Softeq Venture Studio Funds Five Early-Stage Startups in Fall 2021 Cohort

Houston Technology Company Invests Capital and Development Services to Enable Rapid Growth, Design for Scale, and Follow-on Funding

HOUSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Softeq Development Corporation (Softeq), a Houston-based global technology consultancy serving the Fortune 500, today welcomed five early-stage startups to the company’s Venture Studio program. The Softeq Venture Studio formalizes the company’s approach to working with new startups in need of proven development services, strong technology guidance, and further resources to build a new business.

“Historically, most tech startups had a founder with development skills. However, we’re now seeing more and more business people, doctors, and other professionals start companies, and they need a strong engineering partner to develop their products. We take it several steps further with the Venture Studio providing technology business consulting, development services, and much-needed cash. We’re a vested partner, so we also help secure follow-on funding for continued growth,” says Christopher A. Howard, Softeq Founder and CEO.

The Softeq Venture Studio is designed to help entrepreneurs quickly develop their technology and build real, scalable, and investable businesses. The cohort represents several emerging industries, including sports tech, med-tech, and lifestyle tech. The founders hail from the Bay Area, New York, Boston, and Houston.

• Atlas Coaching is a marketplace to connect female sports celebrities, pros, and coaches with fans looking to improve their game and receive digital training.
• FitLift improves strength training techniques and reduces injuries through a mobile app and wearable device that tracks precise motion and provides feedback.
• GetScouted aims to provide a verifiable source of athletes’ performance and statistics to coaches and scouts using biometric analysis and analytics.
• Home Outside is democratizing landscape design by making it simple, affordable, automated, easy to visualize, and integrated through AI and 1-click ordering.
• Orcana is a medical technology startup utilizing augmented reality and AI to provide 24/7 remote support for operating rooms to reps, surgeons, and surgical teams.

Billy Grandy, who has been a serial entrepreneur for 18 years and participated in some of the top accelerator programs globally, will lead the Softeq Venture Studio. Says Grandy, “Most early-stage accelerators focus on the business aspects of a startup. Adding the enterprise-focused development resources of Softeq helps startups de-risk the effort and puts future investors at ease. Furthermore, Houston’s rapidly growing innovation ecosystem and access to an active investment community and tech-forward business leaders make this city a perfect venue for startups.”

The founders of the early-stage startups will be in Houston for the three-month program from October through December and are provided office space at FUSE in City Centre near the Softeq corporate headquarters in the Energy Corridor. The Softeq Venture Studio offers quarterly cohorts for four to six startups in each session. Participating companies receive $100,000 in cash and development services in exchange for a small piece of equity in their company. Applications are now open for the Winter 2022 Cohort to be held mid-January through March of next year. The deadline to apply is December 11, 2021, and startups may apply at www.softeq.com/venture-studio.

About Softeq Development Corporation

Founded in 1997 in Houston, Texas, Softeq Development Corporation provides early-stage innovation, technology business consulting, and technical solutions to enterprise companies and innovative startups. The company’s clients are often disrupting existing industries or going through digital transformation—an effort that requires a broad range of business and technical skills. Softeq offers a full spectrum of consulting services plus full-stack software, firmware, and hardware engineering services all under one roof. Softeq bridges technology gaps in knowledge-intensive projects and builds end-to-end solutions from the ground up. To help clients make the transition from analog to digital, the company provides expertise in various trending technologies including the Internet of Things, Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning, Industrial Automation, Robotics, Blockchain, and AR/VR. The company designs connected devices and IT systems for increased security and scalability. Softeq customers include Verizon, Epson, Microsoft, Lenovo, AMD, Disney, Intel, NVIDIA, Arrival, Halo by PAWS, and others.

In 2020, the company launched the Softeq Innovation Lab to provide an environment where corporate intrapreneurs and preeminent innovators from Houston and beyond can collaborate, create the technologies of tomorrow, and expedite the commercialization of ideas. The Softeq Venture Studio is designed to help early-stage startups build their products and get follow-on funding. Learn more at softeq.com.