This fall, we received altogether over 750 applications putting our acceptance rate to a historical low of a little over 1,8%. Even though we welcome the quantitative growth, we’re even more fond of the fact that the quality of almost all the applications were much better than a year ago. The level of founders’ hunger surprised us. You know how they say “it was a tough choice”? Well, this was almost impossible.
When talking about choosing the batch and fighting the odds, this year we put emphasis on hungry, humble founders that have what it takes to put themselves and their team through a Sauna-sprint. Entrepreneurial life is hard, and Startup Sauna is a real stress test, as our program consists of five very intensive weeks ending at Demo Day at Slush.
Fall ’16 batch represents everything that is blazing hot at the moment: virtual and augmented reality, drones, software visualizations & design, Slack bots, aerospace optimizations and fintech.
“We’re very much looking forward to putting the founders to the test, while helping them refine their businesses. What excites us the most is seeing the founders’ sparkly eyes when they learn something new about themselves or their business,” says our CEO, Panu Paljakka.
What makes the 5 weeks even more exciting is the fact that one of the teams will be selected as the Superhero of Startup Sauna at the end of the program taking home €100,000 cheque from Superhero Capital. Want to see who made the cut? Come and see yourself at our Demo Day at Slush 30rd of December.
Meet the Startup Sauna fall ’16 batch:
Softagram, Oulu – Transforming software industry by visualization
Arctic Robotics, Vantaa – Indoor flying drones for security and monitoring, only the roof is our limit!
TalentAdore, Helsinki – 100% personal feedback to each job candidate
Windy, Moscow – Wind sports community and forecast app
ReportChef, St. Petersburg – Minimize time spent in meetings by using our Slack bot
TEXEL, Moscow – The Digital Showroom for Department Stores is the fastest and the easiest way to find clothes that fit your body, style and wallet
Vividly, Riga – Embracing VR for progress in AEC industry
3DC.io, Tallinn – Making the simplest 3D modeling app
Finch, Riga – Collaboration tool for web designers & developers
Tributit, Malmö – Tributit optimizes marketing spend of Steam games
Founder’s Assistant, Stockholm – Complete one year’s bookkeeping in 1 day
Falconet, Espoo – Intelligent aviation fuel savings
ADA, Jyväskylä – Next generation travel and logistic platform
TAU Tracker, Khabarovsk – Modular Magnetic Motion Capture Technology for AR / VR and 3D-apps
Startup Sauna fall ‘16 batch starts 31st of October and ends at our Demo Day at Slush, 30th of November.
