Region’s startup community comes together in a dynamic celebration to showcase and celebrate its innovative tech startups.

News Release: Elk Grove, Calif, April 1, 2022 – Yesterday, the City of Elk Grove, in partnership with StartupSac, held Pitch Elk Grove, a startup competition that offered entrepreneurs in the greater Sacramento region a chance to gain visibility, receive mentorship, and win up to $10,000 in prize money. Over 125 people attended the event at The Center at District 56 in Elk Grove and eight early stage startups competed for total prize money of $17,500, provided by the City of Elk Grove. Awards were given to the winners in three categories: EV Life, which helps consumers buy electric vehicles, won the $10,000 first place prize; EyeRate, which offers a customer communication platform, won the $5,000 second place prize; and Mediminder, which has a smartphone epinephrine monitor, took home the $2,500 audience favorite prize.

“Congratulations to our winners and all of the deserving finalists,” said Elk Grove City Manager Jason Behrmann. “And thank you to StartupSac and our economic development team for producing such a great event. In Elk Grove, we’re all about fostering an innovative and sustainable economy, and events like Pitch Elk Grove and our Startup Elk Grove Incentive Program are the tools that make that possible. This event was designed to showcase those efforts and I feel we hit the mark perfectly,” Mr. Behrmann said.

First place winner EV Life assists people in buying electric cars by finding applicable subsidies from the 400 available nationwide, and offering a climate loan that reduces the upfront cost of the vehicle.

“After two years of being stuck in the video grid of Zoom calls, it was wonderful to share the stage with so many talented founders and present our passions to a live audience,” said EV Life co-founder and co-CEO Kevin Favro.  “We’re honored to have received first place in a strong field of companies doing such important work. We take this win as a signal that awareness around the market opportunity to accelerate EV adoption is growing, and that helping people to save up to $200/month on their electric vehicle is critical to help car buyers shift away from gas.”

“I’m delighted to see EV Life win first place! They were born at a Startup Weekend in 2019, a 3-day event where people turn new ideas into companies,” said Laura Good, co-founder of StartupSac. “It’s rewarding to see a startup progress through our entrepreneurial ecosystem – from idea to viable business with traction.”

Pitch Elk Grove was a free public event. Veteran serial startup founder Sonny Mayugba kept the energy level high as emcee of the event. City of Elk Grove Mayor, Bobbie Singh-Allen, kicked off the evening with welcoming remarks. The event was catered by Cafe Elk Grove and also featured wine from Christopher Cellars, local craft brews from Flatland Brewing, and desserts from Sugar Coated Cupcakes. All of these vendors are Elk Grove based.

Pitch Elk Grove is part of the Startup Elk Grove Incentive Program, which provides technical and financial assistance to launching and scaling startups and the places that support them.

Second place winner, EyeRate, was the recipient of funding from the Program in 2020. The company received $75,000 in grant money, which helped it move to its present 3000 square-foot office in Elk Grove. In the two years since they received the grant, they’ve grown from a handful of employees to 38 employees. With seed funding from Mucker Capital of $1.7 million late last year, they anticipate growing to about 50 by the end of 2022.

The Judges

  • Kwame Anku, Chairman & CEO, Black Star Fund
  • Juan Fernandez, Planning Commissioner, City of Elk Grove, andPrincipal Cloud Solutions Architect, Micron Technology
  • Jon Gregory, Senior Vice President and Venture Banking Manager, Five Star Bank
  • Deborah Simpson, Angel Investor, Sacramento Angels and Mentor, FourthWave
  • Brooke VanSant, Associate, Moneta Ventures

The Eight Finalists

About Startup Elk Grove Incentive Program

The Startup Elk Grove Incentive Program provides technical and financial assistance to launching and scaling startups, and for coworking and incubator facilities that support them. To qualify, startups must operate in Elk Grove and be an emerging or scaling company commercializing innovative products and platforms in most tech verticals. For more information, visit www.investelkgrove.org

About StartupSac

StartupSac was established as a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization in 2017, and is accelerating the greater Sacramento region’s startup and innovation ecosystem by informing, educating, empowering, and connecting its startup founders and innovators.  For more information, visit startupsac.com