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  • ER Accelerator Announces 10 Startups Joining Its January 2013 Class

    Jordan Crook

    Jordan Crook studied English Literature at New York University before entering the tech space. Prior to joining TechCrunch, Crook dabbled in mobile marketing and mobile apps as well as doing device reviews for MobileMarketer and MobileBurn. Crook is fascinated with alternative energy production and greentech. She is now a writer for CrunchGear. Hello → Learn More

    Thursday, January 24th, 2013
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    era

    It’s a brand new year, and a brand new class for the Entrepreneurs’ Roundtable Accelerator is only fitting on this cold, January morning.

    The accelerator announced back in October that this January 2013 class of ten startups will be receiving a $15K boost to their seed funding, a total of $40K per startup. According to Jon Axelrod, managing director at ERA, “We really believe that extra $15,000 can really make a difference.”

    NY Mayor Michael Bloomberg chimed in, as well, saying the following:

    Entrepreneurs Roundtable Accelerator is another example of the type of creative programming assisting the City’s next wave of entrepreneurs. These startup companies will be part of the backbone of our future economic success, and will ensure that New York City continues to establish itself as the global hub of innovation in the 21st Century.

    Past classes only received $25K in funding, along with resources like mentors, office space, bandwidth and a demo day in front of investors.

    The new class will run from January 2013 to April.

    ERA has seen some great success with past companies, such as Centzy, Number Fire, Bespoke Post, BuzzTable, and Triple Lift. There are now over 30 ERA alumna companies, some of which have received funding from VC firms like ff Venture Capital, First Round Capital, 500 Startups, FirstMark Capital, and more.

    According to Axelrod, the companies chosen to participate in this class range from real estate to data analytics, and all of them have a focus on New York-based industries.

    Here’s a look at the new class (links here:

    Acquaintable
    Acquaintable makes meeting new people fun, easy and personal. Friends of friends are the hidden gems in any social circle; Acquaintable enables members to uncover them, creating deep and valuable connections to new relationships and experiences.

    Consignd
    Consigned is a virtual consignment marketplace that lets anyone sell products through an expert. By placing “pitch” buttons on blogs, online magazines and other points of expertise, Consignd centralizes accepted content in one easily navigable e-commerce site.

    Easy Pairings
    Easy Pairings improves the hiring and job search process for restaurant front-of-house positions. By matching the right job seekers with open positions, Easy Pairings cuts recruitment costs and helps restaurants find talent quickly and easily.
    http://www.easypairings.com

    Monaeo
    Monaeo simplifies tax compliance with its next-generation data analytics platform. It automates the inadequate manual process of gathering employee location data, giving enterprises complete clarity with their multi-jurisdiction tax compliance, optimization and audit defense processes. http://www.monaeo.com

    Neural Cash
    Neural Cash radically improves the accuracy of financial underwriting. Neural Cash replaces outdated in-house models unable to accurately predict applicant outcomes with its scalable solutions, helping lenders grow profits by minimizing default loss while capturing more repaying borrowers. http://www.neuralcash.com

    Startist
    Startist is a platform that brings creative people together to collaborate on projects ranging from film and the arts to games and technology. Whether it’s a filmmaker looking for actors, a band needing a drummer or anyone who wants to join an inspired project, Startist makes the perfect match for you.

    Suitey
    Suitey is a technology-enabled real estate brokerage that makes it easier to buy, sell and rent homes. The service connects clients directly to broker databases through a beautiful map-based search site, and allows them seamlessly manage their transaction online. Customers enjoy cost savings as well as a completely interactive experience.

    TheSquareFoot
    TheSquareFoot is an online platform that simplifies commercial real estate leasing by connecting prospective tenants with landlords, brokers, and other service and product providers. Tenants get an easy way to search listing and manage the process; landlords get a more efficient way to market properties.

    Trendalytics
    Trendalytics is a social analytics platform for products.

    VocalizeLocal
    VocalizeLocal helps solve the mobile discovery problem for local businesses. With millions of consumers using mobile devices to search for local products and services, merchants are looking to optimize their mobile presence. VocalizeLocal provides a single solution for establishments seeking to improve their visibility to customers.