13 Companies Receive Launch Minnesota Innovation Grants

St. Paul –The Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) has awarded $344,000 in Launch Minnesota Innovation Grants to 13 high technology startups.

In round two of grant funding, Launch Minnesota awarded 13 business operations grants and two housing/childcare grants. Of the 13 business awardees, 73% are women, veteran or minority-owned or are headquartered in Greater Minnesota.

“These grants are a solid economic development investment for the state of Minnesota,” said Kevin McKinnon, DEED Deputy Commissioner of Economic Development. “Helping innovators succeed will have positive long-term benefits for our entire economy.”

“I’m thrilled to see 33 startups receive Launch Minnesota Innovation grants awards,” said Jodi Hubler, Launch Minnesota Advisory Board Chair. “These funds will help entrepreneurs expand their businesses and focus on developing new innovations right here in Minnesota.”

“Since kicking off just four months ago, Launch Minnesota has awarded $1M in grants to high tech startups,” said Launch Minnesota Executive Director Neela Mollgaard. “These grants will help reduce the risk for Minnesota technology startups and entrepreneurs and grow our state’s innovation ecosystem.”

Launch Minnesota is a statewide collaborative effort to accelerate the growth of startups and amplify Minnesota as a national leader in innovation. Grants are targeted to the most promising, innovative and scalable technology startups. The Innovation grants require a one-to-one match with private dollars, bringing the total potential investment in these startups to over $3.2 million.

Today’s announcements are for round two of Launch Minnesota Innovation Grants. The first round was announced in January. The internal review of the next batch of grant applications will be completed by the end of May. Grant applications will continue to be reviewed on a rolling basis until the $1.6 million in fiscal year 2020 is fully awarded. In July, another $1.6 million in funding will be available for fiscal year 2021.

Visit LaunchMinnesota.org or visit the Launch Minnesota grants section of the DEED website to learn more about grant opportunities and access application materials.

Second Round Launch Minnesota Innovation Grant recipients listed below:

Better Time Company, St. Paul

Helping people make better health and wellness decisions with a digital coach.

Cylark Labs, St. Paul

Creating an AI-guided self-fitting system for over-the-counter hearing aids.

D'Avocado, Orono

Creating packaged food products made with avocados.

Extempore, St. Paul

Developing a speaking practice app for foreign language students.

Insight Sensing, St. Paul

Developing system to provide crop performance indicators for fertilizer management.

Metselex, Minneapolis

Developing therapies to treat neurodegenerative disorders associated with cell death, such as Alzheimer's.

Novo Clade, St. Paul

Working to bring chemical free environmentally friendly insect control to market.

Phraze, Inc., Rochester

Creating a digital medical scribe to automate clinician’s medical documentation.

Poma 22, Mendota Heights

Creating a helmet with high-powered air duct system that provides ear-to-ear air curtain to shield workers from airborne contaminants.

Primal Health, Minneapolis

Creating consumable daily dental hygiene products for animals and humans.

Terrafore Technologies, Minneapolis

Developing thermal energy storage to provide dispatchable solar power generation to the grid.

Thrivors, St. Paul

Reducing cancer drug therapy abandonment through a health platform targeted at cancer patients/survivors.

Virtue Analytics, Woodbury

Providing student-specific financial aid offers via a SaaS platform for higher ed.

Launch Minnesota is a new initiative aimed at growing Minnesota's startup ecosystem. Launch Minnesota is spearheaded by DEED, leveraging the expertise of dozens of private sector leaders and Minnesota entrepreneurs. For more information, visit LaunchMinnesota.org. Follow us on Twitter and Facebook.

DEED is the state’s principal economic development agency, promoting business recruitment, expansion and retention, workforce development, international trade and community development. For more details about the agency and its services, visit the DEED website or follow DEED on Twitter.