Meet this year’s Upstart Alpha Startup Accelerator cohort

From left to right'; Xavier Mason, Natalie Carlson, Travis Gularte, Lexlany Tejada, John Boren, Zoua Her, Cannen Burgess, Cody Herron-Webb and Kristal Perez Aviles, nine of the 11 cohort members (Photos by Sam Davenport).

This spring, the UA Center for Economic Development unveiled the Upstart Alpha Startup Accelerator, a university-based entrepreneurship engine that offers intensive mentorship and experiential learning over a period of four months to a cohort of entrepreneurs.

Upstart Alpha provides funding, tools and connections for participants interested in turning their idea into a startup within the span of a semester. Alaska Startups spoke with the participants of the cohort about their business ideas and what they hope to gain from the experience.

John Boren

John Boren is a UAA student who wants to expand GIF DAT — an app that would create GIFs using voice recognition. It is the first app in a series that Boren is developing relating to voice recognition.

“I hope to learn more about the Startup community in Alaska and how to contribute in that arena,” Boren said.

Natalie Carlson

Natalie Carlson, a computer science major at UAA, applied to the cohort to create CenCom — a centralized communication platform for groups.

She hopes she can better understand the process of launching a new business through the accelerator.

Jack Carroll and Austin Williams

Jack Carroll, a sophomore at UAA, and Austin Williams, a junior, want to create X-Redaction, a software solution to keep businesses from accidentally exposing sensitive information.

“I am very excited to be getting hands-on experience through Upstart Alpha Accelerator,” Carroll said. “No matter what happens with the business itself, I appreciate the knowledge that this program will bring me!”

“I've always been excited about the prospect of starting a new business,” Williams said. “I'm thankful to Upstart Alpha for allowing me the opportunity to launch this startup. I hope to learn a lot from this process so that whenever I get a good idea in the future I will know realistically how to take it to the next level.”

Xavier Mason

Before graduating from UAA in 2015, Xavier Mason made his mark on the university. He was the College of Business and Public Policy Student Leader of the Year and commencement speaker at his graduation. Since then, he graduated from the University of Oxford with an MSc in Education and an MBA.

Mason joined the cohort to create Marina Digital Bank — a commercial digital bank for the country of Nigeria.

“We are a commercial digital bank that will disrupt the financial service industry for the benefit of our customers,” Mason said.

Lexlany Tejada

Lexlany Tejada, a freshman at UAA, has dreams of opening a bilingual preschool and daycare. Tejada says the function of the business is not only caring for — but teaching new languages to young children up to 5 years old.

“Aside from all of the great things I have already learned from this program in the first few weeks of starting, I am hoping to learn what it takes to open a business and the mountains needed to climb to get to the final steps and open,” Tejada said.

Melvin Captain

Melvin Captain wants to provide advice to villages, tribal councils, village corporations, and nonprofit organizations in regards to the cannabis industry.

“We solve problems, create value, improve growth, and maximize business efficiency and profitability in regards to the cannabis industry,” Captain said. “I will provide educational trainings that will help tribal members and shareholders understand how the cannabis industry is constructed. I will also offer assistance in educating our employees and help aid with the startup processes of getting involved with the cannabis industry.”

Zoua Her

Zoua Her, a UAA student, wants to create a business surrounding hydroponic veggies in Alaska. She plans on having a hydroponic warehouse and store in the state so residents don’t have to rely so much on shipment from the Lower 48 and elsewhere for fresh produce.

“Another purpose is to create more jobs and more business opportunities for Alaska residents,” Her said. “How my business will function is there would be separated warehouses that grow the greens and sell it to restaurants. When that first stage is going strong, I am hoping to open a grocery store that transfers the greens from the warehouse and sell it to consumers that can handpick the fresh veggies from the hydroponic.”

Travis Gularte

Travis Gularte, a former UAA student, owns Alaska Native Financial Health Organization and 907 Financial Investment Advisory Group. ANFHO is a financial literacy group teaching financial topics in a 1-on-1 setting and large group presentations; the latter is an investment advisory firm creating financial plans and investment strategies for both individuals and companies.

“The biggest thing I want to learn in the program is learning how to raise capital to grow and launch my companies. I do love the accountability factor with the classes and private advisor meetings,” Gularte said. “Also, the curriculum is great because it fills some of the gaps of knowledge I have with building a business.”

Cody Herron-Webb

Cody Herron-Webb saw the struggle of Alaskans missing live music and comedy shows, so he founded AK Concerts, which makes it easy for Alaskans to know when, where and who is performing around the state.

A former UAA graduate, Herron-Webb puts out a weekly event calendar of what’s happening across the state — from Juneau to Fairbanks. He also has his list published in the Anchorage Press.

“We also have sections where people can more information about local Alaskan bands and music venues as well as a place to go for concert tickets,” Herron-Webb said. “We don't actually sell the tickets but we link you to the official ticket sellers so that you won't be scammed by resale sites (like StubHub or vivid seats) that buy tickets just to sell unsuspecting patrons for 3-5 times the price.”

Cannen Burgess and Kristal Perez Aviles

Cannen Burgess and Kristal Perez Aviles, both of whom are UAA students, are teaming up to create Clearspace, which aims to help people make friends and improve mental health through social events.

“The function of our business is to basically create a space where locals or visitors to Anchorage can socialize, learn, and connect without the need of alcohol or technology,” Aviles said.

Burgess hopes to learn more about prototyping and narrowing their target market.

“Upstart Alpha is fostering entrepreneurial success in Anchorage,’ Burgess said. “I’ve found lots of networking opportunities as a result of this program.”