Many of today’s most successful tech companies began as startups. Dell, Apple, and Facebook are just a few formerly scrappy startups that are now industry behemoths. The ideas that launch startups can end up transforming lives when they’re turned into innovative products and services. Whether tech startups help keep kids safe online or help architects create eco-conscious buildings, there are particular categories worth watching.
Sometimes tech startups offer products that fulfill a niche need — at least in the beginning. But eventually, demand intensifies because the solution latches on to an emerging trend like green energy. Or the product and service offering is disruptive enough to lead to major change.
Whether they’re matching a need with existing technology or creating something completely unheard of, tech startups in these categories are worth watching:
1. Safe Tech for Kids
Technology is no longer just something kids use to get their homework done. It’s a way to express themselves, and it’s a lifestyle. However, many parents worry about keeping their children safe from online predators and inappropriate content. Deciding the best age to get a cell phone for kids is another top concern.
A Pew Research Center study found that 71% of parents believe smartphones can bring more harm than benefit to kids. Cyberbullying and a decline in social skills add to parents’ anxieties. While parental controls can help, it takes time to master them and fine-tune a device’s settings accordingly.
Some startups want to make it easier for kids to stay connected without parents having to take any extra steps. By combining wireless tech with the idea of parental controls, their offerings allow kids to use smartphones and other mobile devices safely. They remove the temptations of social media, web browsers, and other apps that could get kids into trouble.
These new wireless devices for kids, including cell phones, look and act like the others — with an important catch. There’s no way to get on Snapchat or Instagram or internet sites and apps like YouTube. Kids can still communicate with family and friends while learning the value of spending time away from the screen.
2. Smart Energy Management
The way households use energy is changing. In a recent Gallup poll, 43% of respondents said they worry about climate change a great deal. Switching to energy-efficient appliances, smart home technology, and products like electric lawnmowers is becoming more mainstream.
Meanwhile, utility companies are beginning to incentivize homeowners to convert to high-efficiency furnaces and air conditioners. These companies are also touting a switch to renewable energy sources to generate the electricity society uses.
What if there were a way to step up your sustainable energy game and get paid? There are tech startups that have figured out how to monitor your energy use through Wi-Fi and smart devices. Think things like thermostats and light bulbs connected to your home network. Based on your energy usage, you receive suggestions on how you can save more. And by reducing your energy consumption, you’ll enjoy lower utility bills and qualify for rebate payments from local governments.
Other startups are taking sustainable energy solutions into the realm of artificial intelligence, using the technology to help design environmentally friendly buildings. Targeted toward the commercial real estate sector, these solutions use algorithms to analyze building site proposals. Such analyses reveal how much certain designs will add to (or reduce) the developer’s carbon footprint. AI can also make design recommendations to keep that footprint as small as possible.
3. Advanced E-Learning
Although education has already moved into the digital realm, tech startups are taking it to another level. Experimental, adaptable learning processes, personalized career coaching, and practical problem-solving probably don’t sound new. How about online courses that target the skills employers want most and digital science labs for underserved learners?
Although not completely revolutionary on the surface, these types of services are taking digital education beyond standard e-learning. They’re able to adapt according to each student’s skills, interests, and progress. Rather than focusing exclusively on knowledge acquisition, some of these solutions teach learners how to learn.
One such approach works to build up independent critical-thinking and listening skills in children. Another leverages tech to create practical courses based on an initial real-world problem. For students whose schools don’t have labs, there are virtual versions. They can still do their chem and science experiments, learn new technologies and theories, and take quizzes.
For adults, career development can happen anywhere through live video conferencing. Individuals can learn new skills tailored to their professional goals and current positions via sessions with certified coaches. If self-paced courses feel more comfortable, career switchers and those who want to advance can curate their own curriculum. Learners can take online classes that focus on specific skills companies need and pay only after they’ve landed a new job.
4. Personalized Health Therapy
AI, wearables, and the Internet of Things (IoT) are making it possible to deliver increasingly personalized healthcare. Various startups are leveraging the data capabilities of these devices to partner with the health industry.
Individuals who have chronic conditions requiring physical therapy can receive it virtually through an app. Images from phone cameras and laptop webcams can capture a patient’s movements and make suggestions. People participating in these treatment programs complete the suggested exercises in the comfort of their homes. Treatment programs adjust along with the patient’s progress and are based on advice from medical professionals.
Other startups use data from wearables and phones to make predictions about a person’s health risks. This might include the chances of that individual developing diabetes, with suggestions for lifestyle changes to help prevent the disease. For people who already have certain conditions, algorithms can analyze recorded data to help prevent complications.
AI also has the power to identify emotions and physical changes like dilated pupils that can indicate stress. Some startups are using these abilities to develop solutions to identify emotional, psychological, and behavioral conditions. Psychologists may soon be using artificial intelligence to help diagnose conditions like anxiety and depression.
Creative thinking will continue to stretch the abilities and applications of technology, and new startups will be the result. Keep an eye out for up-and-coming companies in these spaces that are inventing new possibilities.
