HCI Energy has created the rapidly deployable Hybrid Cube as an environmentally responsible alternative to traditional generator technologies. Using a proprietary combination of field-proven innovations, the patented product will deliver a cost savings of up to 60 percent over traditional backup energy sources by improving performance through increased reliability and streamlining operations as a result of its innovative design.

The Hybrid Cube leverages wind, solar, green fuel cell and generator technologies to deliver reliable power with enhanced cost certainty in an unpredictable fuel market. Due to the solution’s secure, durable standard ISO-shipping container design, the opportunity to leverage increased output with lower total energy requirements in a format that leaves the surrounding environment unharmed is an attractive alternative for industries and communities worldwide.

HCI Energy developed the Hybrid Cube in an effort to assist with applications such as homeland security, wireless telecom support and disaster relief throughout the continental United States. Yet, the technology provides even greater opportunities globally for producing efficient, reliable power in unreliable grid or off-grid areas for cell phone tower operation, train signaling, U.S. overseas military operations, energy extraction, construction site back-up power and tailored community-based needs.

gr8box helps customers discover foods free of the Big 8 Allergens. Each month gr8box sends a subscription box with 8 different, healthy snack and meal items. The website collects consumer feedback and helps customers find their new favorites locally and in the company’s ecommerce store. Consumer feedback and demographics are sold to help ensure consumers can access better products in the future.

The products available to those who eat an allergen free diet, out of necessity or optimal health, are not as accessible as traditional mainstream products. While demand is rapidly increasing, supply and distribution are lacking. This often results in frustration, wasted time and expense to the customer. Customers also lack a close tie to manufacturers and distributors to ensure there are improvements in taste and accessibility. Current practices force customers to wait until the next product is released, hoping it’s better.

Each month gr8box will send a subscription box filled with eight healthy, unique snack and meal items for customers to sample. Should the customers choose to add the item to their current diet, customers are directed to an online store for purchase and are provided inserts for their local grocery stores to stock the item. Also included in the box are manufacturers’ coupons and an offer to answer questions (via the website) about the enclosed products. In exchange for feedback, a discount will be given on the next month’s box. This data will be packaged in salable form and sold to manufacturers, distributors and data research firms to better improve the allergy free market all the while empowering the customer. gr8box believes allergy free items should be accessible.

“We’re honored Digital Sandbox KC has selected gr8box to receive this funding to complete our development,” said Terri Jordan, founder. 

AddVenture’s mission is to create adventure-added advertisements. The mission is accomplished by producing GameAds – Games that are Ads, Ads that are Games. GameAds are short, intuitive, online video games tailored-made to the businesses’ image to generate website traffic, boost brand recognition and leverage sales. Unlike other video games where advertisements annoyingly pop up during the gameplay, GameAds themselves are the advertisements. Everything about a GameAd, from graphic and audio to gameplay and features, are all specifically designed to tell a lively and animated story about a business’ history, reasons for being, value proposition, products and services offered.

As youth marketing becomes increasingly difficult due to the rapid advancement of technology, small local businesses, with their limit budget for marketing, cannot afford to host huge online marketing campaigns to promote themselves to young consumers. Their inability to appeal to the youth market, a customer segment estimated to influence over $30 billion in annual spending, hinders them from growing, or even sustaining their businesses

AddVenture’s mission is to create adventure-added advertisements. Adventure is added to advertisements through something called GameAds – Games that are Ads, Ads that are Games. GameAds are short, intuitive, online video games tailored-made to the businesses’ image to generate website traffic and boost brand recognition. In order to convert this brand recognition into sales, GameAds are designed to incentivize the players to purchase from a business. GameAds do this by having achievement levels that players can unlock and win coupons, discounts, gift cards or free merchandises. Since the players need to work hard to win these prizes, they are entitled to their victories and will have a strong desire to “cash in” their winnings. Each time players use their coupons or take advantage of their gift cards is each time the business makes a sale.  

“It is such an honor to have been approved for project financing by Digital Sandbox,” said Phuc Ho, AddVenture co-founder and CEO.  “This vital and timely funding will definitely help AddVenture in researching and developing the high-quality products that users love. On top of the funding, Digital Sandbox’s reputation and trustworthiness will tremendously increase our chance of finding our early adopters.”

