Techstars Columbus and Ohio State Unveil Inaugural Class of Innovators

Techstars Columbus Powered by The Ohio State University has welcomed the first 12 companies to the accelerator program for early-stage entrepreneurs.

The program brings together Ohio State’s research expertise and entrepreneurial spirit with Techstars’ accelerator model that has supported the growth and success of thousands of companies. This new program represents one of the core features of Ohio State’s new Center for Software Innovation.

The center and its vision were made possible by Ratmir Timashev and the generosity of the Timashev Family Foundation.

“We are thrilled to welcome the inaugural cohort of Techstars ventures to Columbus,” said Executive Director of the Center of Software Innovation Shereen Agrawal. “It’s been incredible to see both the expansive Techstars community and the Columbus entrepreneurial ecosystem, as always, show their support. Through this program, we are excited to continue our dedication to fostering high-impact innovation.”

The goal of the program is to bring together mission-driven founders working on problems distinctively suited to the resources available to them at Ohio State and in central Ohio in health care, alternative energy, automotive, agriculture, AI and commerce. Software companies from Columbus, Los Angeles, Chicago, London and cities from around the world were selected in the inaugural cohort. They will be located at Carmenton, Ohio State’s innovation district, for the duration of their programming.

“We believe these companies are building the critical infrastructure for healthier, more fulfilling lives for each of us now and for generations to come,” said Tim Grace, managing director of Techstars Columbus. “Over the next 13 weeks, they will be based in Columbus and work with our team, exceptional Entrepreneurs in Residence and mentors to master the art of building momentum in their businesses, the building block for success in sales, fundraising, team building and much more.”

The companies will have access to funding, receive training and mentorship by top experts in software, and connect with the combined networks of Ohio State and Techstars. The program will help founders define their product, core customer and market, and go-to-market strategy, in addition to getting additional support in raising seed or A-round venture capital funding.

The program will lead to a Demo Day in Columbus on May 29 where the companies will have an opportunity to showcase their progress.

The inaugural companies are:

• Aspect Health: Improving lifestyle-reversible hormonal imbalances for women via continuous glucose monitoring and human-assisted AI coaching.
• Besample: Connecting researchers to human samples anywhere in the world.
• Blended Edge: AI-native app integration platform for software teams.
• Blomso: Live sensor-tech that helps farmers reduce fertilizer waste to make sustainable practices pragmatic and profitable.
• Cariqa: Transforming EV charging with integrated financial perks, simplified pricing and enhanced operator-consumer relationships.
• Currents: The operating system for owning Things.
• Pedal Data: Harnessing AI & gait tracking to stop the progression of neurodegenerative diseases like Parkinson’s.
• PlugOp Technologies: Redefining energy management for EV charging stations.
• Rubato: AI-powered, reimbursable music therapy for dementia patients and their caregivers.
• Seek: First at-home lab test that measures how alcohol impacts women’s health.
• Sentius: Automated enterprise tasks with generative AI using autonomous agents.
• Superfan: Where fans connect around the music they love.