Rubbish

It took me a while to share the winners as I’ve been down these past two weeks, but today’s the day! At Synexis, we were thrilled to organize the demo day for the Gov/TechSF event at SF TECH WEEK by a16z. It was an intense task to pull off ??. We crafted a custom registration and application process, integrated it with startup validation on the Synexis platform, and received over 70 fantastic project submissions within 10 days! From these, we selected 10 standout teams to pitch their demos to a distinguished panel of judges. The projects were incredibly diverse, showcasing innovations across tech niches, from flying cars and AI-driven waste management to Web3 fintech, HR, and health tech. Now, onto the winners! ?? 1st Place: Rubbish, presented by Emin Israfil. An advanced AI-driven platform modernizing waste operations for businesses and governments with a full AI ecosystem of native and web apps, and APIs. Judges summed it up with, “Let’s speak trash” ?? ?? 2nd Place (Tie): Binoloop, presented by Purvaja S. and Kanishk Patel, is an AI Procurement Compliance Agent focused on unlocking supply chain potential by automating supplier compliance, reducing risks, and saving time. ?? 2nd Place (Tie): Blerify, presented by Marcos Allende López and Andrew A. Piscione, offers a universal digital wallet solution for secure authentication, e-signatures, and payments. This all-in-one tool is efficient, secure, and built on a unique data model that has been tried and tested by both the private and public sectors. There is so much innovation in the #BayArea right now—it feels like living in heaven! ?? Exclusive prize packages were provided by Synexis, PremAI, Joshua Alphonse, Keith Newman, Mariane Bekker and Founders Bay, Theagentic.ai, and Natalie Pan. Special thanks to the co-organizers SF Office of Economic & Workforce Development, Lucas Root, Ph.D., Ken Nim, Steven Echtman, Soniya Ahuja, Martin Kirkwood, Rene turcios, Benson T., and our amazing judges Katie Swanson, Jack Bookey, Serephina Ha, Patricia Liu, Cameron Dennis, and Kaori Rei. And special thanks to my whole team at Synexis and my co-founder Vasily Mirulev. Is it time for a repeat? ?? #entrepreneurship #venturecapital #startupjourney #demoday #techevents #ai

Rubbish won 1st place at the TECH WEEK by a16z Gov Tech Demo day hosted by the SF Office of Economic & Workforce Development!?? The goal was to showcase new public/private solutions to challenges that all cities face. We are proud that?Rubbish's AI-powered platform stood out among innovative civic tech solutions. Our mission is to create the Operating System (OS) for Modern Waste Management, which allows cities and large properties to leverage artificial intelligence to cut costs, improve worker safety, and meet sustainability goals. Thank you to the organizers, judges, and fellow founders who are building the future of government services. Pavel Vinitsky, PhD, Serephina Ha, Patricia Liu, Keith Newman, Kaori Rei, and Katie Swanson, Cameron Dennis, Jack Bookey, and Martin Kirkwood. Special thanks to TECH WEEK by a16z and SF Office of Economic & Workforce Development for fostering public/private innovation. #GovTech #AI #Sustainability #SanFrancisco #Innovation

?? New laws, like SB-54, are transforming waste management by shifting the cost from the government to producers—companies like The Coca-Cola Company, Procter & Gamble, and Nestle. For the first time, if your products are hard to recycle, end up on our beaches, or lack responsible end markets, you're footing the bill. Producers are expected to contribute over $5 billion dollars to mitigate the environmental impact of plastic pollution. ??? Later today, I'll join the legendary (and key advocate for legislation like SB-54)?Heidi Sanborn, MPA,?and her team at the?National Stewardship Action Council?to discuss how Rubbish's waste classification technology can help track waste flows, ensure compliance, protect our environment, and facilitate this important industry shift. Hope to see you there! https://www.nsaction.us/ #wastemanagement #AI #circulareconomy #rubbish #sb54 #govtech Jordan Wells Victoria Reiser

Announcing SF Future Forum I’m on the core team of a new accelerator bringing together the brightest entrepreneurs and innovators to tackle San Francisco’s biggest challenges. Participants will gain access to world-class mentors, strategic guidance, and the opportunity to present to a room filled with some of the city's most impactful leaders - including top VCs, local politicians, and?OpenAI ?CEO Sam Altman We’re focusing on key issues like homelessness, safety, housing, civic engagement, and sustainability to create a stronger and more vibrant city. ?? Applications open in October—details below! https://sffutureforum.com/ I’m thrilled to be working with an incredible team, including Sondre Rasch, Emin Israfil Elisa Rueda, Lauren Razavi , Aurora Kl?boe Berg, and partners like SHACK15, Dropbox SafetyWing, Rubbish, thoughtbot, Forecastr Startups.com, and my own company, Collective Impact. Please connect with me to discuss partnership opportunities. #ai #techforgood #sf #UrbanInnovation

