Who Took Home the Prize at This Year’s dot.LA Award Ceremony?

David Shultz

David Shultz reports on clean technology and electric vehicles, among other industries, for dot.LA. His writing has appeared in The Atlantic, Outside, Nautilus and many other publications.

Who Took Home the Prize at This Year’s dot.LA Award Ceremony?

Giorgio Trovato

The 2022 dot.LA Summit closed on Friday afternoon with an award ceremony on the main stage. Each 2022 dot.LA Startup Award winner will receive a free membership to WeWork's All Access tier for three months for three team members..


Best Rising Startup

​Winner: Jadu

Jadu is building an augmented reality game world with a twist. Known as the mirrorverse, the AR gambit juxtaposes virtual game elements over top of real world landscapes. The items and the content within the mirrorverse are NFTs owned by the community. The award was accepted by Isaiah Chavous, who reminded the audience, “The app comes out next month.”

The nominees:

  • Jadu
  • Ettitude
  • Afterparty
  • Kurvana
  • Dr. Squatch Soap Co

Social Equity Award

Winner: WeeCare

WeeCare is the largest childcare network in the United States. It provides access to high-quality childcare for all families, supports childcare providers in operating sustainable businesses through a technology-based marketplace, and helps employers of all sizes offer their employees childcare benefits. Parents use WeeCare to find, tour, and enroll with the perfect care provider. Jessica Chang, CEO and Co-Founder, accepted the award. “We’re all about our mission of making childcare accessible for all,” she said.

The nominees:

  • WeeCare
  • Sola Impact
  • SpectrumAi
  • ERI
  • Marker Learning

​Rising Entre​preneur

Winner: Malte Kramer, Founder & CEO of Luxury Presence

Luxury Presence is a website design company specifically for the real estate industry. In addition to creating beautiful websites, Luxury Presence also offers backend insights and analytics designed to help brokers and agents grow their business.

The nominees:

  • Malte Kramer, Founder & CEO of Luxury Presence
  • Connor Ellison, CEO & Founder, POGR
  • Michael Le, Co-Founder, Joystick
  • Jonathan Gray, Founder & CEO, Encore
  • Lindsey McLean, Co-Founder & CEO, HomeLister

​​Pivot of the Year

Winner: CRATE Modular, Inc.

CRATE Modular makes modular prefab housing that reduces cost, time, and carbon footprint compared to traditional construction. The company specializes in multifamily housing, educational facilities, commercial and hospitality spaces. CRATE Modular also offers pre-made designs or buyers can configure their own arrangement of modules to suit their specific needs.

The nominees:

  • CRATE Modular, Inc.
  • Jeeny
  • SteadyMD
  • Regard
  • Community

Startup of the Year

Winner: Whatnot

Whatnot is an online auction platform. From action figures to NFTs, if it’s collectible, you can probably find someone selling it on Whatnot. Founded in 2019, the company has already secured nearly a half a billion dollars in funding and shows no signs of slowing down. And now, with the recent introduction of their live auction service, users can livestream themselves as they hawk their goods. “We’re really excited to continue to build Whatnot and built it in LA,” said Grant LaFontaine, Co-Founder of Whatnot.

The nominees:

  • Whatnot
  • Boulevard
  • Liquid Death
  • EVgo
  • Genies

​Entrepreneur of the Year

​Winner: Evette Ellis Co-Founder & Chief Workforce Officer at ChargerHelp!

ChargerHelp! is an electric vehicle charging maintenance and operations company. As the nation seeks to electrify its transportation by the middle of the next decade, infrastructure remains a major roadblock as charging stations are frequently offline or working below capacity. ChargerHelp! aims to bring those systems back online with its teams of skilled technicians and better monitoring that pinpoints problems quickly and efficiently. As a Disadvantage Business Enterprise (DBE), and a nationally and state-certified Woman Minority- Owned Business Enterprise (WMBE), ChargerHelp! is bringing the “reliability as a service” model to the forefront of an industry that has traditionally skewed white and male.

The nominees:

  • Evette Ellis Co-Founder & Chief Workforce Officer at ChargerHelp!
  • Jessica Chang, CEO & Co-Founder, WeeCare
  • Katherine Power, CEO & Investor, Merit Beauty, VERSED
  • Mike DeGiorgio, CEO & Founder, CREXI

🎓 LA’s Startup Edge Round 2

In light of last week’s article, we want to highlight some additional schools that have a significant impact on LA’s tech landscape. If we’ve missed any schools or founders worth including let us know!


