By Nan Price, Content Manager MetroHartford Alliance

The Stanley + Techstars Accelerator hosted its second Demo Day on Monday, October 7 at the Bushnell Performing Arts Center. Hundreds of people from the Hartford community—including mentors, industry experts, local entrepreneurs, and Connecticut politicians—attended the event to support innovation and entrepreneurial activity happening in our city.

The Demo Day event celebrated the completion of a three-month program designed to help company founders accelerate their businesses through investment, resources, and mentorship. Ten innovative companies presented:

• Accelerate 3D — Manufacturing large-scale 3D printers that print 10× faster than the market standard
• Boxologic — Creating robotic, instant, right-size packaging for e-commerce fulfillment
• Craste — Building sustainable products for packaging from waste crop residue
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  STANLEY + Techstars 2019 Demo Day presenters NV Earth (top left), Triditive (top right), Boxologic (bottom left), and Womp (bottom right).

  NV Earth — Creating bio-based lubricants, cleaners, and absorbents

• Occo — Providing molecularly fresher ingredients in more sustainable packaging
• Prinsta — Developing the next generation of electronics manufacturing
• Triditive — Introducing AMCELL, the first automated industrial hybrid AM machine for mass production
• Tuffel — Focusing on building the next generation of power tools
• Umeleon — Providing customized filaments for FDM printers on demand
• Womp — Using an AI-powered platform to generate, interact, and make objects

Creating an Innovation Hub In Hartford

Opening remarks underscored the importance of helping innovative companies from Connecticut and beyond accelerate and grow here in Hartford.

“There’s nothing more important to the success of our 176-year old company than innovation,” emphasized Stanley Black & Decker Vice President, Business Development Marty Guay. “We want to make Hartford an epicenter of advanced manufacturing,” he added.

Stanley Black & Decker President & Chief Executive Officer Jim Loree reinforced that attitude. “We live in an outstanding and supportive region [where] there is a renaissance underway. We have the talent, education support, and resources to be an innovation hub…and we are gaining momentum,” he said.

“We have the Silicon Valley of advanced manufacturing,” said Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont in his introductory remarks, noting that Connecticut’s longstanding companies need entrepreneurs to grow and survive and “entrepreneurship is now infecting our major companies.”

Speaking of the evening’s presenting startups, the governor said, “This is an amazing state to help start your company and get the resources you need. Connecticut welcomes you. This is a place you can call home. Hartford is a city you can call home, too.”

Hartford Mayor Luke Bronin commended the various collaborations working to “make the city and state into a rapidly growing innovation ecosystem.”

Acknowledging that the accelerator companies presenting hailed from Spain, Germany, India, Texas, New York, Boston, and California, the mayor added, “Here’s what’s special about Hartford and Connecticut: You can come here to launch your business, build relationships, and get access to companies.” Startups may not be able to form those impactful relationships elsewhere, he implied.