Technology 5 min read

Disrupt SF 2017: The Startup Battlefield Finalists Part 1

360b / Shutterstock.com

360b / Shutterstock.com

Disrupt SF 2017, this year’s tech conference hosted by TechCrunch held in San Francisco will be ending today with six finalists all vying for the $50,000 USD prize money and the much coveted Disrupt Cup.

Every year since 2011, TechCrunch selects early-stage startups from thousands of candidates worldwide. Then, the top innovators will be chosen to compete in the Startup Battlefield. Disrupt SF 2017 saw 22 startups took center stage at the Startup Battlefield.

After kicking off last Monday, September 18th, each company’s months of preparation culminated onstage with a six-minute pitch in front of an eager audience, followed by a tough question and answer session with TechCrunch’s panel of esteemed judges.

From the initial 22 startups, the competition is now down to six finalists who will be presenting today to a new set of judges. At the end of the day, one of these startups will be declared the winner and will take home the Disrupt SF 2017 Battlefield Cup and the $50,000 USD prize.

Before we place our bets, let’s take a look at the profiles of our strong Battlefield contenders.

Disrupt SF 2017 Startup Battlefield Finalists

Augmedics

Augmedics is an Israel-based startup that is currently working on an augmented reality headset that it says will help surgeons perform spinal surgeries. The said headsets will be equipped with a ViZor System, an AR surgical visualization system designed to give surgeons “X-ray vision” during complex procedures. On their website, Augmedics explained:

“With The ViZOR, surgeons can see inside a patient’s anatomy through skin and tissue, for easier, faster and safer surgeries. The ViZOR can be used in many procedures, with the first intended use in minimally invasive spine surgeries. The ViZOR uses proprietary patented see-through AR optics to project a 3D image of a patient’s spine onto a surgeon’s retina, in real-time, with surgical precision and outstanding depth perception.”

Interesting, right?

Colormass

Next in our list is Colormass, a Berlin-based company who developed a platform that will let its customers recreate an IKEA-style experience for their own merchandise. It’s no secret that IKEA has one of the most sophisticated catalogs and websites today because of the state-of-the-art digital imaging technology it uses.

However, not all can afford the amount of money needed to sustain an online catalog or website filled with highly realistic products. Colormass aims to eliminate this dilemma and help business owners convert photos of their products into images as sophisticated as those you found on IKEA’s website.

How do they do it?

Colormass uses computer vision algorithms to convert these images into lifelike, but fabricated, 3D files that can be altered with different textures and colors and subsequently embedded in various scenes.

So from this :

Original Image
Colormass | colormass.com

Colormass will turn your merchandise to this:

Colormass Edited
Colormass | Colormass.com

Colormass claims that their services cost just a fraction of the amount needed in creating a system like the one used by IKEA or bringing the merchandise for a photo shoot in a studio.

Future Family

Next is Future Family, a company who’s hoping to simplify the world of female fertility testing while lowering the cost of treatment options. Not only that, but the company is also offering fertility testing for men with their new product called the Sperm Activity Test.

Their primary services include Egg Freezing and IVF (In Vitro Fertilization). If you’re not familiar with these two, let us explain a bit further.

Egg Freezing or oocyte cryopreservation, is a process wherein a woman’s eggs are extracted, frozen, and stored as a means to preserve the reproductive potential of a woman in reproductive age.

The procedure, from extraction to freezing the eggs normally cost around $10,000 USD! But with Future Family, their packages start at $75 USD per month and can go as high as $175 USD for their premium plan. More than 80 percent cheaper than the commercial price!

On the other hand, In Vitro Fertilization or IVF is an assisted reproductive technology (ART) used in the process of fertilization. Eggs and sperms are extracted and are manually combined in a laboratory dish. Then, the embryo will be transferred to the uterus where it will grow and mature.

On average, the cost of IVF procedure starts at $8,500 USD and can go as high as $18,000 USD or more. At Future Family, the cost of IVF starts at $125 per month and can go as high as $275 USD for their premium plan.

That’s a lot of savings!

Now that’s the first half of the list. Don’t play favorites yet! Tomorrow, we will cover the remaining half of the six finalists and the results of the final battle! Stay tuned here at Edgy Labs as we bring you the latest news from the TechCrunch Disrupt SF 2017 Startup Battlefield!

Which one of the first three finalists from the Disrupt SF 2017 Startup Battlefield we presented today will win the competition? Let us know in the comment section below!

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Chelle Fuertes

Chelle is the Product Management Lead at INK. She's an experienced SEO professional as well as UX researcher and designer. She enjoys traveling and spending time anywhere near the sea with her family and friends.

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