Top Dallas Startups: Business Booms on the Silicon Prairie
If you’re thinking of pursuing your MBA at one of our Dallas metro schools, it’s worth taking a look at the advantages of the thriving startup community there.
The city hosted over 5,000 entrepreneurs in April 2016 for the second annual Dallas Startup Week, a free event designed to gather people looking to hatch their ideas.
Oren Salomon, an entrepreneur who founded coworking space Fort Work in downtown Dallas, said of that event, “You’ve seen an explosion of activity in the past year to two and a half years and there’s not much of an explosion of success and wins that are going along with that… We don’t have a Google or an Apple or a Facebook coming out of Dallas, and that’s what we’re all aiming for.”
Here’s a look at some of those who are aspiring to Google-level success with their startups.
Top Dallas Startups
Tigli presents a refined HR Analytics platform for employers, using a beautifully designed product. Its goal is to strengthen communication between staff and managers through “real time transparency [that allows] users to take better targeted actions at the right moment.” Its versatility allows access from a full range of devices, and there is a two week trial available free on the company’s site.
Fast Visa is a highly relevant organization in our current political and cultural climate. With its product, those seeking citizenship in the US get a ‘one-stop shopping’ experience that saves a tremendous amount of anxiety, in addition to the legal fees one might have to invest in the process. In addition to citizenship services, Fast Visa offers green cards and green card renewals.
Pryzm is a highly refined technology that adjusts the way that light travels in a phone camera, producing surreal and beautiful effects. Pryzm operates seamlessly with Instagram and Snapchat, making it appealing for the ever growing body of ‘celebrities’ expressing themselves on these forums. The startup’s team is comprised of individuals from the worlds of music promotion, science, and marketing.
Fetch offers users an on-demand package delivery service to address the problem of retrieving mail when one isn’t at home. It’s offered to residential communities, including apartment buildings, condos, and college and university dorms. Fetch is currently hiring for a management position.
Stuntshare connects those seeking adventure travel experiences with residents of destination countries, allowing them to customize and personalize their travel experience. This eliminates the need for costly travel packages that include tours, which might offer a generic view of a place, but nothing compared to what locals willing to show travelers around can offer.
Though many of these startups cater to the ever omnipresent millennial, Telecalm is one which is directed at a different segment of the population – those with Alzheimer’s or other forms of dementia. Telecalm is a screening service that alleviates the stress of dealing with the potential threats from scams or threats that too frequently prey upon people struggling with these conditions.
Each of these companies earned its start with membership in the incubator TechWildcatters, which is a perfect example of why the Dallas-Fort Worth area is an ideal destination for those with the entrepreneurial spirit.
A writer said it best in a recent issue of D Magazine, “[Dallas entrepreneurs] are…not afraid to go up against the status quo, or seek advice from mentors in areas where they want to grow. In fact, they don’t seem to be afraid of anything… Young tech business leaders are rising through … schools, flourishing in university programs, and collaborating in co-working spaces”.
About the Author
Maggie Boccella
Maggie Boccella, a lifelong resident of Philadelphia, is a freelance writer, artist and photographer. She has consulted on various film and multimedia projects, and she also serves as a juror for the city's annual LGBTQIA Film Festival.
