An exciting new cycle of acceleration has begun in the Roanoke-Blacksburg innovation ecosystem! The Regional Accelerator and Mentoring Program, or RAMP, has selected 4 new teams to comprise the Spring 2024 Cohort. The entrepreneurs hail from around the region and bring ideas that will impact the life sciences and informational technology sectors.
“Bringing together a new cohort is a highlight of our programing,” says RAMP Director John Hagy. “We’re constantly inspired by the tremendous ideas coming out of the region and thrilled to help develop them so they can be brought to market and make an impact.”
RAMP will host a “Meet the Cohort,” open to the public, on April 11 at 5 p.m. at The Shenandoah Club in Roanoke. Cohort members are:
Alice Innovations (Roanoke, VA) leverages technology and best in practice expertise to improve operating room service efficiency by applying computer vision models to predict surgical instruments. This platform improves efficiency and quality of tray assembly, the most labor-intensive step in Central Sterile surgical instrument processing.
Bacchus Therapeutics (Falls Church) exploits cancer’s hypermetabolic state by targeting specific cancer metabolic pathways. Their drug targets the cancer-causing gene, MYC which encompass about 50-70% of all cancers.
Recens Respiratio, Inc. (Roanoke, VA) is accelerating hospital discharge for patients with acute respiratory disease by applying machine learning and fluid modeling to nasal cannula therapies. Their aim is to produce an autonomous nasal cannula system that will respond in real-time to changes in patient oxygen demands.
Scanlily, LLC (Blacksburg) Scanlily provides a revolutionary QR code-based method for managing assets and equipment. Its unique mobile and QR-centric design makes it completely unlike (and superior to) current SaaS asset management systems.
Since its founding in 2017, RAMP – the Regional Accelerator and Mentoring Program serving western and central Virginia – has accelerated 48 companies that have collectively created 800+ new jobs and sell products and services to all U.S. states and internationally.
RAMP is an affiliate of Verge, a collaborative strategic alliance that includes the Roanoke-Blacksburg Technology Council established to grow the region’s innovation economy.
During the 12-week cohort program, startups receive $20,000 in non-equity funding, expert 1:1 mentoring, and free office space with high-speed internet in downtown Roanoke’s Gill Building. RAMP alumni also receive two years of free membership in the Roanoke-Blacksburg Technology Council; one year of membership in Virginia BIO; three years of membership in the Shenandoah Club; membership in GAN for the lifetime of the company; discounted office space; and three additional years of ongoing support through Exit RAMP – a suite of ever-growing and developing coaching and support services. The Spring 2024 Cohort will conclude with “Demo Day,” scheduled for May 22, when the entrepreneurs will present their companies to the region’s business leaders and investors.
Thanks to Virginia Innovation Partnership Corporation (VIPC), three cohort companies were supported by CCF scholarship awards in the amount of $20,000 in non-equity funding, including Bacchus Therapeutics, Recens Respiratio, Inc., and Scanlily, LLC. Alice Innovations was funded by RAMP in the amount of $20k, as well.
Recent Comments