Exploration Park, Miami, and Tampa, Fla. (May 20, 2022) – Space Florida and the Florida Venture Forum, Florida’s largest statewide support organization for investors and entrepreneurs, are pleased to announce the award winners at the 2022 EmergingTech Showcase, held May 20 in Lake Nona. A panel of judges evaluated each eligible company’s presentation and supporting materials. Third place winner Brick Street Farms will take home $10,000 of Space Florida’s Accelerating Innovation (AI) Award. Second place winner Helicon will receive $20,000. First runner-up Kalogon will receive $30,000. Grand Prize Winner Hardee Nutritional, will receive $40,000.
Hardee Nutritional, Lake Delton, Wisconsin, will grow and extract value-added ingredients from two types of algae in Hardee County FL, specifically: Haematococcus pluvialis (aka Hp), a source of natural astaxanthin and its co-product defatted algal meal; and Spirulina, known for its complete protein content and as a source of natural blue food colourings. These algae/products have been validated in the marketplace and represent more-than $1 billion in annual global sales.
Kalogon, Melbourne, Florida, has tested and proven their market-ready solution to pressure injuries – Smart Seating. Their smart cushions dynamically adjust the pressure distribution of the user and intelligently change their algorithms to suit the needs of the patient. Their product allows for easy software customization to offload locations of concern and has been designed to prevent pressure injuries and help heal existing injuries. This allows their users to sit for longer, without pain, and reduce the risk of developing life-threatening injuries.
Helicon, Orlando, Florida, makes the most advanced propellant in the world. They are working with more than 70 percent of the rocket industry today to increase rocket performance by 20-40 percent. The DoD has endorsed them and has place to scale up production 100X this year.
Brick Street Farms, St. Petersburg, Florida, utilizes patent pending environmentally forward technologies to service both a direct-to-consumer market and a business-to business wholesale market. It created the technology and the vertical farm containers to grow 16-20 acres of crops on 1/3-acre urban settings using their own farm containers- bringing mass food production to the point of consumption without using supply chain or distribution services.
“Space Florida congratulates all of the participating companies and the four winners of this year’s EmergingTech Showcase,” said Space Florida President and CEO Frank DiBello. “The success of these capital accelerator events continues to support the development of disruptive startup technologies, while elevating Florida’s profile in the venture capital arena. We look forward to continuing our partnership with the Florida Venture Forum, while investing in emerging, innovative Florida technology.”
“Congratulations to all the winners and participants at the 2022 EmergingTech Showcase,” said Kevin Burgoyne, President and CEO of the Florida Venture Forum. “We are also extremely grateful to our partners at Space Florida for their support and commitment to Florida’s innovation ecosystem. The technologies and services featured at the showcase will power Florida’s very bright future; we can all be grateful for Space Florida’s leadership and efforts in fueling these advancements.”
The 17 presenting companies were selected by a committee of active Florida venture capital investors. Space Florida provided the Accelerating Innovation prize money totaling $100,000. To date, Space Florida-supported capital accelerators have attracted more than $611 million in funding and investments for participating companies.
