Michigan Founders Fund

We are beyond grateful to the Michigan Venture Capital Association for honoring?Michigan Founders Fund?with the?Community Impact Award?at the 17th Annual Awards Celebration. ?? This award reflects our shared efforts in creating a founders-first network and supporting entrepreneurship across Michigan. A huge congratulations to the entire MFF team and community for this achievement! ?? Special shoutout to these incredible members for representing MFF in EVERY award category last night: Brian Moore, Voxel51 - Entrepreneur of the Year ?? Ryan Meitl?and?Alison Accavitti, RIVET Work - Up-and-Coming Company of the Year ?? Johnnie Turnage, EvenScore and Black Tech Saturdays - Community Impact ?? adrian fortino,?Mercury - Capital Event of the Year ?? Hall of Fame Inductee:?Chris Rizik, Renaissance Venture Capital ?? A big thanks to our amazing board and staff, including Rishi Moudgil,?Pete Martin,?Emily Samar,?Meagan Ward, and?Yuktha Pulavarthi, for their dedication to strengthening our community this year.

???Michigan Tech Week showcased incredible innovation and tech talent from across the state! A huge congratulations to MFF member Elliot Smith, PE, founder of Motmot, for winning first place in the eLab Ventures AI Launchpad Pitch Competition and securing $50,000 for his startup! Motmot is revolutionizing the drinking water infrastructure industry by providing cost-effective asset management solutions. Their innovative inspection services help engineers, utility managers, and public works professionals prevent critical failures, reduce operational costs, and optimize asset management strategies. We can’t wait to see how Motmot continues to make an impact in this essential space! #MITechWeek #Startups #Innovation

Big congratulations to MFF member Sara Chen, founder of Pangoo Apparel, for taking first place and winning $50,000 at the Michigan Outdoor Innovation Fund’s Outdoor Innovation Pitch Competition at Michigan Tech Week! Pangoo is leading the way in outdoor inclusivity, designing climbing apparel that helps women feel more confident and comfortable as they explore new adventures! #MITechWeek #Startups #OutdoorInovation

?? Shoutout to Hank Greeves and Tommy Hailey for their big wins during the Student Pitch Competition and the Student Hackathon at Michigan Tech Week! Hank and his teammate Saanjh Khattar from the University of Michigan for winning 1st place in the Student Pitch Competition at Michigan Tech Week! They secured $7,500 for their startup, Alivio Medical, which offers a solution to help hospital patients by alleviating pressure and preventing bedsores. Tommy has been at the Apple Developer Academy, and interned with The Lab Drawer this summer through MFF’s Emerging Talent Program. He and his partner Kanishka Gabel from the University of Michigan took third place and won $2,000 for their startup idea, Ride Buddy, in the Student Hackathon! #MITechWeek #Startups #EmergingTalent #Students

?? Huge congratulations to the amazing startups that participated in the MFF Venture Together Pitch Competition at the 2024 Michigan Tech Week! ??We are thrilled to celebrate the hard work, innovation, and vision of these founders. Join us in congratulating the following founders as they won $120,000 in non-dilutive funding and $20,000 in free legal services from Varnum LLP! Reciprocity Apps - Chris Powers Farmish - Terra Osman Pluck.eco - Chening Duker Strut - Jameson Detweiler Their innovative collaboration focused on the key competition criteria of achieving mutual success and contributing to people, places, and the planet. The team will combine efforts from their existing startups to connect local farms to underserved communities in need via eco-friendly delivery systems. #Startups #MITechWeek #Innovation #Entrepreneurship

The Michigan Founders Fund Venture Together Competition?at #MITechWeek is starting at 3pm! ?? Meet the incredible judges who will be sending some of these startups home with some funding as founders from across Michigan join forces and pitch how they’ll work together to build incredible companies in our state with a focus on People, Place, and Planet. This year’s judges include: Eric Wimbley?- Kalamazoo Forward Ventures Khalilah Burt Gaston?- Song Foundation Erika Block?- Sticky Lab #MITechWeek #MFF #Startups

