ROCHESTER, N.Y., Jan. 06, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- NextCorps today issued a reminder that the deadline is just days away to apply for Cohort 5 of Luminate NY—the world's largest business accelerator and investment fund for early-stage companies working on solutions that are enabled by optics, photonics, or imaging (OPI). Application submission, which has been extended by one week, is due by 11:59 PM EST on January 17, 2022. This year, participation in the Rochester, NY based accelerator will be mostly remote, with select weeks in person for pitches to investor groups.
Any startup, regardless of its location or industry, is encouraged to apply if it is developing a new application that leverages some aspect of OPI, such as a cell phone camera for photos and video, machine or computer vision, light, or sensors that can help detect characteristics like location, motion, damage, and facial recognition. Companies accepted into Luminate’s portfolio in the past have been from diverse industries, including autonomous vehicles, augmented reality/virtual reality, climate tech, communications, defense, entertainment, medical device, quantum computing, security, and more.
Luminate provides significant support to startups, including an immediate investment of $100,000 upon acceptance, expert mentorship, and access to investors, lab facilities, and comprehensive curriculum. Upon graduation from the six-month program, the companies compete for a portion of $2 million in follow-on funding provided through the Finger Lakes Forward Upstate Revitalization Initiative.
“One of the biggest challenges our company was facing was how to miniaturize our technology and make it more commercially viable,” said Mohan Thanikachalam, MD, Founder & CEO, Dynocardia (and Luminate Cohort 4 member). “Luminate was extremely helpful in showing us the path from R&D to product development to commercialization. Three minutes with one of the mentors Luminate provided saved us three months of work.”
Startups applying to Luminate NY, which is a program of NextCorps, must be incorporated, have at least two people working full-time on the business, and should have proven their core technology, preferably having developed a working prototype. Luminate will select a total of 10 companies from the applicant pool for Cohort 5, which begins April 2022 and concludes in September 2022.
“So many innovations under development today include an aspect of optics, photonics, or imaging to bring new capabilities to market. By leveraging all that Luminate has to offer, including the rich resources that exist here in Rochester, NY—the imaging capital of the world—we can help jumpstart the growth and funding trajectory of the emerging companies of the future,” said Sujatha Ramanujan, PhD, Managing Director, Luminate.
The rigorous accelerator program also provides customized curriculum to guide startups through actionable business planning that is focused on commercializing and scaling their businesses. Members also benefit from working alongside peer OPI startups in the program, leveraging best practices, and helping each other toward success.
To apply to Luminate, go here. For more information about Luminate NY, go to luminate.org.
For additional information about NextCorps, visit NextCorps.org.
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