Meet the Techstars Detroit Class of 2019

The Techstars Detroit Class of 2019 is the 5th Techstars class in Detroit, but the first class to run under the new name and expanded thesis. This class is 60% international and 40% female led. Check out the reasoning behind the name change and full class below.

At the beginning of 2019, Techstars Mobility transformed to Techstars Detroit.

The word “mobility” was becoming too limiting to attract world-class founders. I wanted to reach a broader audience of entrepreneurs who may not label themselves as mobility but still fit my thesis for the future.

My thesis expanded from the movement of people and goods to:

Investing in technologies bridging the gap between the physical and digital worlds.

This thesis is a superset of the technologies transforming all sorts of industries like transportation, automotive, manufacturing, agriculture, and healthcare.

As Matt Burns from TechCrunch put it succinctly, “Mobility is baked into Detroit, but Detroit is more than mobility.”

No longer is Detroit telling the world how to move.
The world is telling Detroit how to move. — Ted Serbinski

And that’s what Techstars Detroit is all about.

The 2019 Class of Techstars Detroit

• Airspace Link (Detroit, MI)
  Developing highways in the sky for safer drone operations.
• Alpha Drive (New York, NY)
  Solving the challenge of how do you determine driver risk when the driver is an AI.
• Le Car (Novi, MI)
  An AI-powered personal car concierge that matches you to your perfect vehicle.
• Octane (Fremont, CA)
  Octane is a mobile app that connects car enthusiasts to automotive events and to each other out on the road.
• PPAP Manager (Chihuahua, Mexico)
  A platform to streamline the approval of packets of documents required in the automotive industry to validate production parts.
• Ruksack (Toronto, Canada)
  Connecting travelers with local travel experts to help them plan a perfect trip.
• Soundtrack AI (Tel Aviv, Israel)
  Machine learning technology to analyze the acoustic signature of mechanical assets (for example manufacturing machines, vehicle transmission or wind turbines) in order to monitor their operational state and predict maintenance issues in real time.
• Teporto (Tel Aviv, Israel)
  A simple one-click smart platform for managing commute shuttle services that seamlessly adapts routes and schedules to commuters’ needs on a daily basis.
• Unlimited Engineering (Barcelona, Spain)
  The next-generation OEM powertrain for micro-mobility. A patented modular battery architecture that allows unprecedented flexibility and compatibility across vehicles.
• Zown (Toronto, Canada)
  We help properties generate new revenue streams by renting out their curbspace and parking to mobility providers.

To get in touch with any of these startups, please send me a note and I’d be happy to connect you to them.