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20 Chicago Startups to Watch in 2020
Throughout the year, Chicago Inno works to bring you the essential startup news to know about Chicago's growing tech scene. From new company launches, large venture funding rounds, IPO announcements and everything in between, Chicago Inno is your source for daily innovation news. But at the end of each year, we like to take a step back and look at the companies that are poised for big things in the year to come.
On our annual Startups to Watch list, Chicago Inno highlights the up-and-coming tech companies we think should be on your radar in 2020. These early-stage companies have established solid traction, either by early fundraises, fast revenue growth, impressive hires, or innovative approaches to important problems--and could see even more growth in the next year and beyond. Our Startups to Watch list aims to spotlight the lesser known companies that will have a big impact in 2020.
From a startup helping companies easily create mobile apps, to a "Keurig for cocktails" countertop device loved by Oprah Winfrey, to a Shark Tank standout making products for people with curly hair, here are our 20 Chicago startups to watch in 2020.
Arturo
Chicago startup Arturo is a real estate data and analytics company that spun out of American Family Insurance earlier this year. The startup uses artificial intelligence and deep learning to create satellite, aerial, drone and ground-level images that allow real estate professionals to accurately assess physical property characteristics. The startup’s tech is based on research started in 2017 at AmFam’s data science and analytics lab to simplify the decision-making processes for insurers, lenders, investors and property managers in the real estate industry. Its customers include AmFam, Chicago home insurance startup Kin and Boston startup Openly.
Bartesian
For any early-stage startup, having a celebrity vouch for your product is huge. And there may be no bigger celeb plug than Oprah Winfrey. Chicago startup Bartesian, which has created a Keurig-like countertop device for making cocktails at home, was named to this year’s Oprah’s Favorite Things List, a popular annual holiday shopping collection from the media mogul. Bartesian works by using Keurig-like capsules, which are used to make drinks like an old fashioned, margarita, gin martini, long island ice tea, and others. Each pod offers the appropriate amount of bitters, extracts, juice concentrates and other ingredients needed to make the perfect cocktail. Users provide their own alcohol, and simply push a button to make their drink. And Oprah isn’t the only big name who’s taken notice. The startup counts Cleveland Avenue, the VC firm from former McDonald’s CEO Don Thompson; Tom Ricketts, the chairman of the Chicago Cubs; and Beam Suntory among its investors.
Blueprint
Blueprint wants to improve how patients are treated for mental health conditions. Blueprint’s platform, used by both clinicians and patients, collects and analyzes patient data. Patients use Blueprint’s mobile app to complete standardized assessments between appointments with their doctor. That information is then combined with their exercise, sleep and movement patterns, which have been captured through smartphone sensors. On the physician side, clinicians can then view the collected data, which gives them the ability to deliver measurement-based care. The startup, founded in 2016, raised a $1.3 million round in April.
CurlMix
It’s one thing to get your startup on ABC’s hit reality show Shark Tank; it’s another to be able to turn down a $400,000 investment offer. Chicago startup CurlMix, a company that makes beauty products for women with curly hair, appeared on Shark Tank in March and turned down the offer from longtime Shark Robert Herjavec, who wanted 20% of the company. CurlMix, founded by husband and wife duo Kim and Tim Lewis in 2013, apparently didn’t need the cash as it’s taken off with customers who’ve gravitated to the “clean beauty brand” (CurlMix products feature 12 ingredients or less and include natural oils from flaxseeds, grape seeds and avocado.) The startup did $1 million in sales last year, and the founders expect to do $10 million in sales in 2019. And fun fact: Co-founder Tim Lewis won $100,000 as a contestant on Who Wants to Be a Millionaire, which he used to help start CurlMix.
Draftbit
In the app and web development world, you may have heard mention of the rise of the “no code” movement, which are tools that are designed to reduce the amount of time it takes to create apps and other digital products by requiring little or no coding experience. In Chicago, local startup Draftbit is tackling this with its drag and drop software platform that lets companies build mobile apps in days, instead of weeks or months. The startup went through Silicon Valley accelerator Y Combinator and is led by a team of tech veterans from Techstars, OKCupidLabs, Trunk Club and the Tie Bar. Founded in 2018, Draftbit has raised around $1 million to date from backers like Sam Yagan’s Corazon Capital.
