Seven companies set to participate in TTT’s Start-up Draft Combine

Heather Graves

Staff

March 31, 2025

TITLETOWN – In just a matter of weeks, young hopefuls will make their way to Green Bay for the 2025 NFL Draft – an event that can potentially change their lives forever. 

These aspiring athletes, however, aren’t the only ones coming to Titletown in search of a life-changing opportunity.

The best of the best in terms of start-up founders will make their way to Green Bay this week for TitletownTech’s (TTT) first-ever Start-up Draft Combine – all vying to become the next TTT portfolio company, complete with a $1 million investment prize.

TitletownTech Managing Partner Craig Dickman said the goal of the Start-up Draft and the Start-up Draft Combine is to celebrate all Wisconsin has to offer beyond its storied sports legacy.

“The draft coming to Green Bay gives us an opportunity to share everything our region has to offer,” Dickman said in mid-February during the Start-up Draft’s launch press conference.

Mark Murphy – president and CEO of the Green Bay Packers, which formed TTT in partnership with Microsoft in 2019 – said the Start-up Draft is a way Green Bay can put its own stamp on the NFL Draft.

TitletownTech Managing Partner Jill Enos said it was always part of the plan to have leaders from TTT’s corporate network meet with and give “meaningful market feedback” to Start-up Draft founders – however, the amount of interest has exceeded expectations.

“We expected we would have some volunteers,” she said. “But we didn’t expect to get senior leaders from more than 30 companies who were willing to move their schedules around to make time for meeting with start-ups. We’re always delighted by the commitment and engagement from our network.”

Two-day combine

Dickman said the seven finalists – which were selected from nearly a thousand applications across nearly all 50 states – represent some of the “most promising early-stage companies” in sectors aligned with TitletownTech’s strengths – of which include manufacturing and construction; supply chain and logistics; agriculture; water and energy; digital health; and sports, media and entertainment.

During the two-day combine (April 3-4), Dickman said finalists will travel to Green Bay to engage with 30-plus corporate partners, refine their stories and build momentum ahead of Start-up Draft Day – which coincides with the first day of the NFL Draft (April 24).

Together with corporate leaders and industry experts, Dickman said the high-growth start-ups will participate in a series of immersive experiences – which, as one may expect, includes a tour of historic Lambeau Field.

Enos said the combine offers the TTT team two “really important opportunities.”

“First, (we) get to know the founders as people – beyond understanding their business and vision,” she said. “Second, the combine offers a remarkable view of real-market feedback – when we connect entrepreneurs with potential customers and industry experts who can provide them with constructive guidance for success in the marketplace.”

In addition, Dickman said finalists will film content for the Start-up Draft broadcast.

“We’re excited to welcome this group of talented founders to Green Bay,” he said. “This is a community that shows up for its team, its businesses and now, for the next generation of innovators. The combine gives founders a chance to experience the strength of the TitletownTech ecosystem and the collaborative spirit that defines how we do business here.”

Start-up Draft prospects

Ateios Systems

Finalist No. 1 is Ateios Systems – a battery manufacturer in Greene County, Indiana.

Ateios developed a chemistry-agnostic platform for manufacturing battery electrodes without toxic solvents or forever chemicals.

The company’s RaiCure coating technology enables faster, cleaner and more cost-effective production for next-generation batteries.

According to its website (ateios.com) – which lists Dr. Rajan Kumar as its CEO – Ateios focuses on three core operating values:

• Excellence: “Exceeding expectations in everything we do”
• Efficiency: “Building systems that work smarter, not harder”
• Growth: “Learning and growing from mistakes”

Avant Genomics

Charlottesville, Virginia-based Avant Genomics is finalist No. 2, and according to its website (avant-genomics.com), “transforms cancer detection through the automation of critical sample preparation steps in the laboratory, enabling precise and accessible tests for patients.”

Avant Genomics – which was co-founded by Rachelle Turiello and Renna Nouwairi – streamlines liquid biopsy sample preparation through an automated microfluidics platform.

The company’s solution reduces cost, waste and processing time to make precision cancer diagnostics more accessible and scalable.

CubeNexus 

Co-founded by Steven Brandt and Adam Gobbo – according to its website (cubenexus.xyz) – finalist No. 3, CubeNexus, structures complex geospatial data into 3D spatio-temporal formats, enabling precise location awareness even in GPS-denied environments.

The Chicago-based company’s technology supports data-heavy industries like defense, infrastructure and logistics.

Per its website, CubeNexus’ mission is to “become the universally adopted standard for spatiotemporal data, enabling seamless integration and understanding of information across all domains and applications.”

Devii

Devii – a software development company based in Fargo, North Dakota, is finalist No. 4.

The company – which according to its website (devii.io), is led by CEO Anthony Molzahn – offers a low-code platform that rapidly generates APIs (Application Programming Interfaces) and streamlines enterprise data integration.

Devii’s tools accelerate development workflows, while managing secure, efficient access to data across systems.

Shelfmark 

From t-shirts to turbines, Finalist No. 5 – Pittsburgh-based Shelfmark – provides AI-powered visual inspection for middle-market manufacturers, enabling fast deployment with minimal training data.

The platform helps reduce defects, labor costs and waste without requiring system integration.

Per its website (shelfmark.com), Shelfmark’s founder and CEO is Pat O’Donnell.

SpaceRake

Finalist No. 6 – Cambridge, Massachusetts-based SpaceRake – according to its website (spacerake.net), is “pioneering the next generation of laser communication technologies.”

SpaceRake – which, per its website, was co-founded by Kerri Cahoy and Jeremy Wertheimer – builds miniaturized laser communication systems designed for small drones and defense applications.

The company’s free-space optical technology enables secure, jam-resistant communication in contested environments.

Ubicept

Finalist No. 7 – Ubicept – is based in Madison and Cambridge, Massachusetts, and according to its website (ubicept.com), “revolutionizes how machines see the world by unlocking the full potential of next-generation image sensors.”

Ubicept – led, per its website, by founder and CEO Sebastian Bauer – enhances computer vision systems with advanced sensor processing to perform in extreme lighting and motion conditions.

The company’s proprietary technology unlocks high-performance imaging for robotics, automotive and security applications.

High-caliber founders

Enos said the first and most important factor in start-up success is the quality of the founding team – “how they think, how they operate and how they understand the problem and the market.”

“We also look at the unique value and defensibility of their solution, the size of the market and our ability to leverage our network to give them an advantage,” she said. 

Enos said each of the seven finalists stood out regarding all of these aspects.

“The caliber of the founders, the potential impact of the problems they are solving and the engagement from our network have been phenomenal,” she said.

Enos said the process and experience has exceeded the TTT team’s expectations “on all fronts.”

She said the most enjoyable part of the application and selection process was getting to “hear from incredible founders from around the country creating solutions in every industry.”

“There’s nothing more inspiring than meeting with entrepreneurs who are deeply committed to solving hard problems,” she said.

Fan favorite

Dickman said each finalist company will be featured in the TitletownTech Start-up Draft broadcast April 24 – which will be streamed across LinkedIn, YouTube and X.

The public can also get involved in the process by voting for the TitletownTech Start-up Draft Fan Favorite.

Fans can cast votes at TitletownTech.com/TitletownTechStartupDraft.

Voting will close April 24 during the Start-up Draft broadcast.