18 Companies to Join 7th Annual AI & Robotics Venture Fair in Pittsburgh
09.03.24
Annual event co-hosted by Carnegie Mellon University and Innovation Works to be held Sept. 26
PITTSBURGH — Sept. 03, 2024 — For the seventh consecutive year, Pittsburgh will host the largest forum showcasing promising AI and robotics startups in the country. The 2024 AI & Robotics Venture Fair will be held Sept. 26 at 10 a.m. EDT at Carnegie Mellon University’s Swartz Center for Entrepreneurship.
A selection committee of technical and investment experts from CMU, Innovation Works, and the greater robotics and AI communities has chosen 18 companies to participate. Investors will also have the opportunity to meet with founders both formally and informally.
Rockfish Data, CapSen Robotics, Aquatonomy, Shelfmark, , Fluid Reality, BlastPoint, Velo AI, Humotech, Moss Robotics, X-Hab 3D, CellX Technologies, Beyond Reach Labs, Sitewiz, AdSkate, Thiopoly, Journey Robotics, and FlowCellutions will participate in the event.
“In 2023, Pittsburgh ranked in the top 10 regions for AI, machine learning, and autonomous vehicle venture deals invested per capita,” said Ven Raju, President and CEO at Innovation Works. “This event provides an opportunity for companies and investors from across the county to leverage this well-established regional cluster. Over the past six years, startups emerging from the AI & Robotics Venture Fair have raised $884 million across 531 deals.”
Companies such as BlastPoint, Roadbotics, and PredxBio (formerly SpintellX) have shaped the future of the industry and attracted investors to Pittsburgh’s rich startup ecosystem.
“Pittsburgh’s rich history of innovation and its community of researchers and entrepreneurs create the ideal setting for the AI & Robotics Venture Fair,” said Dave Mawhinney, Founding Executive Director of the Carnegie Mellon Swartz Center for Entrepreneurship. “This event introduces groundbreaking advancements but also reinforces our city’s role as a leader in AI and robotics. Our collaboration with Innovation Works underscores our commitment to fostering an ecosystem where technological potential meets entrepreneurial spirit.”
This year’s Venture Fair will be held in tandem with CMU’s VentureBridge event on Sept. 25.
Learn more about the AI & Robotics Venture Fair.
About Innovation Works
Innovation Works (IW) is one of the most active early-stage investors in the country and the most active early-stage investor in the State of Pennsylvania. To date, IW has financially supported over 761 companies that have gone on to raise $3.3 billion in follow-on funding. IW portfolio companies have generated and retained over 20,000 jobs in the State of Pennsylvania. IW is part of the Ben Franklin Technology Partner Network (BFTP). Over the last 30 years, the BFTP has catalyzed economic growth by providing access to capital and networks that help to foster innovation and technology-based economic development in Pennsylvania. Learn more at innovationworks.org.
About Carnegie Mellon University Swartz Center for Entrepreneurship
The Swartz Center for Entrepreneurship works with its partners to serve the entire CMU community — departments, colleges, centers and campuses — to accelerate bringing research innovations and promising ideas to the global marketplace and helping all entrepreneurial students, faculty, staff and alumni tap into the “innovation ecosystem. Learn more at cmu.edu/swartz-center-for-entrepreneurship.
Contact
Lexie Capperella
Gregory FCA for Innovation Works