Who are the 2016 SXSW Accelerator Startups from Austin?

SXSW Accelerator pitch finalists

Every year SXSW Accelerator is tasked with selecting and showcasing new startups around the world to be presented and shown to the people. This year, there were over 470 companies who entered to compete at this years eighth annual SXSW Accelerator, but only 48 finalists made it to the final Accelerator pitch event.

Of the 48 finalists, are five Austin-based companies, up from last years three. There’s either magic in Austin’s water, or innovation in the TX air, because Austin based companies continue to use their home field advantage as leverage to take SXSW Accelerator by storm.

Austin-based SXSW finalists

Here’s what these five Austin companies are bringing to SXSW this year:

Bitfusion:  A developer categorized as Enterprise and Smart Data, offers data-driven organizations various solutions to understand, and accelerate their workloads and applications without having to rewrite code, or rewire data. Bitfusions solutions work seamlessly with traditional data and cloud configurations, and allow software professionals to access acceleration without needing specialized skills. They seek to resolve, and increase the amount of organizations using high-performance computing, without needed extensive resources.

PopUp Play: One of the two companies in the Entertainment and Content Technologies Category, is a website where children or parents can design a custom playscape, and then have it delivered in just a few days. Users begin in the PopUp Play Build Lab where you can select different playscape options such as castle’s or gingerbread houses. Once you choose, they manufacture the life-size creation exactly to your specifications and within days, it’s delivered conveniently at the door step. What’s even better is that is the structures can be assembled in minutes, and folded discreetly for storage.

Emoters: The other developer in Entertainment and Content Tech., is A team led by Dr. Bradley Knox, with extensive experience and knowledge on human-robot interaction and artificial intelligence, is developing tiny robotic pets that seem alive, with their charm and intelligence. Not much has been released about the project, but the little robots are supposed to work seamlessly with your “desktop, countertop, or bedside table”.

Peeptrade: The only Austin company in the Payment and Fintech Category, allows it’s users to see real time updates of what the top traders are dong with their money. “Peepers” can also connect directly with some of the brightest and best trained traders, and improve their own trading. All you have to do is link your brokerage account, and your activity is automatically updated.

Thrillbox: In the Virtual Reality Category, this data analytics platform, provide businesses a way to look beyond play counts and ad impressions, while distributing tools for content generators, advertising agencies, vendors, and networks. Their patent-pending methods, allow them to acquire, aggregate, and analyze audience behavior with spherical video’s and VR games.  Overall, this company allows you to get a better understanding of your audience, and their data, with the use of VR.

March 12th and 13th

If these developments are any sign of the other companies competing, then this year will definitely be a tough one for judges. All 48 will present their innovations and products in the first rounds of SXSW Accelerator, on March 12^th and 13^th. After the first round, judges will select only 18 to go to the next. You can go to SXSW’s website to see the full list of the 48 finalists, and let us know which one’s you think will make it to the finale. Do you think these Austin companies stand a chance? Let us know!

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