The Greater Austin Chamber of Commerce has unveiled its annual A-List, which spotlights a dozen local startup companies that the chamber says have breakout potential.
This year, nearly 200 companies were nominated, and the winners were announced Thursday at an event at ACL Live at the Moody Theater.
A panel of independent judges evaluated the businesses in three investment categories: early-stage, mid-stage and later-stage. The list includes startups in sectors including big data, biotechnology, hardware, software, consumer packaged goods, music technology, e-commerce and mobile app development.
Now in its sixth year, the list is intended to increase the visibility of Austin's most fundable, scalable and innovative startups and drive increased venture capital funding to Central Texas, officials said.
"Innovators are a key part of our strong economic ecosystem and will continue to drive the future of Austin," said Michele Skelding, the chamber's senior vice president of global technology and innovation. "Now more than ever, Austin needs to support creativity and innovation -- it's instrumental in ensuring our legacy continues."
Since the A-List's launch, past winners have received $987.8 million in funding and exit proceeds, according to the chamber.
Here is the 2016 A-List:
Embark Veterinary, saliva-based DNA tests for dogs.
Factom, tools that let users publish a mathematical proof for any event or record
IdealSpot, commercial real estate application that matches tenants and building owners and managers
re:3D, technology that enables industrial strength, large format 3D printing at an affordable price
ESO Solutions, software for healthcare and public safety professionals
Firefly Space Systems, satellite launch company
NSS Labs, security product testing laboratory
OJO Labs, building an artificial intelligence technology that replicates, adapts and scales human conversations
The Zebra, operates a car insurance comparison marketplace
TrendKite, analytics software that helps companies gauge the effectiveness of their public relations efforts
Civitas Learning, analytics software that aims to help colleges and universities increase graduation rates
Modernize, connects homeowners with home improvement professionals
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