device. The company recently released KES to the education market and is growing its customer base through targeted marketing and word-of-mouth promotion. Also, the company has appointed a CEO and expects to hire an additional six people by year-end.
 

Ufree LLC – Founder Stephen Ost was just named one of the five finalists for Entrepreneur Magazine’s College Entrepreneur of 2013. His mobile application answers the question of “which of my friends is available to hang out right now?” by allowing users to find their friends’ availability and coordinate schedules in real time. Ost’s goal is to help people experience valuable face-to-face interaction with their friends.
AzCI is actively recruiting clients for the start of their 2013 Fall Mentored Launch Program. For details on how to apply, please visit www.azinnovation.com.