Back to basics: Cleaning up our cities with better environmental data ?? Story Time ?? Back in the day, we teamed up with the City of Sacramento to do a 25-mile environmental data survey along the River District to track litter, pollution, and infrastructure issues. The goal? Help the city allocate waste management resources more effectively. Pengling Henry Yang and I used the Rubbish app to gather over 17,000 geo-tagged data points—each with photos—in just 3 days, enduring 100-degree heat. ???? This data proved transformational for the River District, securing additional funding and resources. But that was old school; we had to categorize every image manually. Now, we use AI to categorize for us, eliminating +34,000 button clicks and field decisions. This allows us to cover more ground faster and empowers more communities to clean up their neighborhoods. Even better: We're working on using video for automatic processing. By 2025, surveys that used to take days and involve tens of thousands of individual decisions will be as simple as a walk in the park. ?? Want to learn more about how AI is transforming waste management? Join us at the Zero Waste Conference to see how automation is tackling dangerous and repetitive tasks. ?? Sign up here: https://zwconference.org/ Thank you to the organizers! I am looking forward to learning more from my co-presenters: JoAnn Gemenden Annette Poliwka Marilee Movius Jeremy Drake Amanda R Waddle Steve Jewett #zerowaste #wastemanagement #litter #environmentaldata

Psyched to share that I’m an organizing member of SF Future Forum, an accelerator bringing together the brightest entrepreneurs and innovators to tackle San Francisco’s biggest challenges. Participants will gain access to world-class mentors, strategic guidance, and the opportunity to present to a room filled with some of the city's most impactful leaders - including top VCs, local politicians, and?OpenAI?CEO Sam Altman. We’re focusing on key issues like sanitation, civic engagement, sustainability, safety, and more to create a stronger and more vibrant city. ?? Applications open in October—details below! https://sffutureforum.com/ This project is a collaborative effort with some Bay Area icons. I’m thrilled to be working with an incredible team, including Sondre Rasch, Michael Seiler, Elisa Rueda, Lauren Razavi, Aurora Kl?boe Berg, and partners like SHACK15, Dropbox SafetyWing, Collective Impact, thoughtbot, Forecastr, Startups.com and my own company, Rubbish. Lots more to come - stay tuned! #ai #techforgood #sf #UrbanInnovation

Honored to be presenting at the National Zero Waste Conference on October 3rd.

Amazing having you in the community Emin Israfil and Lakshmi R.! Looking forward to supporting Rubbish as you grow. #9Zero #community #climatetech

Thank you to the team at 9Zero Climate Innovation Hub for highlighting the work that Lakshmi and I are doing to bring AI to Waste Management at Rubbish! Special thanks to Michael Seiler for introducing us to Matthew Joehnk and the great humans at 9Zero Climate Innovation Hub. It's been a great place to connect with some of the best entrepreneurs in climate/sustainability and the climate venture community. Thanks to 9Zero, we also joined Tech Futures Group venture accelerator, which has been a game-changer over the last few months. I highly recommend checking them out on California Street in San Francisco. And don't miss their interview with us below ?? ??: https://lnkd.in/g4uQZR44 #wastemanagement #ai #recycling #innovation #SF

Startup success isn’t just about having a groundbreaking idea—it’s about how well that idea is executed. Execution hinges on user-centered design. Many startups fail because they’re too focused on the technology and not enough on the user. They end up with a product that’s technically impressive but lacks usability. User-centered design flips this on its head. By involving users in the design process, you ensure that your product is not only innovative but also intuitive and easy to use. This approach reduces the risk of product failure and increases user satisfaction. Consider the Apple iPhone. Its success isn’t just due to its cutting-edge technology—it’s because Apple’s designers understand their users and craft products that fit seamlessly into their lives. This is a user-centered design at its best. If you want your startup to succeed, focus on the user. By making user-centered design a priority, you’ll create products that not only meet user needs but also exceed their expectations. --- I'm Jonathan Thai , a seasoned Silicon Valley designer with over a decade under my belt bringing products to life. Through Hatch Duo LLC and more, I've crafted, invested, and steered ventures to the forefront of innovation. Considering a game-changing product or venture? Check out our design studio here: www.hatchduo.com Youtube: https://lnkd.in/g5VRjGzc Want to try our AI Tools? www.theflo.ai