The Top15 Most Promising YC W15 Companies

Of the 114 companies that presented their three-minute pitch on Monday and Tuesday of this week, I initially “liked” about 36. Going further through the list, I eliminated most of them and ended up with 15 that I call “Most Promising”. The key here is that this list is based, mostly, on the presentation that I saw, with some limited research that I did afterwards on each company and their market (emphasis on limited). With a few exceptions of companies I knew or had met before the demo day, I have not met wit the founders yet and so the ranking is not necessarily a long- term endorsement.

Three things impressed me for each of the companies that made the list below (which, by the way, just happen to be 15 – I set no limit on this number, as I don’t believe in Top X, with an arbitrary X). The three things were: Innovation in business model or technology; strength of the founders, and the market demand. You may notice the absence of traction because nearly all companies had pretty significant traction, for their age, at the demo day.

Here is the list, along with my brief reasons on their selection – the list is in the order the companies presented; there is no ranking within the list. Also, respecting the “off the record” ask, I have not revealed the names of companies that were in that segment of the demo day, until they launch publicly. Finally, I didn’t include companies that I had no way of assessing their potential (like highly specialized medical devices, rocket launch companies, etc.) 

1. Level – Best solution for an unloved market, with total online platform 

2. Insite VR – VR for Businesses- Outside gaming, VRs biggest application will be here, where it actually can cut costs significantly 

3. BlueSmart – A clever combination of useful features built into a smart suitcase; likely to be a must have for biz travelers, at a minimum 

4. RavenTech – This is the way the operating systems will work in the future 

5. (Off-the-record) – Cyber security company looking to use new approach to fend off hackers 

6. (Off-the-record) – A new innovation in offline commerce and check out 

7. CampusJobs – Fragmented market – lack of single source with significant tech advantage 

8. eBrandValue – Innovative approach to connect online and offline presence of brands and tie it with sales 

9. Diassess – Rapid DNA test with promise to revolutionize on-the-spot disease detection

10. Analytics MD – The platform to make hospitals and clinics more efficient- perfect timing! 

11. BuildScience – Another unloved market that has tremendous potential with few competitors 

12. CloudMedx – Adding a layer of real-time patient data to the health care system 

13. Dronebase – early service level use of drones for businesses- most promising use, IMHO 

14. Mashgin – self checkout using computer vision, with potential apps in many other areas 

15. Labdoor – The marketplace to potentially shape the $36 b supplement market