Name: Startup Showcase & VC Panel
Start: 2026-05-15T09:30:00-0500
End: 2026-05-15T12:15:00-0500

Friday May 15, 2026 9:30am - 12:15pm CDT

The Startup Showcase features pitches from startups that are doing something unique or innovative in analytics, AI, machine learning, or other emerging data technology. Each startup gets six minutes to pitch followed by a Q&A.

In addition to the pitches, this session also features:

"Data Tech '24 Alum: From MN Cup Winner to Market Traction -- in a 100-year-old Industry” with Michael Peterson, Founder/CEO, Raise a Hood
VC Panel: "How AI Has -- and Hasn't -- Changed Venture Investing" with Grant Gibson, Principal, Great North Ventures and Garrett Lauderdale, Vice President, Idea Fund of La Crosse.
"Accelerating High-Impact Data Technologies with Non-Dilutive Federal Funding" with Pat Dillon, Founder & CEO, MNSBIR Inc.

Conductor

Graeme Thickins

Board Member / Startup Showcase Organizer, MinneAnalytics

Speakers

Grant Gibson

Principal, Great North Ventures

Grant joined Great North Ventures, an early-stage VC firm, in 2023 and is now responsible for marketing, ecosystem engagement, and closing deals. He brings a unique blend of legal knowledge and business acumen to the VC industry. Grant earned a law degree from the University of St... Read More →

Garrett Lauderdale, MBA

Vice President, Idea Fund of La Crosse

Garrett joined Idea Fund in 2023. It partners with seed- and early-stage startup businesses across the region, supporting Upper Midwest entrepreneurs who are solving challenging problems with passion and drive. It brings capital, connections, and years of experience building exceptional... Read More →

Michael Peterson, MBA, MSE

Founder/CEO, Raise a Hood

In 2021, Michael Peterson founded Raise a Hood to revolutionize the automotive maintenance industry with a unique blend of AI and community engagement. His background is in engineering, business development, and disruptive solutions. In 2023, his startup won the High-Tech Division... Read More →

Pat Dillon, MBA

President & CEO, Founder, MNSBIR, Inc.

Pat Dillion leads Minnesota’s statewide effort to equip startups and small businesses with the knowledge, strategy, and support needed to compete for federal R&D funding — rooted in deep expertise in the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer... Read More →

Startups

Agent Agnes

Automates customer calls for SMBs with AI phone agents. Serves home services, vet clinics, and property management — deploying custom AI agents in less than 60 seconds. The company is targeting $5M ARR by 2028. Currently raising a $300k pre-seed round.

CanaryAI

Applied intelligence that builds predictive AI for kidney care, identifying patients at risk of deterioration and readmission, enabling earlier intervention and reducing avoidable hospitalizations across chronic kidney disease, dialysis, and transplant care. Currently raising a $500K... Read More →

Gudea

A stormtracker for the Internet. Its patented predictive narrative intelligence platform equips organizations to detect emerging disinformation, identify coordinated information operations, and anticipate threats before they escalate — preventing and mitigating crises. It is currently... Read More →

Intelligible

AI agents fail on enterprise data because they don't understand it. Intelligible connects your data to AI via a database layer of reasoning primitives. It converts structured enterprise data into reusable components that AI systems reason over directly, capturing institutional knowledge... Read More →

Print Profit

A profitability platform for the global printing industry, giving owners real-time visibility and clear actions to improve performance. Acting as a smart co-pilot, it helps turn data into decisions, and decisions into profit. It has been mentored by MESA, is bootstrapped, and is profitable... Read More →

Rocket‎‎‎‎ Inventory

Rocket Inventory brings decades of enterprise warehouse management systems expertise to SMBs. It simplifies complex capabilities into an easy-to-use platform powered by real-time data, modern technology, and AI to help manage inventory and SKUs. It is not currently fundraising, but... Read More →

SaffronHealth‎‎‎‎ AI

Nearly 70% of the $5T total cost of healthcare in the U.S. is preventable. SaffronHealth addresses systemic inefficiencies by transforming fragmented data into actionable intelligence, delivering personalized, evidence-based recommendations through agentic AI. Currently raising a... Read More →

Data Tech 2026 Startup Showcase Agenda pdf

Friday May 15, 2026 9:30am - 12:15pm CDT
(f) Bde Maka Ska Best Buy HQ, 7700 Knox Ave S, Richfield, MN 55423

0 - Panel / Showcase

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