MEDC - Michigan Economic Development Corporation

10/10/2025 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 10/10/2025 06:23

Four Startups Win Big in Statewide PitchMI Competition

LANSING, Mich. - Hospital beds, powered campsites, satellites, and in-game ads: BedConnect, Electric Outdoors, General Orbit, and Adrenaline Interactive were selected last week as regional winners of the PitchMI startup competition, co-hosted by the Michigan State University (MSU) Research Foundation and Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC). "Michigan's startup and innovation ecosystem is on fire," said Alison Todak, vice president at MEDC. "At PitchMI, we heard from some of the state's boldest and brightest founders, and honestly - I wish we could invest in every single one of them!"

Founders across Michigan competed for a total of $1.7 million in investment through four regional pitch events, building on 2024's inaugural PitchMI competition in Detroit and Michigan's growing status as a startup hub. The four winners demonstrate the breadth and depth of the state's thriving entrepreneurial ecosystem.

BedConnect, which runs an online system that shows hospitals which nursing home beds are open so patients can be discharged more efficiently, won the Grand Rapids competition focused on healthcare and life sciences, held on Sept. 29 at the Grand Rapids Civic Theatre. They took home a $325,000 prize, including a $75,000 investment from Corewell Health Ventures.

"Michigan is where healthcare operators live, where innovation is built to last, and where trust still drives transformation," said co-founder and CEO Lindsay Joseph. "BedConnect is tackling one of healthcare's most invisible but costly challenges: the hospital discharge process. We're replacing outdated workflows with real-time bed availability, smart matching, and better tools for hospitals, post-acute providers, and families. This win is for every hospital case manager, every overwhelmed family, and every post-acute partner who believed a better system was possible. We are here building with you and for you."

BedConnect, also known as Herawell Technologies Inc., has received past MEDC support as an Ann Arbor SPARK client, a SPARK Entrepreneurial Boot Camp winner, and a Small Business Development Center Tech Team client, where they were coached on pitching at Accelerate 360, securing investor and angel support, and planning marketing and sales strategies. AIMA, Decimal Code, Elite Care Technologies, and Patensee also competed as finalists.

Electric Outdoors, Inc., a startup that builds a portable canopy system supplying off-grid power, clean water, internet, and EV charging for remote camping sites, won the Traverse City competition focused on cleantech and outdoor innovation, held on Sept. 30 at Timber Ridge. They took home a $250,000 investment.

"We're beyond thrilled that our software-enabled distributed energy solutions resonated with the judges," said founder Josef Hjelmaker. "This award means a lot and would not have been possible without the incredible group of people I get to work with every day. We work hard and take nothing for granted, so to keep earning the trust and support from the startup ecosystem in Michigan is a true honor. What makes this even more special is knowing how strong the field of competitors was. It's so inspiring to be part of such a driven community."

Electric Outdoors Inc. has received past MEDC support through the Michigan Rise Pre-seed Fund, the Invest UP Michigan Outdoor Innovation Fund, ID Ventures, Ann Arbor SPARK, and the Centrepolis Design For Michigan Manufacturing program. Fab5, JustAir Solutions, Lectric Boil, and Motmot also competed as finalists.

General Orbit, which creates navigation hardware and software that make satellites easier to build and control, won the Detroit competition focused on mobility, defense, and advanced manufacturing, held on Oct. 1 at Ford Field. They took home a $375,000 prize, including $125,000 from Assembly Ventures.

"We design and build next-generation satellite systems that simplify production, reduce integration complexity, and perform reliably in any orbital environment. General Orbit's systems can cut the total cost of designing and building a satellite by millions of dollars," said Parker Boundy, co-founder and CEO. "With the investment from PitchMI, we're able to grow our team and can get our products into space to prove to our customers how well they work."

General Orbit has received past MEDC support through the 'Make It in Michigan' Mobility Prototyping Grant, U of M Innovation Partnership, MTRAC Advance Transportation, T3N mentorship, and as a member of the U of M Foundry. AG3 Labs, CleanBotix, Ketchel Axle Systems, and Livaq also competed as finalists.

Adrenaline Interactive, a startup that lets advertisers place in-game ads inside titles such as Fortnite and Roblox, won the Ann Arbor competition focused on AI and software, held on Oct. 3 at Google Ann Arbor. They took home a $375,000 prize, including $125,000 from eLab Ventures.

"From whiteboard sketches to winning PitchMI, we've seen this thing grow from a concept to a company with real traction, real partners, and real momentum." said chief executive officer Max Albert. "Winning PitchMI is transformational as we can now expand our partnerships team and grow revenue."

Adrenaline Interactive has received past MEDC support through the Michigan Rise Pre-seed Fund and from eLab through MEDC's SSBCI 2.0 Venture Capital initiative. Clicki Referrals, Lutely, Maka Media, and Nunchi also competed as finalists.

"PitchMI began just last year as a $100,000 competition," said Pete Martin, Director of Portfolio Management at the MSU Research Foundation. "This year, it expanded to $2 million and last week alone added more than $700,000 in additional investment and prizes. That growth reflects the desire to make Michigan a highly competitive and startup friendly state to high tech entrepreneurs. There's real momentum in this state, and PitchMI is helping the rest of the country see it."

The four winners will advance to the statewide championship in April 2026, going head-to-head at 517 Entrepreneurship & Innovation Week in East Lansing for an additional $1 million investment. The state champion will receive a total $1.25 million investment-among the largest startup competition awards in the nation.

PitchMI goes beyond prize money, giving startups the visibility, connections, and momentum they need to grow and succeed in Michigan. Eleven different Michigan-based venture capitalists and angel groups have already reached out for introductions to the top 20 finalists, with more expected in the coming weeks. The competition drew 375 applications from startups based in 108 Michigan cities, with strong representation across all four regional sectors-healthcare and life sciences, CleanTech and outdoor innovation, mobility and advanced manufacturing, and AI and software. Each winner also received $100,000 in Google Cloud credits.

About Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC)

The Michigan Economic Development Corporation is the state's marketing arm and lead advocate for business development, job awareness and community development with the focus on growing Michigan's economy. For more information on the MEDC and our initiatives, visit www.MichiganBusiness.org. For Pure Michigan® tourism information, your trip begins at www.michigan.org. Join the conversation on: FacebookInstagramLinkedIn, and Twitter.

MEDC - Michigan Economic Development Corporation published this content on October 10, 2025, and is solely responsible for the information contained herein. Distributed via Public Technologies (PUBT), unedited and unaltered, on October 10, 2025 at 12:23 UTC. If you believe the information included in the content is inaccurate or outdated and requires editing or removal, please contact us at [email protected]