FanFood
Founded in 2015, Chciago startup FanFood has developed a mobile concession ordering platform that allows users to order food and drink directly to their seats at sporting events and other venues. Its tech has been used at dozens of venues, from Kenan Stadium at the University of North Carolina to South Warrenville High School in Wheaton. Founded by Carson Goodale, the startup recently hired Jeremy Niecikowski as its first CTO. Niecikowski was previously the technology lead at Peapod, and the director of technical operations at both Uptake and Grubhub. FanFood raised a $2 million round in March.
Five to Nine
Five to Nine is a platform for tracking internal program success by analyzing employee participation, feedback and engagement. From employee resource groups to company-wide workshops, Five to Nine allows companies to better evaluate their spending and invest in the demonstrated needs of employees in real-time. The startup’s platform allows companies to create, organize and promote their events all from one place, and it allows them to evaluate the impact of their programs and how it affects company culture, inclusion, and the overall health of the business. The startup’s co-founder Jasmine Shells was named to the 2019 Forbes 30 Under 30 list for enterprise technology.
Forager
Chicago has become a hotbed for logistics startups in recent years, and Forager just might be the city’s next breakout company working to disrupt shipping. Founded by Matt Silver, a former employee of Coyote Logistics and the son of Jeff Silver, who founded Coyote and led it to a $1.8 billion acquisition by UPS, Forager helps companies simplify international shipping. It has created a cross-border freight business that primarily ships to Mexico and Canada, and its software allows customers to get information on shipping pricing and capacity instantly. It raised a $3.25 million round in September.
Fyllo
Legalized marijuana is coming to Illinois in 2020, and Chicago startup Fyllo is ready to help cannabis companies navigate the complex process of delivering digital ad campaigns that are compliant with laws state-by-state. Marijuana and CBD companies can be fined if one of their digital ads runs in a state where their product is not allowed, or if it’s seen by someone underage. Fyllo’s marketing tech platform helps cannabis brands meet compliance requirements at scale, giving companies piece of mind that they’re only advertising to their intended, legal audience. Founded in April of this year, Fyllo raised a $18 million seed round.
Humanpredictions
Chicago startup Humanpredictions has built a tech recruiting platform to help companies hire top tech talent. The startup gathers public data on technology professionals from sites like GitHub, Stack Overflow and Meetup, and organizes it into an easy-to-use database for tech recruiters and companies. The database includes more than 44 million tech professionals in roles ranging from software engineers and data science workers to iOS and Android developers. It monitors how often tech professionals update their public profiles with machine learning and uses that information to give recruiters an idea of who may be looking for a job at a given time. Humanpredictions has helped companies like Allstate, Trunk Club, Tempus, Home Chef and Guaranteed Rate find tech workers, and it raised a $1.16 million round in May.
Intellihot
Intellihot has kept a low profile since opening its doors in downstate Galesburg in 2012. But the tankless water heater startup has grown fast, and its product has caught on with some big names. The company sells its water heaters to brands like Facebook, Google, Marriott and Hilton Hotels, who rely on the technology to cut down on costs, greenhouse emissions and storage space. Intellihot’s solution provides hot water on demand, giving customers hot water only when they need it, allowing companies to eliminate extra storage tanks that have traditionally been used to heat water. The startup plans to open a new headquarters in the Chicago suburbs in the first quarter of 2020.
K4 Mobility
Chicago startup K4 Mobility is bringing internet to the seas. The company, led by Michael Small, the former CEO of in-flight WiFi provider Gogo, aims to help boat crews and passengers receive reliable and strong internet speeds while out on the water using satellite internet technology. The startup is eyeing yachts, crusie ships and other commercial ships as its initial customer base. K4 Mobility raised a $5 million round in April.
Leaf Trade
Chicago startup Leaf Trade is simplifying the supply chain for cannabis companies, providing a much needed enterprise software for dispensaries and growers as marijuana continues to become legalized in states across the U.S. Leaf Trade’s platform allows companies to easily place orders, manage order fulfillment and view analytics on their business performance all from one place. The startup is bringing efficiency to a process that previously required vendors to make phone calls, text messages and emails to complete orders or communicate with customers. The startup currently sells its software in 12 states, including Illinois, but plans to grow to 20 by the end of this year. It raised a $4.5 million round earlier this month.
