Glimpse from Inside

The Science & Technology Angels Network (STAN) hosted its 15th pitching session on March 1, 2024. This session stood out with a high number of guests participating in the event both in person and joining us remotely. We were heartened to host the representatives Business Angels Moldova (BAN) at our event and hope this will be a start of fruitful cross-border deals with the involvement of the angel investors from both networks. We were humbled to host a fantastic cohort of 8 pitching startups, that build diverse solutions from healthcare to industrial automation, from recruitment automation to low code application development. Let’s now dive into the details of the event.

Preselection

STAN received 23 applications from the startups willing to pitch their ideas to STAN angels. It was a challenging task to shortlist the startups. Most of the applications presented impressive ideas with strong founding teams behind them.It is always difficult to reject, especially the strong applicants, but we had to make a choice. After careful consideration we selected 8 teams to pitch to the STAN angels. The guiding principles for the shortlisting were the experience of the founding team and our assessment of the startup's readiness to scale internationally.While being sure that our selection was well thought, we understand that the long-term success of an entrepreneur lies in dedication. So we encouraged the rejected team to pursue their goals with the same and even higher motivation by sharing the words of Winston S. Churchill: “Success is not final, failure is not fatal: It is the courage to continue that counts.”

Startups

Biotech, HealtTech & Welness Applications

• Foldink - a biotech startup developing bio-inks for the technology of 3D bioprinting to help scientists grow living tissues in laboratories and save lives.
• Uray is a handheld urine analyzer, focused on enhancing health screening for Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD), Urinary Tract Infection (UTI), and kidney stones in primary healthcare settings.
• Got it Life is an AI-powered self-care app that enhances the psychological resilience & productivity of enterprise employees through guided internal-external dialog & Psycholinguistic recognition system.

Hardware Solutions

• TACTUN is providing the controllers and software platform for every machinery under development. They reduce R&D costs by 80%, shifts companies from single-time to recurring revenue models, and boasts controllers with 10x the accuracy and speed of industry alternatives.

AI-Powered Solutions

• PromptAds is a tool for advertising based on AI-powered chatbots.
• Hiresonic, an AI Recruiting Assistant, which helps to save recruiters time by automating repetitive tasks such as candidate screening and sourcing.
• Grocera is a platform that collaborates with grocers and influencers, facilitating upselling for groceries and dispatchers based on recipes. At the same time, it assists cooking bloggers in better monetizing their content.

AI-Powered Solutions

• GSoftApp is a low-code database application platform and framework created to streamline and simplify the development process.

Angels and Guests

This pitching session was special in terms of high participation of angels and hosting guests who joined the pitching session in person and remotely.We were happy to welcome the driving forces behind the STAN – our co-founders Ruben Arutyunyan and Igor Khalatian. The pitching session was energized thanks to the presence of our fantastic angels: Rem Darbinyan, Sargis Badalyan, Hayk Mamajanyan, Hayk Harutyunyan, Stephan Reckie, Gugo Martikyan, Vahag Karayan, Sassoon Kosian, Armen Martirosyan, Avetis Antaplyan, Sergey Yengoyan, Alexandre Meterissian, Vahram Sukyas, and Gayane Aghajanyan. It is heartening to witness continued enthusiasm and continuous active engagement in the pitching session of our founding angels Artur Alaverdyan, Igor Avanesyan, Artur Tovmasyan, and Vahan Vardanian.The session was particularly special as it marked Gayane Aghajanyan's first since joining the STAN family as an angel. Her active participation was a highlight, adding a fresh perspective and enthusiasm to our efforts.This pitching marked our first time welcoming the representatives of Business Angels Moldova, adding a new layer of depth and connection to our event.We had the honor of hosting David Davidian and Satenik Gharibyan from Incore investment company, Luiza Avetisyan, a serial entrepreneur, co-founder of Staff.am and Hirebee platforms, Khachik Katrjyan, the founder and CEO of Global Saving Systems, one of the pioneers of sustainable energy solutions in Armenia, Evgeniya Teryan, the founder of the Lsaran International community and a recognized expert in Change Management, Vicken Arslanian, a serial entrepreneur being the founder top niche and specialty perfume reselling organizations in the US and Kuwait. The diverse expertise and interest in fostering innovation among our guests underscored the collaborative spirit of the pitching session. Each participant brought unique insights.Our heartfelt thanks go to everyone who contributed to making the session a success.