Global Entrepreneurship Week announced its annual "GEW 50" – a list of 50 innovative new companies selected as finalists of its Startup Open competition, including two from South Florida.
The GEW 50 recognizes startups from 19 countries representing an even more diverse range of industries—including biotechnology, communications, education, energy, entertainment, fashion, finance, health/medical and more.
“Entrepreneurship is more than just the latest collection of mobile apps targeted toward consumer convenience and entertainment,” said Jonathan Ortmans, president of Global Entrepreneurship Week. “It is an increasingly global phenomenon with new and young firms driving innovation and solving real-world challenges regardless of where they are located.”
More than 600 startups from 38 countries entered the competition and were judged on their concept and growth projections for their businesses as well as their knowledge of their industries.
The Startup Open grand prize winner will receive an all-expenses-paid trip to Milan, Italy, for the Global Entrepreneurship Congress in March 2015. The GEC brings together entrepreneurs, investors, global leaders and startup champions from more than 150 countries to explore the best ways to build and strengthen entrepreneurial ecosystems. As part of the experience, the Startup Open winner will have the opportunity to showcase his or her startup on a global scale and meet with potential collaborators, mentors and others to help the startup grow.
Here are the finalists from South Florida:
Peerless Wind Systems
peerlesswindsystems.com
Boynton Beach
Jay Moskowitz
An artistic yet highly energy efficient vertical axis wind turbine has been created out of the world of kinetic art, for use in the urban environment, island nations and emerging countries where over 1 billion people have little or no electricity. Our patent-pending electric generator incorporates new technologies to increase energy efficiency, and is married with the turbine to deliver more energy than turbines of similar size. Its performance and operations center monitors the operation of every installed turbine globally.
Symptify – Symptoms Simplified
symptify.com
Sunny Isles Beach*, USA*
Jalil Thurber
Symptify is an online self-assessment tool that uses a customized algorithmic engine to help users educate themselves about causes of symptoms. It combines the cumulative experience of multiple ER doctors with current medical knowledge to create a tool that helps users narrow the causes of their symptoms, find the closest place to get care and give a heads-up when going to a facility.
For a complete list of the GEW 50, visit www.startupopen.com/gew50.