INNOVATE® Chicago Vol.1

SIWA Therapeutics, Inc. has developed 318H, a monoclonal antibody that we believe can become a broadly effective cancer immunotherapeutic. Most recently, we showed that 318H enabled complete remission of pancreatic cancer in vivo in humanized mice – we hope to file an IND application for pancreatic cancer next year. Our...

The Chicago Connectory is a co-creation space and IoT incubator located in Chicago’s historic Merchandise Mart. Our co-working space builds business, collaboration, and network opportunities to our community. The Chicago Connectory opened its doors in May 2017. The idea for the Chicago Connectory sparked with Bosch, a multinational engineering and...

According to the National Network to End Domestic Violence’s 2021 DV Counts Report, agencies were unable to provide emergency shelter to 1,982 adults and 1,184 children nationwide in just one day. Annualized, that’s 723,430 adults and 432,160 children who are left without access to emergency domestic violence shelters each year....

Steadfast began in 1998 as an internet-technology passion project for Steadfast’s Founder, Karl Zimmerman, when he was only 14 years old. Karl’s dream to help companies with their data hosting and security needs started early on, and through these relationships, Karl learned there was a frustrating gap with many hosting...

Enduvo was born at the University of Illinois and initially funded through a Jump Applied Research for Community Health through Engineering and Simulation (ARCHES) grant. These grants support collaborative research and development between OSF Healthcare and the University of Illinois College of Medicine at Peoria. Dr. Matt Bramlet, Justin Drawz,...

Chicago HOPES for Kids is the only organization in Chicago that provides educational after school and remote learning programs for students experiencing homelessness in grades Kindergarten through 9th, directly to the shelters and communities where they live. It is our mission to provide students with the resources and encouragement they...

OUR MISSIONIn cybersecurity, threat actors are often one step ahead and the average cost of a breach routinely goes beyond seven figures. Most security solutions focus on detection and response, taking a reactive approach to cyber-attacks. The pace and acceleration of network changes create new vulnerabilities every day, decreasing the...

Envoy is a global immigration services provider offering the only immigration management platform that makes it seamless for companies to hire and manage an international workforce. We combine expert legal representation and proprietary technology to bring efficiency and transparency to the immigration process for employers and employees.   At Envoy...

INSTASHIELD FILLS PPE SHORTAGE, DONATES 1 MILLION SHIELDS TO PEOPLE IN NEED InstaShield™ is a new kind of face shield that ships flat and is folded to fit over a cap or visor. The company was founded in March 2020 by Dan Brown Jr. to help fill the nation’s PPE...

The leading source for training, staffing, and career transitions, General Assembly fosters a flourishing community of professionals pursuing careers they love. What began as a co-working space in Manhattan in 2011 has since evolved into a global education and career development company, with more than 70,000 graduates and 32 campuses...

Already a successful tech entrepreneur, Alex Skryl had not intended to take on another similar venture. However, Alex was deeply moved by the growing epidemic of chronic disease in the United States. He felt that it was time to put his entrepreneurial mindset towards giving back to the community. Thus,...

Roomii is an online marketplace that lets you lease out your furniture to people who don’t want to own it. Our platform lets you earn a return on your furniture investment while helping people furnish their space short-term with quality pre-owned furniture. Roomii’s story began in the spring of 2020....

Cyber security is an arms race that is positioned to continue indefinitely. New technologies are constantly emerging to combat cyber criminals, but regardless, criminals discover how to exploit them. Managed Detection and Response (MDR) and other security-focused vendors detect many of these attacks and alert their customers and the community,...

Established in 2002 as the Chicago Innovation Awards, Chicago Innovation has grown from a single awards ceremony to a year-round series of events and programs to empower Chicago’s innovation ecosystem. Its vision is to solidify the Chicago region as a global hub of innovation and ensure that innovation is for...

The acute shortage of technology workers in the United States has driven up wages significantly. The median annual salary of an entry-level employee working on a help desk is $53,470, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. The median salary for all tech workers is $81,000. The expected growth...

TERA-print is a nanotechnology company that is unlocking the power of ultrahigh precision prototyping with their innovative desktop nanoprinters. This technology is disrupting the way next-generation come to life, such as miniaturized sensors 1/100th the size of your fingernail, highly accurate diagnostic tests for diseases from cancer to Alzheimer’s, and...

At MATTER — a global innovation hub headquartered in Chicago — entrepreneurs come together with industry leaders, scientists and clinicians from across the globe to collaborate on developing next-generation healthcare technologies. We believe that collaboration between entrepreneurs and industry leaders is the fastest, most effective way to accelerate innovation, advance...

  Wavicle Data Solutions is a nimble consulting firm that focuses 100% on providing end-to-end data and analytics strategy, services, and support. Thanks to its deep technical expertise, business acumen, and proprietary accelerators Wavicle is able to help its clients drastically reduce the time, cost, and risk of collecting, analyzing,...

The mission of the Chicago Furniture Bank (CFB) is to provide dignity, stability, and comfort to Chicagoans facing poverty by allowing our clients to handpick an entire home’s worth of furnishings for free. As the country’s largest furniture bank, we furnish 15 client homes per day through partnerships with our...

WHAT WE DO ChangEd is an all-in-one debt management platform helping people build a better relationship with debt so they can reach their financial dreams sooner. ChangEd allows people with debt to link all their loans and spending accounts on one platform. We then analyze their debt load and develop...

ActiveCampaign is the leader in Customer Experience Automation (CXA), helping businesses across the world meaningfully engage with their customers. Our platform gives businesses of all sizes access to 820+ prebuilt automations that combine email marketing, marketing automation and CRM for powerful segmentation and personalization across social, email, messaging, chat and...

Committed to Growth and Innovation Since 1935At William Blair, growth and innovation are in our DNA. As an independent, private partnership, we are committed to providing the world’s leading venture firms with the expert guidance and creative solutions required to unlock value for investors and their portfolio companies. We are...

86 Repairs is the repair and maintenance management platform built for the restaurant industry. Our tech-enabled solution includes on-demand repair management and preventative maintenance. With 86 Repairs, restaurants have access to data-driven insights and 24/7 support to control their facilities, reduce their R&M costs, and spend less of their team’s...