Purdue Foundry Invests in Tech Startups
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Three Indiana-based startups with connections to Purdue University have each received $25,000 as part of the Purdue Foundry’s Boost accelerator program. The program helps accelerate the time-to-market of an early stage startup to promote long-term success.
Purdue says seven companies took part in the program. Each received a $5,000 grant at the start and participated in several weeks of programming, including consultations with entrepreneurs-in-residence, mentors and industry professionals.
“All seven companies tested their business model, developed a customer acquisition strategy, created a repeatable sales model, refined unit economics and financials, designed a defensible IP strategy, strategized on building a winning team and developed equity strategy,” said Bill Arnold, managing director of the Purdue Foundry. “The work these entrepreneurs put into their companies has made them more investment-ready, and not just for the Boost program.”
The companies then pitched their business plans to a panel of venture capitalists and angel investors.
The companies receiving investments are listed below:
- Araqev in West Lafayette – Arman Sabbaghi, CEO. Araqev uses machine learning to improve accuracy and quality and reducing waste for additive manufacturing.
- Pluto Aerospace in West Lafayette – Christopher Nilsen, CEO. Pluto Aerospace is developing rapid and economical launch vehicle platforms for hypersonic and other suborbital applications.
- ReproHealth Technologies in Indianapolis – James Donahue, CEO. ReproHealth is working to improve the efficacy of bovine reproductive technology, which will enable farmers to save time and money while growing their herd.
“Participating in this program was game-changing for us,” said Sabbaghi. “We learned a wide variety of important skills and concepts for effective entrepreneurship and consistently received constructive feedback and advice for improving our company. The team at Araqev eagerly looks forward to building on our new, solid foundation created as a result of the Boost program and taking the next giant leaps to move our company forward.”
You can connect to more information about the accelerator by clicking here.