Image Source: LMU

Loyola Marymount University

LMU plays a significant role in developing Los Angeles' tech workforce by offering various programs and resources for aspiring entrepreneurs and innovators. The university fosters innovation and entrepreneurship through:

  • LMU College of Business Administration: Provides entrepreneurship-focused programs and courses, including the Entrepreneurship Program, which offers hands-on experience and mentorship opportunities for students interested in starting their own businesses.
  • Frank R. Seaver College of Science and Engineering: Collaborates with industry partners on research projects and offers programs like the Engineering Clinic, where students work on real-world problems for corporate sponsors.
  • Fred Kiesner Center for Entrepreneurship: Serves as a hub for entrepreneurial activities, offering resources such as the Business Incubator program, pitch competitions, and networking events to support student and faculty startups.

Companies Founded by LMU Alumni: Liquid I.V. by Brandin Cohen, Dave by Jason Wilk, Abstract by Pat Utz


Image Source: CSULB

California State University, Long Beach (CSULB)

CSULB plays a significant role in developing Long Beach's entrepreneurial ecosystem through various programs and resources. The Institute for Innovation & Entrepreneurship (IIE) at CSULB serves as a central hub, offering initiatives like monthly Innovation Hours, a social justice entrepreneurship program, and the annual Sunstone Innovation Challenge with $50,000 in prizes. CSULB fosters innovation and entrepreneurship through:

Companies Founded by CSULB Alumni: Oculus VR and Anduril by Palmer Luckey (technically not an alumni because he dropped out before graduating), Dreamworks Animation by Steven Spielberg


Image Source: Claremont McKenna College

The Claremont Colleges

The Claremont Colleges serve as a significant source of talent for Los Angeles' tech and venture capital workforce, leveraging their strong academic programs and entrepreneurial resources. Harvey Mudd College, renowned for its exceptional engineering program, contributes a substantial number of highly skilled graduates to the tech sector. The consortium's collaborative approach to fostering innovation is exemplified by initiatives like:

  • The HIVE: This hub enhances students' creative problem-solving skills through collaborative and interdisciplinary experiences.
  • Claremont McKenna College's Silicon Valley Program: Offers students an immersive off-campus study experience that integrates internships, coursework, and networking opportunities in the heart of the tech industry, preparing them for careers in innovation and venture capital..
  • The Makerspace at Harvey Mudd College: An 8,000 SF student-run facility that allows students to prototype and develop innovative ideas, fostering a hands-on approach.

Companies Founded by Claremont Alumni: TechCrunch by Michael Arrington (CMC), KKR by Henry Kravis (CMC) & George Roberts (CMC), Sun Basket by Adam Zbar (Pomona), GitHub by Tom Preston-Werner (technically not an alumni because he dropped out before graduating from Harvey Mudd)


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🌱Redefining Female Pleasure—and LA's New Wellness Club: What to Know

🔦 Spotlight

Happy Friday Los Angeles!

Love.Life is a high-end, holistic health and wellness club recently opened in Los Angeles, founded by former Whole Foods Market executives John Mackey, Walter Robb, and Betsy Foster. The 45,000-square-foot facility combines advanced medical diagnostics, personalized fitness and nutrition plans, and rejuvenating therapies under one roof. Membership options range from $300 to $50,000 annually, offering services such as detailed health assessments, specialized treatments, and access to various wellness modalities including cryotherapy, red light therapy, and advanced fitness equipment. With autoimmune diseases on the rise, the club aims to provide a comprehensive health experience that blends Eastern and Western practices, with additional perks like an on-site café and pickleball courts. Love.Life's approach emphasizes preventive care and personalized health management, catering to individuals who are willing/able to invest significantly in their well-being.

