First Hospitality Tech Accelerator Cohort And June Pitch Event Announced By Montgomery County Economic Development Corporation

First Hospitality Tech Accelerator Cohort and June Pitch Event Announced by Montgomery County Economic Development Corporation

Rockville, MD — Montgomery County Economic Development Corporation (MCEDC) announces the first six companies selected to participate in the Hospitality Tech Accelerator: Innovating the Future.

The inaugural cohort includes early and growth-stage startups that focus on some of the hospitality industry’s top sustainability challenges, such as energy, water, and waste reduction and management. Participating teams will be supported throughout the program by experts in the sustainability, travel, foodservice, and hospitality industries from Growth Advisors International Network (GAIN) and Bethesda Green’s Innovation Lab mentor network.

MCEDC will host a public pitch event on Wednesday, June 21 when the cohort participants will share their innovations with the leadership of global hospitality brands. The event takes place at the Maryland—National Capital Park and Planning Commission (M–NCPPC) Headquarters building in Wheaton, Maryland. Interested parties may register here.

Members of the inaugural cohort of the Hospitality Tech Accelerator: Innovating the Future include:

• Ecotone Renewables is building a world without waste by eliminating food waste and powering sustainable communities through innovation and climate-smart practices. Their 5-step process includes separating plastic, metal, and glass from food waste and converting the food waste to methane gas and liquid fertilizer called Soil Sauce using a patent-pending ZEUS digester, an automated on-site solution that is 8X faster than composting and requires no permits. This process diverts 90lbs of CO2 emissions with each gallon of carbon-negative organize fertilizer produced.
• H2O Connected LLC is a woman-owned, Qualified Opportunity Zone business, headquartered in Coatesville, PA. The Company develops multi-patented products and technologies that can detect, alert, and quantify nearly every type of water loss problem that can occur in a tank toilet. It recently launched the LeakAlertor PRO, a wireless in-tank system for hospitality and multi-tenant properties, that installs in seconds, sends a text message when significant water loss occurs, and provides water loss data as well as water usage analytics via a dashboard. All products are Made in the USA at the Company’s facility.
• Liatris is a pure-play thermal insulation start-up that plans to deliver the cleanest and fastest energy savings for businesses and consumers by mass producing high-performance insulation that is easyto-install, environmentally friendly, non-flammable, and non-toxic.
• INOVUES modernizes building facades and transforms their windows into smart, energy-efficient, renewable systems without replacement or disruption. Our non-invasive glazing upfit technology makes it possible to integrate the latest energy-saving and smart glass innovations into existing windows without removing, replacing, drilling, or altering anything at all. INOVUES’ cost-effective window retrofit innovations help building owners save up to 40% on energy consumption, improve indoor thermal and acoustic comfort, and increase the value and sustainability of their buildings.
• PACE AI uses proven, scalable Smart Grid, Smart Buildings, and Smart Cities AI and machine learning solutions to reverse climate change, build better infrastructure, deliver active risk management, and save money.
• Re Company is a turnkey reusable packaging service provider for large companies with onsite food services that combines packaging, smart return stations, and management software. They specialize in sustainable supply chain management and help their clients reduce up to 89% of packaging costs AND waste with a 6–12 month ROI. Re Company is a vendor for large corporations such as Pepsi, Starbucks, and Google, and foodservice companies like Sodexo and Compass are involved in current implementations.

“We were particularly impressed by the caliber of applicants for this inaugural program,” said Bill Tompkins, President and CEO of MCEDC. “The selected companies have developed innovative solutions that can be implemented today to reduce food and material waste, detect water loss, and provide fast and convenient energy savings through high-performance insulation, AI and machine learning, and smart glass retrofits. We are confident that the hospitality industry experts we’ve recruited to mentor these participating startups will help them navigate the complexities of the industry and ensure a smooth and successful deployment. We look forward to connecting these startups with representatives from global hospitality brands during the pitch event this June.”

Montgomery County, Maryland, is a top hospitality hub which includes the headquarters of Marriott International, the world’s largest hotel and global hospitality company, and Choice Hotels, one of the world’s largest lodging franchisors. B.F. Saul, Sodexo and Host Hotels & Resorts are among the many hospitality companies that call Montgomery County home.

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About MCEDC The Montgomery County Economic Development Corporation (MCEDC) is the official public-private economic development organization representing Montgomery County, Maryland. Created in 2016, MCEDC is led by a Board of Directors of business executives. Its mission is to help businesses start, grow and relocate in Montgomery County by helping them gain access to top talent, business and market intelligence and prime locations. For more information, visit our website. Follow us on Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn.

About Bethesda Green Bethesda Green, a 501(c)3 non-profit founded in 2008, works to address environmental challenges locally by creating a sustainable, green community, built collaboratively through citizen engagement, environmental education, government partnership and innovative business development. Through the Be Green Living and Be Green Business programs, Bethesda Green partners with local public and private entities to address environmental challenges through projects that enhance the quality of life for local residents such as access to composting, recycling, and expanding raingardens and sustainable methods of transportation, and supports leaders who are building for-profit business models around innovative and sustainable solutions to tackle environmental and social challenges.

About GAIN Growth Advisors International Network (GAIN) is a global collective of seasoned C-level commercial, tech, operations, and marketing executives, delivering an advisory platform focused on tactical and actionable solutions to drive growth, industry impact and intelligent commercial expansion for the travel, foodservice and hospitality industry. From technology and product development reviews, commercial strategy and brand positioning to sales leadership and international go-to market advisory, GAIN provides advisory services and expertise to tech vendors, investor funds and hospitality entities, and help startups and scaleups in attaining commercial momentum and the capital for their seed to series rounds and exits.