Announcing the 10 Startups for Comcast NBCUniversal SportsTech 2023
Today, Comcast announced the 10 startups selected to join the third class of the Comcast NBCUniversal SportsTech Accelerator, powered by Boomtown. This class featured applications from around the world, representing 920 applicants in 40 countries.
A Program Defined by Access
One of the hallmarks of this program is access. Startups will collaborate with experts from Comcast, NBCUniversal, Sky, Boomtown, and SportsTech’s advisors to improve products and services and prepare for commercial success with partners and the broader sports industry.
Each startup will have access to decision-makers and leaders across our SportsTech partner consortium, which includes four Comcast NBCUniversal sports brands: NBC Sports, Sky Sports, Comcast Spectacor, and Golf – alongside NASCAR, WWE, and PGA TOUR, and three US Olympic sports organizations: U.S. Ski & Snowboard, USA Swimming, and USA Cycling.
Champions of Success
Since the first class in 2021, SportsTech alumni have participated in 90 pilots, partnerships, and commercial deals with SportsTech consortium partners. This year, founders will be able to explore more long-term opportunities with partners as the accelerator expands from a 12-week format to a 6-month program, allowing for increased time for robust, meaningful collaborations.
“Our alumni from the first two classes of the Comcast NBCUniversal SportsTech accelerator continue to display a prowess for delivering impactful technology while unlocking new revenue opportunities, product cost savings and operational efficiencies for our business and across the industry, and I look forward to seeing what powerful innovations and unique partnerships emerge from this year’s program,” said Jenna Kurath, Vice President, Startup Partnerships and Head of Comcast NBCUniversal SportsTech.
A New Format
Over the next six months, entrepreneurs will work one-on-one with SportsTech advisors and participate in a custom curriculum focused on refining their product and improving their go-to-market strategies, fundraising, sales, marketing and branding, product design, personal growth, company culture, and tactics for working at an enterprise scale.
“As we evaluated how to bring even more value to our startups and SportsTech partners, a clear need emerged – more time collaborating to tackle complex business challenges. The new six-month format creates additional space for focused testing and experimentation with a curriculum designed for business refinement while allowing the later-stage, enterprise-ready startups we’ve selected to continue serving their existing customers.”This year’s class will also benefit from a series of unique excursions and working retreats structured around SportsTech partner events that will embed founders behind the scenes so they can gain a better understanding of how to deliver innovations that service these organizations’ operational needs.
The Season Begins in Florida
The 2023 program kicks off this week in Florida with a roadshow of partner events and, more importantly, a series of partner immersion opportunities for founders designed to deepen customer discovery and identify how to align technology solutions to the business and operational needs of partners.
With meetings at the offices of NBC Sports’ GOLF division, behind-the-scenes tech experiences at Universal Studios Florida and the WWE Performance Center, opportunities to observe how PGA TOUR and NBC Sports’ GOLF produce professional sporting events at venues like the Arnold Palmer Invitational, followed by focused meetings at PGA TOUR’s headquarters and NASCAR at Daytona International Speedway, the introductory week is designed to impart startups with these critical insights and understandings.
Introducing the 2023 Class
The 2023 class of the Comcast NBCUniversal SportsTech Accelerator program includes:
Aircast – Melbourne, Australia
Aircast provides sports fans direct access to near-zero-latency multi-view video, audio, and data, making them the director of their own experience.
EINBLIQ.IO – Munich, Germany
EINBLIQ.IO is an insights and automation platform that enables media companies to operate sophisticated, excellent, energy-efficient, and economic streaming services.
FanFest – New York, New York
FanFest is the easiest way for the biggest names in entertainment to empower superfans to grow their audience with interactive shows gated by digital memberships and tokens hosted live on their digital channels.
FanSaves – Ottawa, Canada
FanSaves is a digital couponing platform that gives fans discounts and deals from sponsors of their favorite teams, increasing fan engagement and activation while tracking important customer analytics for teams and their partners.
GeoSnapShot – Sydney, Australia & Denver, Colorado
GeoSnapShot is a Powerful AI media distribution platform that allows users to instantly share photos from an event and organize them so they can be found quickly and easily.
Quicc – Wichita, Kansas
Quicc is a powerful video content management system that automates video transcription, captioning, searching, and clipping workflows.
Recut – New York, New York
Recut helps users create unlimited personalized video content at scale for fans and audiences.
Rivalry Tech – Houston, Texas
Rivalry Tech is a food, beverage, and merchandise mobile ordering platform for high-volume settings, including stadiums, resorts, hospitals, and entertainment venues.
RIZZARR – Detroit, Michigan
RIZZARR is a content marketplace that connects brands seeking purpose-driven digital media with vetted, talented creators worldwide.
Tickets for Good – Sheffield, United Kingdom
Tickets for Good helps event partners fill venues and increase revenues by giving free and discounted tickets to targeted and validated consumer groups that support the local community.