Luminate NY welcomes second cohort at Sibley
Ten companies, selected to take part in the second cohort of the Luminate NY accelerator competition, are now at the Sibley building.
The chosen companies are working to bring industry-changing technologies to life that have the potential for solving existing challenges for businesses and for society. The startups were selected after pitching their innovative ideas to an advisory panel comprised of industry experts at the Luminate NY Lighting Awards last November.

The companies and technologies now under development at the Rochester-based accelerator include:
Augmentiqs is transforming microscopes into smart, connected devices that can deliver augmented reality experiences to pathologists to enhance medical research and discovery
Circle Optics has developed the world’s first parallax-free 360-degree camera to solve the problem of stitching
Kura Tech is building revolutionary augmented reality glasses with a customized optical and display system
Lumedica Vision is creating affordable light-based scientific and medical instruments that deliver more accurate diagnostic results
Mango TeQ LTD is transforming helmets into smart devices so that motorcyclists can keep their eyes on the road and we can decrease the growing number of cycle fatalities
Neurescence is providing the first-ever way of capturing images of the Central Nervous Systemto aid in brain surgery and in the creation of treatments for neurological disorders
Opalux is embedding a person’s portrait and data into a color-shifting generic hologram to eliminate counterfeit identities
Organic Robotics Corporation is enhancing virtual reality by providing technology that allows realistic tactile interactions with virtual objects
Ovitz is creating a custom contact lens that significantly enhances vision quality for patients
VPG Medical, Inc. is developing CardioGuard, a platform technology that leverages cameras embedded in smart devices to monitor the cardiac activities of their users
Each company receives an initial investment of $100,000. They will work with industry experts, businesses and universities in the accelerator for six months to speed the commercialization of their innovations. The companies will then compete on Demo Day in late June for $2 million in follow-on funding. Funding for the $10 million program is being provided through the Finger Lakes Forward Upstate Revitalization Initiative award and is being administered by NextCorps..