Bulletyn increases student engagement around campus by digitizing the traditional bulletin boards. Students will be able to know everything that is going on around campus in real time 24/7 while organization leaders will be able to track and use analytics to plan events.

Students miss opportunities all the time due to not knowing about certain events or activities. Today schools still uses old, traditional and messy cork bulletin boards to post events, activities and any type of classified ads. Those boards are messy and students have to be physically present to find anything that might be of their interest. Students or organizations who want to promote on bulletin boards have to go through a process of making flyers, then getting approval to post.

Bulletyn is a mobile and web application that will provide students with real time access to everything happening on campus. Students will be able to find relevant events that interest them all in one place. Students can save events, get notified about upcoming events and explore new opportunities. Students can sell textbooks, find roommates or discover a new interest. Event organizers can gather analytics on previous events to better plan for the next one, as well as have access to other tools to communicate and engage with members.

 “We would like to thank Digital Sandbox to provide us funding to help further our venture,” said Mike Nguyen, founder of Bulletyn.

edcoda’s innovative technology adapts education to today’s generation by making learning simple and fun. The IP-protected gaming software platform delivers customizeable curriculum-based content to students through fun and engaging video games.  In addition, the platform provides educators and school administrators with actionable, real time analytics, classroom management, content management, and reports— all which are streamlined and easy to use.  

Today’s educational landscape is trending downward with disengaged American students rising from 20% fifteen years ago to about 45% of K-12 American students today. When coupled with classroom teachers’ job satisfaction dropping to an all-time low of 23%, U.S. education is at a crossroad of adapting updated curriculum with new learning tools and methods. The major reasons listed for non-engagement are dull traditional teaching methods along with the lack of or inadequate technology tools.

edcoda is an e-learning platform integrated with a role-playing digital game specifically designed to deliver interchangeable industry-standard learning content and assessment questions to players/learners. edcoda helps engage learners as well as streamline educators’ responsibilities.  Additionally, the platform is adaptive, so student learners can progress at their own pace and observed real time by the instructor.

“Funding and connection with Digital Sandbox KC will help in the full development of uniquely formatted electronic content that is a vital component in our business,” said Clarence Tan, CEO.

Miles is a mobile app that automatically tracks and logs mileage for business purposes. Miles users can now create and export their mileage logs without the need of manual input. The use of Digital Sandbox funds will allow Miles to complete its beta product in early 2016.

Mileage is one of the most difficult transactions to track and prove, and is often most susceptible to audit. Due to the inconvenient and inefficient nature of tracking these trips, many people use the percent method when figuring out their mileage deductions. “I used my car for about 80% business and 20% personal.” This format does not meet IRS guidelines and could result in the IRS denying an entire mileage deduction, potentially costing thousands of dollars in taxes. This is a problem for small business owners, contractors, freelancers, sales team, business development and many more.

Miles creates automated reports that detail the following critical pieces of data for mileage reports

• Travel date
• Total Mileage Driven
• Locations driven
• Business purpose notation
• Client association

All of this is done automatically while running quietly in the background of a phone. Users can easily generate reports that can be given to an accountant or used for reimbursement.

“Thanks to the support of Digital Sandbox, we will be able to complete our beta builds for both iOS and Android devices. The connections brought by Jeff and his team have already kicked off discussions with several strategic partners,” said Lance Windholz, founder of Space Raptor, the developer of Miles.

LeagueAlly is league management software that was initially built for a local Kansas City adult recreational sports league which helped take it from 800 players to almost 4,000 in four years. The software efficiently automates the league process for league managers and players as well as connects participants through leagues as they travel from city to city.

The product helps league managers organize leagues, equipment, umpires and players more efficiently, and provides a system that makes it easy for players to join and enjoy those leagues with as much automation as possible. LeagueAlly also addresses unused parks/fields by organizing that information and making it easier to network through recreational sports in new cities.

“The funding from Digital Sandbox KC couldn’t come at a better time for us. It will allow us to finish the first iteration of our app and move exponentially faster to hire more people and get more funding that in turn will allow us to scale and market nationally,” said Luke Wade, founder and CEO.

