Your guide to the startups at JumpStart's VC Fest

JumpStart Inc. has released the lineup of startups set to pitch and exhibit at VC Fest, its two-day gathering Sept. 29 and 30 at the Huntington Convention Center in downtown Cleveland.

Twenty companies will take the stage across two midday pitch sessions, with more exhibiting in the event's Demo Zone. Their work ranges from pediatric health monitoring and food allergy treatment to highway barriers, bicycle pedals and music commerce.

Kaleigh Gallagher, vice president of tech startup services at JumpStart, described a competitive selection process.

"I won't say it wasn't tough. We had a large pool of promising applicants this year and across the two pitch days and the Demo Zone floor, we're bringing 40 companies in front of investors," Gallagher said.

JumpStart evaluated each applicant through two lenses, she explained. The first looked at investment potential, including traction, market size and team. The second tested whether the technology is defensible and ahead of the market.

"The companies being featured are genuinely exciting opportunities coming out of the Midwest and well positioned to hold their own with the investors in that room," Gallagher said.

This guide follows the lineup in order. Trailblazer Accelerator companies pitch on day one, regional startups pitch on day two, and the Demo Zone exhibitors close out the guide.

By the numbers

• 40 companies across two pitch days and the Demo Zone
• 10 Trailblazer Accelerator companies pitching Sept. 29
• 10 regional startups pitching Sept. 30

Trailblazer companies open the pitch stage

The first pitch session, from noon to 1:30 p.m. Sept. 29, features 10 companies from JumpStart's Trailblazer Accelerators. Four work in health tech and six in software. Four of the software companies were also members of Cohort 5 of the Trailblazer Software Accelerator: Accelerator: Dwarpaal, LTCareNav, Motiv and Ordermatic.

Health tech

• Apricity Robotics: Robotic ultrasound platform for remote medical imaging
• Auni Therapeutics: Immunotherapy treatments for severe food allergies
• Seroxo: Biomarker platform for detecting infection and sepsis
• Sunra Health: Predictive pediatric health monitoring that flags issues before symptoms emerge

Software

• AXE.AI: On-premise AI platform that speeds up security testing in regulated industries
• Dwarpaal: Smart hotel rooms with AI-driven energy and access controls
• LTCareNav: AI platform that helps families plan ahead for long-term care
• Motiv: Operating system for managing interscholastic athletics
• Ordermatic: AI software that automates industrial order entry
• QicScan AI: Vision AI for inventory in regulated supply chains

Regional startups take day two

The second pitch session, at the same time on Sept. 30, brings 10 regional startups to the stage. Their work spans life sciences, health devices, agriculture, logistics and marketing technology. Gallagher noted that investors will see both sides of what the region does well.

"On the second day, for example, they'll see strong software companies in logistics and customer intelligence, built by founders who know how to ship product fast," Gallagher said. "But they'll also see life sciences companies manufacturing cells for therapies, hardware solving problems in agriculture and infrastructure, and wearable medical devices restoring mobility."

She added that the founders share one advantage: proximity to the problems they're solving.

"Whether the problem is on a farm, in a hospital or on a factory floor, they're close enough to actually solve it instead of guessing at it from three time zones away," she said. "That's an advantage."

Life sciences

• Diapin Therapeutics: Small-molecule drugs to prevent cardiovascular and metabolic disease
• Trailhead Biosystems: Human cell manufacturing for therapies, drug discovery and bioprinting

Health devices

• NeuroLife: Wearable neuromodulation system to restore upper-limb movement
• Oro Muscles: Wearable muscle sensors that guide rehabilitation and athletic performance

More from day two

• Amethyst Care: AI voice companion that supports independent aging at home
• Asynt Solutions: Lightweight composite highway barriers offered through a rental model
• Equalpoint: Relationship intelligence platform that connects people at gatherings
• Global Neighbor: Directed-energy technology to replace agricultural chemicals
• Real Time Intelligence: Software for managing fleets of reusable transport assets
• Spearfish: AI that links customer conversations to business outcomes

Demo Zone spans medical devices to music

Beyond the pitch stage, early- and growth-stage companies will exhibit in the Demo Zone, where investors and potential partners can see their products firsthand. The exhibitors range from implantable devices and stroke rehabilitation to wind turbines, bike pedals and music commerce.

Medical devices and digital health

• corVita: Universal adapter that lets automated external defibrillator (AED) electrodes work across different devices
• Dianyx Innovations: Intraoral biosensor for predictive precision health analytics
• Open NeuroTech: Open-source implantable neuromodulation platform for clinical research
• Resilient Medical: Implant that improves outcomes and recovery after lumpectomy

Extended reality (XR)

• AlensiaXR: Immersive platform for education and training in complex fields
• Reneural: XR platform for remote stroke rehabilitation
• TruHealer: XR simulations for health care training

Security, software, energy and infrastructure

• Lighthouse Avionics: Optical counter-drone detection platform for aviation security
• NavaFlex: Advanced batteries and superconducting materials for critical infrastructure
• Novora Energy: Roadside vertical-axis wind turbines that generate renewable power
• Privaclave AI: Runtime data protection for AI and enterprise systems
• QURE Industries: AI-guided platform that structures data from high-stakes physical work
• Voraxis Energy: Surface-mounted wireless charging for electric vehicle fleets

Consumer

• Everywai: AI Bible app that captures sermons and answers follow-up questions grounded in them
• Nikola Innovation: High-performance bicycle pedals, designed and manufactured in-house
• Streamline: Personalized guide that consolidates sports streaming options
• Tappi Media: Direct-to-fan commerce platform for independent musicians
• ZED Digital: AI-powered ticketing for frictionless venue entry

The pitch sessions and Demo Zone sit inside a larger program. Keynotes are scheduled for 11 a.m. Sept. 29 and 3:30 p.m. Sept. 30, and panels on technology, capital and economic growth run across the two days. One panel, "Women in HealthTech: Founders, Connectors and Capital Building Healthcare Companies," will feature Correy O'Neal, founder of MindMode AI.

JumpStart is also scheduling curated one-on-one meetings between founders, investors and corporate partners, giving the companies in this guide time with the investors they hope to reach.

For Gallagher, the strength of this year's group lies in its depth rather than any one company.

"Forty companies, spanning life sciences, hardware, medical devices and software, all clearing the same bar for technical rigor and market opportunity," she said. "A region doesn't prove itself with one breakout company, it proves itself with a bench this deep, year after year. What this collection says to investors is that the Midwest isn't producing the occasional outlier anymore—it's producing a strong pipeline backed by strong founders."