ROHNERT PARK - K-diagnostics, a San Rafael-based company developing a touchless diagnostic and monitoring technology for sleep apnea disorders was named Top Start-Up Business in North Bay in the first Seed Round Business Plan Competition produced by the North Bay iHub and the Sonoma State University School of Business and Economics.
The competition was created as a collaborative effort to foster entrepreneurship in Sonoma, Marin, and Napa counties. The $40,000 prize package includes cash and services necessary to a start-up business. The winner will also have the opportunity to present before 200 investors at the annual Investor Summit produced by the North Bay iHub this fall.
"We all worked very hard on our business plan and we will not disappoint you,” said Ayako Yamazaki, COO of K-diagnostics. “The process was extremely helpful in honing in on the key points needed to make our plan viable.”
Sleep ID is different than available home diagnostic equipment in that it uses safe low power radar to measure respiratory and heart rates continuously from a distance of up to eight feet so as to not interfere with the patient's sleep.
The competition for the prize included three qualifying rounds over a three-month period. Four finalists were chosen out of 36 original entrants and the competition was held June 1 on the Sonoma State campus. The finalists each had 20 minutes to present their business plans in front of a panel of judges.
"K-diagnostics presented a unique and proprietary solution to a legitimate problem,” said Peter Garner of Wavepoint Ventures, one of the three judges during the final round. “They have a credible management team and a thoughtful business strategy that leads to the prospect of building a sustainable and long term company."
The other two judges were Serena Lourie of Lowercase Capital and Thomas Toy of Pac Rim Ventures.
Other finalists were Barrier Free Adventures, a mobile app and social media technology-based travel information service for persons with disabilities; E3, a biomethane production process from municipal waste that is integrated with existing natural gas delivery infrastructure, and GOasis, a self-contained, energy efficient mobile shelter for disaster relief and other remote shelter needs.
The prize package K-diagnostics will receive includes cash from Wavepoint Ventures. Intellectual property legal services will be provided by two firms: Spaulding McCullough & Tansil and Stainbrook & Stainbrook. Carle Mackie Power & Ross will provide corporate legal services. Accounting services will be contributed by Dillwood Burkel & Sully. Marketing services will be provided by Neo Marketing Alliance. Sonoma Mountain Business Cluster will provide 12 months of office space at the incubator in Rohnert Park.
For more information on the competition and the winner, visit www.northbayihub.org.
