Florida Institute -Funded Companies Selected to Present at Florida Venture Forum 2016 Early Stage Capital Conference

GAINESVILLE, Fla. and BOCA RATON, Fla., April 29, 2016 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Florida Institute for the Commercialization of Public Research (the Institute) announced today that four of its funded companies have been selected to present at the Florida Venture Forum's 9^th Annual Early Stage Capital Conference being held at the Hilton Carillon in St. Petersburg on Tuesday May 17, 2016. The Institute supports new company creation based on publicly-funded research, and bridges early funding gaps for companies spinning out of Florida-based universities and research institutions.

Presenting companies were selected from a pool of approximately 100 applicants by a committee of active Florida venture capitalists and other investors, and will present to an audience of investors, other deal professionals and entrepreneurs. This year's conference will feature a total of $150,000 in cash awards presented to the first, second and third place winning companies, provided by Space Florida. Past early stage presenters have attracted more than $36 million in funding.

Institute - funded companies that will be presenting are:

• MYOLYN, LLC  – a Gainesville-based company that is applying recent advances in robotics, automation, and control theory to rehabilitation and therapy products for individuals with neurological disorders.
• KynderMed – a St. Petersburg-based medical device company that has developed a safe, non-invasive medical device that enables at-risk women to avoid the onset of premature labor.
• TAO Connect, Inc. – a St. Petersburg-based company that provides a suite of online tools (TAO tools) to clinics, private practitioners, college and university counseling centers, and community mental health centers for client education, interaction, accountability and progress assessment to facilitate effective treatment.
• Verigo – a Gainesville-based company that provides monitoring and tracking solutions to improve operations for businesses that rely on perishable supply chains. 

"The Florida Venture Forum's Early Stage Capital Conference is a premier event that allows startups to network with industry leaders and potential investors, and we are delighted that four of our portfolio companies have been recognized as some of the most promising early-stage companies in the state," said Jackson Streeter, Institute Chief Executive Officer.

About the Institute

Formed by the Florida Legislature in 2007, the Florida Institute for the Commercialization of Public Research is a non-profit organization that works collaboratively with the technology licensing and commercialization offices of Florida's state universities and private research institutions to leverage a $2B+ research base and form investable companies that create clean jobs in new industries that are driving the global economy. With funding from the State of Florida through the Department of Economic Opportunity, and through the generosity of mentors, advisors and donors, the Institute provides company building services, and seed funding through the Florida Technology Seed Capital Fund, to promising Florida startups. Forty-nine companies have been funded to date, and the Institute's economic impact through June 30, 2015 was $379 million, a return on investment of 14 times to the State of Florida. 

CONTACT:
Jane Teague
Chief Operating Officer
Institute for the Commercialization of Public Research
561-368-8889
[email protected]

SOURCE Florida Institute for the Commercialization of Public Research