NYU Tandon Future Labs selected seven startup companies to join its first Catalyst NYC cohort.

NYU Tandon School of Engineering’s Future Labs have selected seven startup companies to join its first Catalyst NYC cohort. The selective, six-month program makes the portfolio of benefits previously available only to Future Labs companies accessible to earlier-stage startups. The Future Labs at NYU are the first public-private partnership with NYC tasked with creating a sustainable program for early stage ventures. They are a network of business incubators and accelerators that support early stage ventures in New York.

Future Labs were started as a partnership between New York University Tandon School of Engineering (NYU Tandon), the City of New York, NYSERDA, and the New York Economic Development Corporation. They were formed in response to the financial crisis of the early 21st-century. Meant to diversify and grow the city’s economic engines, the labs fostered — and continue to nurture — New York City’s business community by leveraging NYU’s resources and providing bespoke support to past and present startups within its network. Educational programs and events further inform and create connections within the city’s entrepreneurial community.

Equity-free and free of charge, Catalyst NYC gives startups an opportunity to make it through the difficult pre-seed stage. The program provides access to University talent, faculty, and resources valued at up to $350,000, including pro bono legal support from Orrick, financial planning, prototyping facilities, and free desk space for those companies that choose to relocate. The Catalyst NYC program encompasses two of NYU Tandon’s four Future Labs: the Data Future Lab, in Manhattan’s SoHo neighborhood, and the Digital Future Lab, in the DUMBO section of Brooklyn.

“We received overwhelming interest, and the entire team worked diligently to identify seven companies that will benefit from our program,” said Steven Kuyan, NYU Tandon managing director at the Future Labs. “With the help of our resources, we will work toward ensuring the companies gain market traction and become contributing members of the New York City startup ecosystem.”

The inaugural Catalyst NYC cohort includes:

• Cherrypick.ai: enables brands to drive sales directly from social media comments
• LandWright: creating a commercial real estate securities marketplace that brings a new form of equity financing to real estate owners and access to individuals priced out of the market
• Omnirisk: assesses risk of commercial vehicles and their components in an era of rapidly evolving autonomous driving technologies
• Scite.ai: uses machine learning and a network of researchers to identify the veracity of scientific work and scientists
• Skopos Labs: its AI software platform will turn unstructured data into accurate predictions of risk and opportunity for companies and financial markets
• Trash TV: will enable predictive video editing in real time, with a next-generation stock video library and content platform
• Ursa: brings context, efficiency, and actionability to meeting notes by recording notes and conversations side by side, syncing captured content, and letting users search and share key moments from meetings

Launched in 2009, the Future Labs have supported some of the leading technology companies in New York including CB Insights, BounceX, Clarifai, and Honest Buildings. The Future Labs have graduated more than 95 companies and recently reported an estimated economic impact on New York City’s economy of $4.06 billion. This Future Labs program is supported by Orrick LLP and Empire State Development Corporation.