Cities across the world have been challenged to provide the fundamental necessities to grow — better transportation, affordable housing, clean energy. As one of the fastest growing cities in the nation, Austin is no exception. Although technology isn’t the answer to all our problems, it has always been a driving force in the growth of a city. We teamed up with MobilityX, Austin Tech Alliance and the City of Austin to give one tech startup a $100,000 investment but left giving two startups the opportunity — what can we say? Two is better than one.

Our team of Mentors, city council members and officials, and representatives from MobilityX went through hours of pitches and one-on-one meetings with the six finalists. There were so many amazing companies that we couldn’t pick one — so we picked two! We decided that Cloud 9 and ResilientGrid would each receive a $100,000 investment to transform Austin into a city of the future.

Cloud 9’s communication solution allows care-providing organizations to give people with behavioral health needs the right care at the right time.

ResilientGrid is a startup out of Austin, Texas whose security and operations control platform enables utility companies, governments, and those who manage critical infrastructure to better identify threats, reduce errors, and manage emergencies.

We were fortunate to have two incredible partners to work with on this initiative. The Austin Tech Alliance is a nonpartisan, member-based nonprofit with a mission to promote civic engagement in Austin’s tech sector. Part of their focus includes advocacy promoting the use of tech as a tool to help solve civic challenges. This leads ATA to work with internal and external partners to develop, test, organize, and encourage innovative projects with the goal of fostering a culture of innovation within and around the City of Austin.

“As the Council Member who sponsored Austin’s first Smart City Strategic Roadmap, I’m very excited [for] this Smart Cities Challenge,” said Austin City Council Member Ann Kitchen. “This provides a real opportunity for innovative startups to learn more about Austin and show the community how technology can make our city better for all residents.”

“Startups are often hungry to work on civic challenges facing Austin, but there are no easy means for them to get plugged in with community leaders,” said David Edmonson, Executive Director of the Austin Tech Alliance. “That’s why ATA is partnering with Capital Factory to build a bridge for startups to work with the City of Austin through the Smart Cities Challenge.”