PlanITImpact is developing a web application that allows architects and planners to better understand – at the earliest stages of the design and planning process – how a building will impact the environment, the community and the building’s inhabitants. Integrating 3D visualization and tapping into Open Data to gather site-specific information, the tool generates early performance calculations related to energy and water use, stormwater infiltration, greenhouse gas emissions, transportation, building mix, quality of life and potential ROI. The Digital Sandbox KC project focuses on the beta version of the product.

According to 2013 US Energy Administration statistics, commercial and residential buildings use more energy and emit more CO2 than any other sector in the US – 47.6 percent – which is nearly as much as the transportation and industrial sectors combined. In response to this statistic, the sustainable design industry is growing rapidly, and as the public becomes more informed about the global effects of climate change and the impacts that our buildings have on greenhouse gas emissions, the demand for sustainable solutions will only increase. Yet, though the sustainable design industry has seen an explosion in innovative buildings and systems, the tools available to architects and planners are woefully behind the curve.

PlanIT Impact is a web application that is intended to make the schematic phase of the planning and design process really smart. The tool integrates with SketchUp, a ubiquitous 3D modeling tool used by the vast majority of design professionals in the U.S. The tool taps into national and local Open Data APIs to access an aggregate of relevant, site-specific data, which the tool pulls – along with data that is embedded in the 3D model – through a series of algorithms to generate early building and site performance projections. These projections are presented in the form of a 0-100 score in each of the eight modules: energy and water use, stormwater infiltration, greenhouse gas emissions, transportation, building mix, quality of life and potential ROI.  PlanIT Impact offers the ability to explore “what if” scenarios and compare design iterations to better understand how design options affect performance.

“This funding from Digital Sandbox fills a critical gap for us as a tech startup…this is the bridge we needed to be able to launch,” said Dominique Davison, CEO.

Training For REAL is a hospitality consulting company that believes in changing simple training into engaged-learning to reduce attrition and increase sales. REAL stands for relevant effective affordable learning. The Digital Sandbox KC project will help Training for REAL move forward with a cloud-based training platform that allows for broader reach and scale.

High attrition in the hospitality industry, combined with ineffective training and structure, lead to increase cost, lower revenue and smaller margins. Other emerging pain points are minimum wage and service included pricing.

• Attrition – Industry Average 87% @ $500 per Front Of House (FOH) employee
• Ineffective Training Program – Poor Leadership & Service/Lost Sales/Less Repeat Guests
• Increased Competition – Not many 2^nd chances
• 6 out of 10 restaurants close within the first three years

REAL addresses the industry pain points straight on by filling the gap between the status quo that has been in place for decades and the astronomically expensive customized program that may or may not be digital. REAL’s Cloud-based Training Platform allows for the delivery of a consistent product, message and culture.

REAL uses adult learning methods and questions based on clinical insights to create what we call 360º testing – full circle understanding.  The company also tracks results that have been tied into the restaurant’s point of sale system to monitor and measure.  This allows for accurate and quick analysis to drive performance and profitability.

“Digital Sandbox KC has connected me with amazing people that provide the ‘honest support’ an entrepreneur needs,” said founder Tonya Round. “The funding will allow for a vision to be turned into a REALity.”

The UpDown NightLife app lets clubs and bars improve customer satisfaction rates with bottle service. With just a few clicks of a button, a customer can reserve a table, pick mixers and put together a guest list. With help from Digital Sandbox KC, UpDown NightLife will complete app development and launch the project.

Bottle service is not always a seamless process. It can be stressful, from not knowing who to call or when to call to trying to create reservations, pick mixers, and get a guest list together. Some nights, it can be hard just getting into a hot joint.

Whether a customer comes to “Turn Up” the night or are out to “Get Down”, the UpDown Nightlife app makes the journey a lot easier. The UpDown NightLife app is developed to make the night a success; with just one click a customer can reserve a table, pick mixers, and put together a guest list.

The app allows customers to follow all the clubs of their choice. When a user clicks into the app, that person’s timeline pops up. The customer can scroll to look at these clubs to check out specials.

 “With this new funding, we will launch and become a true social media platform for the nightlife,” said Joshua Lewis, CEO.