One thing we know for sure is that women are taking action. Many aren’t waiting for companies to give them the leadership positions they deserve — they’re taking their entrepreneurial spirit and launching their own companies.
Adriana Gascoigne, Founder and CEO of Girls in Tech is one of these women. In 2007, tired of being the only woman at the startups she worked for in San Francisco, she founded Girls in Tech, a global non-profit dedicated to eradicating gender disparity in technology.
Nine years later, Girls in Tech is hosting Amplify Women’s Pitch Night Competition. On November 16, 10 female entrepreneurs will pitch their early-stage technology startup to a panel of seasoned technology leaders and investors including Jason Calacanis, Deborah Chrapaty, Adeo Ressi and Kristina Shen. The 10 finalists who were chosen from 139 applications from around the world come from diverse backgrounds including a medical doctor, students and one who worked for the Obama administration. The winner will receive $10,000 in funding, laptops and six months of office space at RocketSpace.
Who are the 10 finalists and what are they doing that took them to the top of the list? That's what I asked Gascoigne. Here's what she said (in her words):
AdmitSee: This startup seeks to "bring transparency to the college and grad school application process." They act as a platform for all things college: applications, essays, test scores, and details about the process overall.
Gascoigne’s Take: I like that AdmitSee is serving a real need. They're seeking to transform what is currently an extremely overwhelming, time consuming and intimidating process. It's hard to not get behind a platform that looks to make it easier for more students to get admitted to college; education is so important.
Dot Laboratories: Dot offers diagnostic tests for endometriosis.
Gascoigne’s Take: As a woman, this is instantly relatable. I have several friends with this condition and it's taken them years to get diagnosed. It's heartbreaking. Dot is creaking a path for early awareness; their technology will arm women everywhere with the knowledge they need to make critical health decisions.
FINDMINE: The power of data! FINDMINE runs product catalogues and retailer looks against user data. They then match your goods to shoppers' tastes. This means shoppers see their perfect outfit on the website, in ads, in emails, etc.
Gascoigne’s Take: The data war is not going away. Retailers use data to cater to customers and personalize marketing. It's what customers have come to expect. This is a no-brainer.
Give InKind: A platform dedicated to providing comfort for those who need it, from organizing meal delivery to products to advice articles.
Gascoigne’s Take: Nothing but warm and fuzzies for this one. Taking the hassle out of providing care for loved ones is a great concept.
Indian Moms Connect: This is an online community for Indian moms. They share stories, tips, recipes, you name it.
Gascoigne’s Take: I love that it's all user-generated content, which creates an immediate sense of community. Plus, they have great product suggestions embedded within their content.
Pace Match: Pace Match helps you find a running partner who lives near you, and whose speed matches yours.
Gascoigne’s Take: This was the result of a developer using her spare time to play with a runner's API—and she realized that speed was the ultimate data point. I think this will be a big hit with hardcore runners.
Penta Medical: Penta focuses on healing bone trauma faster and safer, using fabric with infrared technology.
Gascoigne’s Take: Medical tech is absolutely fascinating to me. Beyond the business side of things, I like the "do good" vibe this company has.
ResultCare: An app dedicated to evidence-based medicine. It factors in cost so that clinicians can make smarter decisions.
Gascoigne’s Take: Healthcare is begging for innovation and the fact that this app takes costs into account is key.
Stilla: The smallest security system that fits into your hand. It can link to anything—a door, a bag, a laptop—and it will alert you if the object moves.
Gascoigne’s Take: The ease-of-use aspect here fascinates me. I like that you can use the system for the objects you need, when you need it.
Vidcode: A Javascript coding platform targeted to teens.
Gascoigne’s Take: Platforms like this, that teach code in a fun, respectful manner, are in high demand. I'm a fan of anything that encourages young people (especially young women) to learn to code.
UPDATE: After this post was published, Penta Medical and FindMine and Vidcode dropped out because (according to Gascoigne) they could not travel to the pitch night. They were replaced by Adioma, Qidza and Pandia Health. Pandia Health won the competition.
Adioma: A fast, easy tool for transforming your ideas into stunning visuals.
Gascoigne's Take: I love the vast number of use cases for a product like this — from summarizing long emails to infographics.
Qidza: The tool tracks early screening and development milestones as set by the American Pediatrics Association.
Gascoigne's Take: It automatically shares results with your doctor. Anything proactive in medical care is always a win.
Pandia Health: Pandia Health wants to make birth control accessible and easy to get for women everywhere.
Gascoigne's Take: It looks like they’ve done extensive market research and they’re being smart about their brand positioning. They call themselves the “dollar shave club for women.”
