September 17, 2018

Launch NY Newsletter – September 2018

Launch NY

Launch NY News & Updates	Upcoming Events
Launch NY & ECO Incubator News & Updates Launch NY Receives $450,000 In New Awards to Support the Emerging Cleantech Opportunity (ECO) Incubator On top of its $1.5 million award from New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA), Launch NY is pleased to announce two new grants from National Grid and the John R. Oishei Foundation to support the new ECO Incubator. National Grid awarded Launch NY $250,000 to support mentoring and commercialization efforts to cleantech companies working with Launch NY and ECO. The John R. Oishei Foundation awarded $200,000, to support the incubator’s mission of growing the overall innovation and entrepreneurial ecosystem, and clean energy cluster activity. Join the ECO Team at Startup Grind September 26 Want to learn how one local startup is helping Puerto Rico and other communities hit by natural disasters solve the problem of access to clean and reliable power after major storms? On September 26, 2018, Startup Grind will be featuring David Rodriguez, serial entrepreneur and founder of smartgrid communications company Council Rock, who will present his latest startup, inverSOL, a solar powered generator startup, making emergency generators more accessible and safer. Paul Tyno, ECO Incubator Program Director, will be hosting the the fireside chat starting at 6:00 PM. Register for free if you use the code *“eco”* at checkout! Join us Wednesday, September 19 at Noon for #LaunchHour TwitterChat to Learn How to Craft the Right Pitch Deck Did you know there’s major differences between your sales and investor pitch deck? Join us on Wednesday, September 19, 2018 at Noon with our panel of experts, including Launch NY COO & Fund Manager, Lindsay Stencel, Launch NY and Southern Tier Startup Alliance Entrepreneur-in-Residence, Brad Treat, and Eagle Hawk Founder, Patrick Walsh, to learn what you need to include in each deck. Never joined a TwitterChat before? It’s easy, just follow @Launch_NY on Twitter and use the hashtag #LaunchHour, to see the discussion. Enjoy the conversation and jump in with tweets anytime.	September 19, 2018 #LaunchHour TwitterChat: Crafting the Right Pitch: Investor vs Sales Decks 12:00 – 1:00 PM September 21, 2018 Networking@Rev: Failures that Inspire 6:00 – 8:30 PM Ithaca, NY September 26, 2018 The Future of Food: Food & AgTech Upstate 5:00 – 8:00 PM Elbridge, NY September 26, 2018 ECO Incubator & Startup Grind Host David Rodriguez & inverSOL 5:30 – 8:00 PM Buffalo, NY October 2, 2018 2018 Upstate Unleashed Conference & Venture Ecosystem Awards Syracuse, NY 8:30 – 4:00 PM October 3, 2018 2018 43North Finals 6:00 – 8:00 PM Buffalo, NY October 10, 2018 FuzeHub: Build for Scale 8:00 – 5:30 PM Buffalo, NY

Startup Spotlight
Dimien Has Eye on the Million Dollar Prize Congratulations to Dimien on being named as one of 18 finalists that will pitch for $1 million on October 3, 2018 at the 43North Finals! Dimien, headquartered in Buffalo, NY, is a chemical manufacturing business dedicated to solving clear, defined market challenges in the cleantech arena. Dimien has a block of patents and trade secrets around environmentally friendly water-based manufacturing and a set of chemical products that include thermally-activated window film (E3 View), lubricant additives, and Mg-ion batteries. With demonstrated commercial viability at pilot scale, Dimien is poised to grow their business through breakthroughs in applying its products, such as E3 View which makes ordinary windows “smart” in controlling room temperature. Is Your Startup Looking for Talented Interns? Last Call If you are a life sciences or advanced manufacturing startup in Western New York looking to hire interns, there’s no time to waste in applying to University at Buffalo’s (UB) Career Experience Program! The Career Experience Program is a University at Buffalo sponsored program that gives UB undergraduate and graduate students the opportunity to work for eligible companies in Western New York. To learn more about this program and apply by September 20, 2018, visit there website here.

#LaunchHour TwitterChat Tips	Launch NY Resources
LaunchHour TwitterChats are monthly virtual chats featuring important topics for startups and entrepreneurs. Join us over your lunch to hear from expert panelists. Check out our archive for past TwitterChats filled with tips like those below. See you at the next #LaunchHour TwitterChat Wednesday, September 19th at noon. August 15, 2018 Social Media Dos and Don’ts for Startups View the whole chat on Wakelet. Should startups have social media guidelines for founders/employees? Scott Malouf (@ScottMalouf) Yes, but guidelines are just a start. The best results are combining rules with training and then revisintg the process as things change. Olivia Goldstein (@RepHike) – This question ultimately depends on the values of the founders of the company and what type of image they are trying to maintain with their brand. Adrian Dayton (@AdrainDayton) – I always tell audiences the general rule: Don’t Be An Idiot. If it would be annoying or illegal in person, it shouldn’t be done online. How can startups pick the right platform to use to engage their target market? Olivia Goldstein (@RepHike) – Know your target market and be most active on the channels where your customers are. Derrick Parsons (@GRASPIE) – Understand that users and buyers are two different individuals. Yet, know users can be champions of your product or brands. Make it a necessity to target both. For example, buyers on LinkedIn and Users on Instagram/Twitter Scott Malouf (@ScottMalouf) – From the legal side, startups should understand new privacy laws when engaging target markets online/different platforms. For example, GDPR Should startups be allocating marketing budgets to paid promotions in the beginning? Olivia Goldstein (@RepHike) – In all honestly, no. I think it’s important to take time first to figure out your social media channels. Once you start to get an idea of what social channels work best, THEN put aside money for paid promotions. Adrian Dayton (@AdrainDayton) – Learn organically what resonates with your audience first, then pay to promote based on what you’ve learned. View the whole chat on Wakelet. Join us for our next #LaunchHour TwitterChat, September 19th, Crafting the Right Pitch: Investors vs Sales Decks!	Upstate NY Resource Network Check it out here > Upstate NY Rainforest Canvas Study Check it out here > 5 Business Stages – Where are you? Each stage contains critical deliverables for moving forward. Starting with the Explore stage, see where you are on the path to success. Find out here > Entrepreneur Toolkit The toolkit is a set of templates and links designed to help start, launch and grow your business in upstate New York. Check it out here > Is Launch NY a fit for you? Launch NY provides entrepreneurs experienced mentoring using best practice processes and connections to specialized resources both in and beyond the Upstate NY ecosystem.Thus preparing you to compete for and win the funding and additional resources needed to move forward. Apply Now! >

Meet the Launch NY Team
Brad Treat Brad Treat is a career entrepreneur with an emphasis on technology-driven companies. He is an instructor in Practical Entrepreneurship at Ithaca College and Cornell University. He also serves as an Entrepreneur-in-Residence at Cornell University and Launch NY. Brad was most recently the Founding CEO of Mezmeriz, a high-tech company making interactive projectors and reality capture cameras to embed into mobile phones. Mezmeriz’s cutting edge technology was spun out of materials science and MEMS research at Cornell University. He was also the co-founder and CEO of SightSpeed, an innovative video and voice communications company. SightSpeed grew from a university research project at Cornell into the world’s premier video calling software. SightSpeed was profitably acquired by Logitech for $30 million. Earlier in his career, Brad worked for eight years in the automotive industry in both the US and Spain at Bowles Fluidics and GKN Automotive. Mr. Treat holds a degree in Mechanical Engineering from North Carolina State and an MBA from the Johnson School at Cornell. Read more about Brad and our other EIRs on our website.