Michigan Tech Week has been off to an amazing start! If you aren’t already make sure to follow along with updates on Instagram and Linkedin @Michigan Tech Week. We're thrilled to be sponsoring an incredible week celebrating innovation, entrepreneurship, and technology in Michigan. We're especially excited to announce the amazing teams selected to compete in today’s MFF Venture Together Pitch Competition! Team 1 Intermode - Arnold Kadiu Ecosphere Organics - Brittanie Dabney THYIM - Raye Easterly CrossBraining - Josh Nichols Sober(ish) - Kim Gamez Team 2 Ilera Labs - Chinonye Akunne BeReworn - Samantha S Cerwin Stampede Social - Jeff Dwoskin ContentSeal - Brian Curtis Team 3 Stock Pal - Michael Polk Odin Classroom - Saransh Mehta Cocoon Technologies - Dr. Leah C. Lewis, J.D. Offseason Games - Aaron Jackson Team 4 Reciprocity - Chris Powers Farmish - Terra Osman Pluck.eco - Chening Duker Strut - Jameson Detweiler Team 5 Boaz Bikes - Emil Nnani SNOWBOTIX - Sasi Prabhakaran embark.live - Matthew Burnett Thought Labs - Nikunj Jain Team 6 Rituil - Michael Gallagher Fronthouse - Kameron D. Kozen - Madala Mathurin Kikcit - Ricardo A. O'Neal II Team 7 HealthBar - Nathan Baar Coordinista - Cindy Bauer, BSN, RN CuraCollaborative - Paul Toenjes IndividuALLytics - Dennis Nash Join us as at 3pm at Newlab to cheer on these startups and witness the next wave of innovation! #MiTechWeek #Startups #Innovation #Entrepreneurship #MFF

If you haven’t been to Michigan Tech Week - Thursday is the day to visit Michigan Central in Detroit (and students - Friday is College Day)! www.michigantechweek.com Here’s the deal... we’re building something special in Michigan that cuts across sectors, regions, and traditional boundaries. Join us to learn the stories from incredible founders and investors, while building skills and networks for your tech-driven startup... all while committing to the people, places, and planet around us. #MITechWeek

Detroit community members, expats, and “boomerangs” all returned for Crain's Detroit Business Detroit Homecoming at Michigan Central last week. Let’s give a round of applause for our members (and all the founders) who pitched their startups with the newly renovated Michigan Central as a backdrop: ? David R. Medina álvarez, Founder of LIVAQ ? Darren Riley, Founder of JustAir Our ED Rishi Moudgil shared how we must differentiate as an innovation ecosystem, including: "We have to do it differently than they have elsewhere, and be sure to consider success as not only growing quickly and reaching an exit but also widening the net of who participates while also ensuring we're committed to lifting our broader communities." Our partners joined him on stage to reflect on more leadership in innovation: ? Wafa Dinaro, Executive Director at New Economy Initiative (NEI) and MFF Advisory Council member ? Johnnie Turnage, MFF member and Co-Founder of Black Tech Saturdays ? Ned Staebler, President and CEO, TechTown Detroit ? Dan Radomski, Executive Director, Centrepolis Accelerator @ Lawrence Technological University On another panel, MFF advisory member Nia Batts of Union Heritage and MFF supporter Paul Riser, M.B.A. of Ralph C. Wilson, Jr. Foundation, also doubled down on the paths to progress for our ecosystem. The four themes of both panels focused on community, diversity, transit/infrastructure, and “stickiness.” Read more from everyone: ?? 4 ways Detroit can grow its startup ecosystem https://lnkd.in/eyK6WZ4e ?? As a startup ecosystem, Detroit plays to its strength in the community: https://lnkd.in/g_yyuh2R ?? Editorial: The time is now to invest in Detroit https://lnkd.in/g4fVQFu2 #DetroitHomecoming #Startups #Tech #Community #Collaboration #Innovation

Congratulations to MFF member Arabia Simeon for the official launch of Politics on the Go! POGO is now available for download on the App Store! This app makes it easy to stay informed and up to date on the latest elections, its candidates, and their policies. Create a voting guide to ensure you’re voting informed. Download the app today! ???https://lnkd.in/gMrurvFJ #MFF #POGO #Startups #Detroit