Local Eclectic
Founded in 2013, Chicago startup Local Eclectic is an online marketplace featuring jewelry from emerging and independent designers from around the world. The startup offers a selection of rings, necklaces, bracelets and other jewelry from more than 70 independent designers in the U.S., Canada, U.K., Australia and elsewhere. Local Eclectic has taken off on Instagram, where the startup has nearly 640,000 followers. The completely bootstrapped startup’s revenue will hit eight figures in 2019, CEO and founder Alexis Nido-Russo said, and it has grown 1,900% since 2017.
Mavely
Today, direct-to-consumer brands have to spend heavily on Facebook and Instagram to acquire customers. But Chicago startup Mavely wants to give companies another option to drive revenue through its shopping app that also allows customers to earn an affiliate commission from each purchase. Shoppers earn money on each purchase they make, and can encourage friends to shop on the platform to make even more money. For brands, it’s a way to acquire customers at a much lower price point. Co-founder Evan Wray said brands on Mavely are seeing customer acquisition costs at about a third or half of what they are spending on Facebook and Instagram. The startup, founded in April, raised a $1 million round in August.
NOCD
NOCD, a Chicago startup that helps treat obsessive-compulsive disorder, was born from a founder who experienced the condition himself. Stephen Smith was a former college football player who had to quit playing sports after his OCD symptoms became too much to handle. To help others combat their OCD, he launched NOCD in 2015. The mental health app uses cognitive behavioral therapy techniques to assist in treating OCD patients, and it connects patients with clinicians who can offer evaluations and therapy via one-on-one video appointments. It also connects users to a community of people who also suffer from OCD, allowing them to share their story and learn from others. The startup raised a $4 million round in October.
Simmer
Chicago startup Simmer is like Yelp, but instead of restaurant reviews, it's focused on individual dishes and menu items. Instead of someone searching for the best sushi restaurant, they could simply search for the best nearby California roll on Simmer, which would then show then the restaurants with the top reviewed dishes. Using machine-learning and sentiment analysis, Simmer can search the web for review-like feedback on menu items, pulling sentiments from social media posts, traditional review sites and food publications like Eater. Using the online feedback and data it collects, Simmer can provide comprehensive ratings on dishes to users using a five-star scale. Founded in 2018, the startup participated in the Y Combinator seed accelerator program. It has thousands of users and restaurants on its platform, including Girl & the Goat, Au Cheval and even Taco Bell.
Sustainable Bioproducts
Chicago startup Sustainable Bioproducts burst onto the scene in 2019 when it raised a $33 million Series A round from a host of well-known investors including Bill Gates’ VC fund Breakthrough Energy Ventures, Archer Daniels Midland’s VC arm, and the venture fund from Danone yogurt. The startup has developed a fermentation process to produce lab-grown protein, which aims to serve as a replacement for animal-based meats. Sustainable Bioproducts, which began as a research project from NASA and is based out of the University of Chicago’s Polsky Center, remains at least a year away from commercialization. But CEO Thomas Jonas says the company’s final product could take the form of a solid, liquid or powder, and be savory or sweet.
The Mom Project
With diversity and inclusion a top priority for companies both large and small, Chicago startup The Mom Project is working to be the go-to solution to help close the gender gap in the United States. The startup’s platform connects qualified female candidates with top employers like Nike, Accenture, Pinterest and Facebook, with a special focus on helping women who’ve left their jobs to raise a family re-enter the workforce. Founded in 2016 by Allison Robinson, the fast-growing startup has built a network of 150,000 professionals and 2,000 companies who’ve signed on to hire female candidates. The startup has raised around $11 million in funding to date from backers including Initialized Capital, a Silicon Valley VC fund led by Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian.
TripScout
TripScout wants to be the travel app you use not just while you’re on a vacation, but when you’re planning a trip, thinking about planning a trip, or just thinking about thinking about planning a trip. The app pulls articles and videos from top publishers, along with content from local Instagram influencers, to provide travel insights on more than 100 destinations across the world. As a hub for travel content, TripScout is like the Hulu or Netflix for travel, co-founder Konrad Waliszewski explained, designed to be an everyday tool for travel inspiration and planning. The startup raised a $2 million round back in April.
