Roux Institute launches year-long healthtech accelerator
☀️ Good Sunday morning. This is the 267th edition of Maine Startups Insider.
Here’s a round up of news and goings-on in Maine’s startup community over the last month, including the Roux Institute naming the nine companies in its inaugural Future of Healthcare Founder Residency program.
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-Whit
/ News
Roux Institute launches Future of Healthcare Founder Residency to boost Maine’s healthtech industry
The Roux Institute last week announced the nine companies accepted to its inaugural Future of Healthcare Founder Residency program.
The year-long residency program is aimed at supporting innovative healthtech companies and creating a thriving ecosystem for healthcare entrepreneurship in Maine. The state's two largest healthcare systems, Northern Light Health and MaineHealth, as well as Maine Venture Fund, are funding the program.
The companies, which hail from three countries and five states, include teams building an AI-enabled virtual healthcare assistant, addressing maternal mortality, and cancer detection. Two of the companies—EmTech Care Labs and Apriqot—are based in Maine.
In addition to programmatic and institutional support throughout the program, each company will also receive a $50,000 investment. The Roux Institute also takes an equity stake in each company involved in the residency.
The Roux Institute plans to support 30 companies over three years through the residency and is already exploring opportunities to create more industry-specific Founder Residency programs in areas like climate tech and ocean tech.
Click through to the larger article for a list of the companies.
Read more at Maine Startups Insider »
🙏 MSI is sponsored by Eaton Peabody, a Maine law firm with particular expertise in structuring startup investment transactions—from early seed investment, friends/family and angel investors, through later stage venture capital funding. Meet Jeff, a member of the team.
Dirigo Labs to host pitch contest on May 4
Dirigo Labs on May 4 is scheduled to host a pitch competition for the 11 cohort companies that participated in the accelerator’s second annual cohort, which began in January.
The 11 startups will compete for a chance to win a $25,000 cash prize sponsored by Skowhegan Savings Bank. Each founder will have five minutes to pitch, after which a panel of judges will pick a winner. Judges will evaluate each company’s pitch delivery, capital strategy, innovation, team, and potential for driving economic growth and job creation across Maine.
The startups represent a range of industries, including healthcare, tourism, agriculture, manufacturing, and clean energy technologies. You can find the full list of participating startups in the cohort announcement from December.
/ Briefly Mentioned
📝 Bite-sized news items from Maine’s startup community and beyond
The “new space” industry could contribute up to $1.1 billion a year to Maine’s economy by 2042, according to a new initiative called Maine Space 2030. Mainebiz has more.
UMaine is using $2.5 in Maine Jobs & Recovery Plan funding to expand programming and services, including access to technical assistance and student talent, to help small businesses and startups still dealing with ongoing pandemic challenges. The newly established Solutions for Maine R&D and Innovation Hub is based out of UMaine’s Foster Center for Innovation and run by the university’s Office of Strategic Partnerships, Innovation, Resources and Engagement (SPIRE). If you want to learn more about the hub and eligibility requirements, visit the SPIRE website.
This edition of MSI is sponsored by Gorham Savings Bank and its new podcast, Beyond Launchpad. Listen to the latest episode, featuring an interview with Melissa LaCasse, founder of Tanbark.
/ ICYMI
BlueTrace raises $4.3M to scale its seafood traceability software business
Healthcare startups take home top prizes at Maine Startup Challenge
Finetune, a Maine Venture Fund portfolio company, is acquired
/ Jobs
If you apply for a job you see here, let them know you saw the opportunity in Maine Startups Insider.
+ CourseStorm, a SaaS company building course-registration software, is hiring a senior software engineer.
+ VETRO Inc., a SaaS company in Portland, is looking for a Product Marketing Manager and a Senior Software Engineer, among other roles.
+ The Maine Angels is hiring a part-time Operations and Investment Associate.
+ HighByte, an industrial software startup, is hiring a Software Developer, Sales Engineer, and an Account Executive.
+ Theory and Principle, a legal-tech product design and development startup in Portland, is hiring a Software Project Manager and a Product Manager.
+ KinoTek, a Portland-based digital health startup, is hiring a business development rep.
+ Nearpeer, a Portland-based edtech startup that aims to improve student retention and graduation, is hiring a Director of Marketing and a Sales Director.
+ MedRhythms, a Portland-based digital therapeutics startup, is hiring for several engineering positions, including a Senior Audio Software Engineer, Senior Backend Engineer, Frontend Engineer, and a React Native Developer.
+ Defendify, a cybersecurity startup in Portland, is hiring a Senior Software Engineer (SaaS) and a Sales Development Rep.
Seeking a full-stack engineer? A technical co-founder? A sales or biz dev superstar? Send me your job postings to make this a great resource!
/ Calendar
Application Deadline — Roux Institute Founder Residency
April 30
VR/AR Hack Night
Tues., May 2, 7-10 p.m. — Big Room Studios in Portland
Dirigo Labs Pitch Competition
Thurs., May 4, 5-8 p.m. — Maine Film Center in Waterville
Game Hack Night
Tues., May 9, 7-10 p.m. — Big Room Studios in Portland
Startup Maine Happy Hour
Thurs., May 18, 5-7 p.m. — Maine Jewish Museum
Women in Bioscience
Wed., May 24, 4-7 p.m. — Grace in Portland
Maine Entrepreneurs Summit
Thurs., May 25, 2-8 p.m. — USM’s Abromson Center in Portland
RuralRISE Summit
June 20-22 — Skowhegan & Waterville
Thanks for prominently highlighting the Solutions for Maine R&D and Innovation Hub at UMaine, Whit. These are fantastic resources and hopefully many many Maine companies will inquire and take full advantage.