OVERLAND PARK, Kan.,
April 1, 2019 /PRNewswire/
-- Sprint (NYSE:S) and Dairy Farmers of America (DFA) today
announced the nine companies participating in the sixth annual
accelerator program. The 90-day immersive program launches today
and runs through June. Startups in three verticals — 5G Technology,
Ag Tech and Dairy Food Products — will work directly with leaders
from Sprint, Dairy Farmers of America (DFA), CoBank and other
industry experts and mentors to create strategic, long-term
partnerships. The Sprint Accelerator program culminates on Demo
Day, June 27, in which the startups
showcase their ideas.
![Sprint Corp. Logo (PRNewsfoto/Sprint Corp.) Sprint Corp. Logo (PRNewsfoto/Sprint Corp.)](https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/623994/Sprint_Corp_Logo.jpg)
"We're excited to once again provide mentoring, collaboration
and resources that will help fuel the growth of this year's
start-up companies through our Sprint Accelerator program," said
Bryan Fries, Sprint vice president,
5G market strategy and global services. "We're about to begin the
next-generation of wireless in nine markets, including Kansas City. So, this year, Sprint added a new
5G vertical so companies can use our 5G network to bring innovative
products and services to customers, that help transform industries
such as mobile gaming, entertainment, and transportation."
"It's been rewarding to help mentor these entrepreneurs, and
we're thrilled to get started with another class for this year's
DFA Accelerator. Plus, we've found that we learn along the way
too," says Monica Massey, executive
vice president and chief of staff at DFA. "By working and
collaborating with ag tech and dairy food startup companies, we're
helping develop solutions that will not only provide value for our
farm families and their operations, but will also help drive
consumer demand for dairy."
The 2019 Class of the Corporate Accelerator
5G Technology
- Nodecraft (Oklahoma City,
Okla.). Nodecraft is a cloud platform that enables
Game Developers, E-sports tournaments, and direct-to-consumer
(gamers) the ability to instantly create unforgettable online
multiplayer experiences.
- Portl Media (Toronto,
Canada). Portl Media eliminates idle time by
providing education and entertainment options to users through a
network of strategically placed media and entertainment screens
starting off in rideshare cars.
Ag Tech
- Bezoar Laboratories (Bryan,
Texas). Bezoar's current innovation is a patent-pending
probiotic for cattle that, when paired with nitrate, decreases
their methane production by 50%, while providing additional
benefits
- Cattle Care (San Francisco,
Calif.). Using low-cost video cameras Cattle Care
detects, recognizes and tracks every cow as well as business
processes and makes decisions for the farmer about the treatment of
a particular cow or a whole barn.
- Healthy Cow (Toronto,
Canada). Healthy Cow is an ag-biotech helping dairy
farmers to produce more wholesome, natural, and nutritious milk
while simultaneously reducing their dependence on antibiotics and
hormones.
- Labby, Inc (Boston,
Mass.). Labby is an AI-powered smartphone platform for
food and agro analytics.
Dairy Food Products
- Brooklyn Buttery (Brooklyn,
N.Y.). Brooklyn Buttery is reimagining butter for
the 21st century as a fun convenient product for home cooks to turn
up the flavor on their dishes using sustainably sourced
ingredients.
- Numa (Bridgewater,
N.J.). Numa makes all-natural sweet, chewy milk treats
with just six natural ingredients and four grams of
protein.
- RifRaf (Brooklyn,
N.Y.). RifRaf offers cool, creamy ricotta cups
that are one part cheese and one part unexpectedly delicious
flavor.
Since its inception in 2014, the Sprint Accelerator has worked
with 45 start-up companies. These companies have raised an
aggregate of over $36 million since
participating in the program. Visit the Sprint Accelerator calendar
for public opportunities to engage with these companies at
sprintaccelerator.com.
About Sprint and its Support for
Entrepreneurship
Sprint has a strong history of working with
startups in Silicon Valley, Kansas
City and around the globe, helping young companies navigate
the corporate world and build momentum behind their new businesses.
Sprint is committed to supporting the entrepreneurial movement
across the country, delivering new business opportunities, and
spurring the startup spirit within the company. In 2014, Sprint
opened the award-winning Sprint Accelerator in Kansas City – home of the Corporate
Accelerator. The accelerator space is used to deliver year-round
programming, including mentor engagement, STEM programs,
entrepreneurial community collaboration, and community coworking
space.
About Sprint:
Sprint (NYSE: S) is a communications
services company that creates more and better ways to connect
its customers to the things they care about most. Sprint
served 54.5 million connections as of Dec.
31, 2018 and is widely recognized for developing,
engineering and deploying innovative technologies, including the
first wireless 4G service from a national carrier in the United States; leading no-contract brands
including Virgin Mobile USA, Boost
Mobile, and Assurance Wireless; instant national and international
push-to-talk capabilities; and a global Tier 1 Internet backbone.
Today, Sprint's legacy of innovation and service continues with an
increased investment to dramatically improve coverage, reliability,
and speed across its nationwide network and commitment to launching
the first 5G mobile network in the U.S. You can learn more and
visit Sprint at www.sprint.com or www.facebook.com/sprint and
www.twitter.com/sprint.
About Dairy Farmers of America:
Dairy Farmers of
America (DFA) is a farmer-owned cooperative representing 8,000
family dairy farms across the United
States. DFA is committed to providing value to its
farmer-owners through marketing members' milk, providing services
and resources on the farm and connecting our family farms with
plants and brands such as Borden® Cheese, Plugrá® Butter and
Kemps® to name a few. For more information, call
1-888-DFA-MILK (332-6455) or visit dfamilk.com.
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SOURCE Sprint