KinoTek awarded MTI grant for developing sports training software
Courtesy / KinoTek
A screenshot from KinoTek's LaunchPad video shows how the company uses virtual reality to help provide information for athletes and coaches.
Portland software company KinoTek LLC has been awarded a $60,000 grant from the Maine Technology Institute to accelerate the development of the company's virtual reality program, which is designed to help improve athletic performance and reduce injuries.
The grant will help meet customer demand from the professional sports industry for the Human Performance Software, the company said in a news release.
KinoTek was founded in September 2018 by then-University of Maine senior Justin Hafner, who majored in kinesiology and psychology. The company won the "Greenlight Maine" Collegiate Challenge competition earlier this year, and was also a LaunchPad Emerging Ideas finalist.
The company's software uses virtual reality and motion capture technology to create a visual representation of the body and how it moves. The representation simplifies complex data to help coaches and athletes better understand movement, in order to optimize athletic performance and training while minimizing injury.
The software can be customized with analytical data. KinoTek is developing a special test for the sports industry based on early demands, it said in the release.
Several national sports organizations have "expressed demand" for the software, the company added.
“This award from MTI allows KinoTek to continue our rapid growth, particularly in the sports market," said Hafner, now the company's CEO, in the news release. "It provides critical interim funding while we continue conversation with institutional and corporate investors to strategically execute our seed round."
KinoTek was one of eight Maine companies to be showcased at the TechCrunch Disrupt conference earlier this month with sponsorship from Startup Maine. The conference would provide opportunities for the companies to meet venture capitalists, investors and other entrepreneurs, Startup Maine said in a news release.
MTI President Brian Whitney said he expects KinoTek to have an impact.
“Having watched the company emerge as the winner of Greenlight Maine’s first collegiate series and engage in various business accelerators to help scale the company, it’s clear that KinoTek’s impressive multidisciplinary team is well-positioned to make an impact in the market," he said. "We look forward to continuing to work with them as they grow the company and add quality jobs here in Maine.”
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