In parallel to this trend towards high-end, integrated wellness solutions, Hello Cake, an LA-based sexual health startup, is making strides in addressing women's sexual dysfunction—a field where treatment options have been notably scarce. While erectile dysfunction has seen significant innovation for men, women’s sexual health remains inadequately addressed, despite the Cleveland Clinic's estimate that 43% of women experience sexual dysfunction compared to 31% of men (hello underserved market). Hello Cake is introducing two new prescription products: Libido Lift Rx, a dissolvable tablet featuring oxytocin, tadalafil, and L-citrulline, and O-Cream, a topical treatment containing sildenafil. Priced at $54 for six doses, these products aim to help women love life by tackling low libido, filling a significant gap in the market where female libido is often overlooked. Despite the lack of FDA approval for these specific uses and limited trials, Hello Cake seeks to provide a novel approach to a common, yet medically nebulous issue, highlighting a crucial area of unmet medical need. Given its vibrant health and wellness culture, LA provides an ideal backdrop for innovative health companies like Love.Life and Hello Cake to address emerging needs in a city that's both health-conscious and open to new wellness trends.


🤝 Venture Deals

LA Companies

  • Sahara AI, a startup that operates a decentralized network that allows users to control, scale, and monetize their personal knowledge and copyrights using AI and blockchain technology, raised a $43M Funding Round co-led by Pantera Capital, Binance Labs, and Polychain Capital. - learn more
  • Ambercycle, a maker of recycled polyester, raised a $10M Funding Round from Shinkong Synthetic Fibers. - learn more
  • JetZero, a developer of blended-wing aircraft, raised funding from Alaska Airlines. - learn more

LA Venture Funds

    LA Exits

    • Datum Source, a developer of software that helps hardware companies find manufacturers, was acquired by Hadrian, a defense tech company. - learn more

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    🎓 LA’s Startup Edge

    Los Angeles is a key center for tech and entrepreneurship, driven by its major universities. Caltech produced a “founding father” of artificial intelligence and USC's Viterbi School collaborates with industry and has produced companies like Riot Games.


    Image Source: UCLA

    University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA)

    UCLA is a major source of tech talent in LA, granting approximately 2,000 engineering degrees from Bachelor’s of Science to Ph.D.s annually. The university fosters innovation through:

    • Startup UCLA: An on-campus accelerator program that provides mentorship, funding, and resources to student entrepreneurs.
    • Anderson School of Management: Offers entrepreneurship programs and hosts startup competitions.
    Companies Founded by UCLA Alumni: ChowNow by Eric Jaffe; Blizzard Entertainment by Mike Morhaime; BAM Ventures, LegalZoom.com & The Honest Company by Brain Lee


    Image Source: USC

    University of Southern California (USC)

    USC is another key player in developing LA's tech workforce offering numerous programs and resources for aspiring entrepreneurs, including the Viterbi Startup Garage, USC Stevens Center for Innovation, and the Lloyd Greif Center for Entrepreneurial Studies, which provides over 68 entrepreneurship courses taught by 27 professors and practitioners.The university fosters innovation through:

    Companies Founded by USC Alumni: Riot Games by Brandon Beck and Marc Merrill; Salesforce by Marc Benioff


    Image Source: CalTech

    California Institute of Technology (Caltech)

    Caltech is a significant contributor to the tech talent pool in Los Angeles, producing around 600 graduates annually across various STEM fields, with a large portion likely in engineering disciplines. Additionally, Caltech alumni have founded 238 startup companies between 1995 and 2016, with 35% still active as of 2016, demonstrating the institution's strong support for entrepreneurship and innovation in the region. The university fosters innovation through:

    • Caltech Entrepreneurs Club: This student-run organization aims to develop Caltech's startup ecosystem through educational speaker series, networking events, and collaboration with administration to establish a founder-friendly environment.
    • Caltech Innovation Center: Provides startups with space to test, develop, grow, and commercialize deep technology ideas collaboratively.

    Companies Founded by Caltech Alumni: Intel by Gordon Moore, Quora by Adam D’Angelo, and John McCarthy one of the “founding fathers” of Artificial Intelligence


    Image Source: Pepperdine University

    Pepperdine University

    Pepperdine University contributes to Los Angeles' tech talent pool through its strong entrepreneurship programs and MBA offerings that emphasize innovation and startup development. 33% of its MBA students are actively working on startups during their studies and 85% are aspiring to start businesses

    Companies Founded by Pepperdine Alumni: Eventbrite by Julia Hartz

    These universities are crucial in developing LA's tech talent pool, offering programs that bridge the gap between academia and industry. Their initiatives in entrepreneurship and partnerships with local startups are helping to create a robust tech ecosystem in Los Angeles.

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