University of Cincinnati

12/23/2025 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 12/22/2025 08:02

Two UC-backed startups score $200K each from state

Two UC-backed startups score $200K each from state

Venture Lab alumni TapIn and Saturn Sports on track to market

6 minute read December 23, 2025 Share on facebook Share on Twitter Share on LinkedIn Share on Reddit Print StoryLike

Two University of Cincinnati-backed startups, TapIn and Saturn Sports, have secured major state funding to advance the commercialization of their early-stage technologies, according to the Cincinnati Business Courier.

This marks another milestone for alumni of the 1819 Innovation Hub's Venture Lab. The business accelerator, which sits at the heart of the Cincinnati Innovation District in the rapidly growing Center for the Silicon Heartland, pairs each startup team with entrepreneurs in residence, seasoned founders and industry leaders who guide ventures from idea to launch.

Both TapIn and Saturn Sports credit their rapid progress to the Venture Lab experience, where they refined business models, honed technologies and built momentum toward commercialization.

TapIn: Identity verification in a digital age

Michael Jones, PhD., co-founder TapIn. Photo/TapIn

Taplin, operating under the name Carbon Copy Assets, was launched by two UC professors: Michael Jones, PhD, director of the Kautz-Uible Cryptoeconomics Lab in the Digital Futures research building, and Jordan Tate, professor of fine arts at UC's College of Design, Architecture, Art, and Planning. Tate is moving away from daily business operations; however, both continue to jointly hold the technology's patent.

The team's goal is to address the complex verification requirements for maintaining scholarship eligibility. It's a process that proves challenging for students to document, ranging from situations such as event attendance to letters of recommendation.

Jones and Tate joined forces and applied as a cohort to the Venture Lab program at the UC 1819 Innovation Hub, where they received $115,000 in seed funding. The startup's core technology allows users to tap their phone at a physical location to verify their presence. First built to help scholarship students track volunteer hours, the technology soon revealed far broader potential.

TapIn dashboard application. Photo/TapIn

Amid rising concerns about bots, AI-generated content and digital fraud, TapIn's solution offers a way to confirm that a real person is behind an online action. That capability has attracted interest from universities, restaurants, nonprofits and event organizers looking for a more reliable alternative to QR codes, paper signups and manual check-ins. With usage up 50% month over month, TapIn now serves thousands of users across multiple locations.

TapIn worked with the school's Technology Transfer office to file a patent application protecting UC-owned intellectual property and to enter into an option agreement granting the company the exclusive and first right to license the IP.

TapIn recently secured a $200,000 Ohio Third Frontier grant to expand its engineering and sales teams, deepen product development and pursue broader applications. Jones says the company is preparing to raise an additional $1.5 to $2 million in seed funding to support its goal of reaching unicorn status.

Saturn Sports: Making football safer through smart equipment

Saturn Sports presentation during Venture Lab Demo Day. Photo/1819 Innovation Hub

Saturn Sports, another Ohio Third Frontier grant recipient, is developing a smart chin strap designed to reduce football-related injuries by ensuring players' helmets are properly secured. Founded by two lifelong Cincinnati athletes, Hank Veeneman and Brayden Shepard, the company developed its early business concept and enrolled in the 1819 Venture Lab to accelerate its path to market.

Their device uses lights and sound to signal whether a chin strap is fastened correctly and includes back-end technology that sends real-time data to coaches. In a survey conducted by the founders, coaches nationwide reported that nearly 30% of players were taking to the field with loose chin straps.

The $200,000 Third Frontier award will help Saturn Sports finalize a manufacturing-ready product, develop software and prepare for pilot testing with the University of Dayton's football team in 2026 and two high school programs next fall. The team is planning an angel investment round in early 2026 to support a full commercial launch by 2027.

Turning ideas into companies

Both startups point to the 1819 Innovation Hub's Venture Lab accelerator as an essential catalyst in their journeys. Through the program, founders gain a structured pathway to commercialization, including:

  • One-on-one mentorship from entrepreneurs in residence with deep industry experience
  • Immersive sessions on customer discovery, business modeling and prototype development
  • Access to UC's research strengths and state-of-the-art Ground Floor Makerspace
  • A direct link to the broader Cincinnati Innovation District ecosystem, where corporate partners, faculty, students and startups collaborate to bring new technologies to life

The Venture Lab has become a magnet for students, faculty and community innovators looking to launch high-potential companies in the Silicon Heartland.

The Venture Lab program located inside the UC 1819 Innovation Hub. Photo/Greg Glevicky

Building Ohio's next generation of startups

With TapIn tackling digital trust and identity verification and Saturn Sports advancing player safety through sensor-enabled equipment, both startups exemplify the type of high-impact innovation the Cincinnati Innovation District was built to support. Their recent Third Frontier wins mark critical steps toward large-scale commercialization and reflect the strength of UC's entrepreneurial ecosystem.

As these ventures continue to grow, they demonstrate how the 1819 Innovation Hub's Venture Lab empowers founders to transform promising ideas into scalable businesses that strengthen Ohio's tech economy.

Contact the Venture Lab's digital pre-accelerator to learn how you can take your own idea from concept to commercialization.

Featured image at top: Saturn Sports chin strap technology for helmet safety. Photo/1819 Innovation Hub

Next Lives Here

The University of Cincinnati is leading public urban universities into a new era of innovation. Our faculty, staff and students are saving lives, changing outcomes and bending the future in our city's direction. Next Lives Here.

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University of Cincinnati published this content on December 23, 2025, and is solely responsible for the information contained herein. Distributed via Public Technologies (PUBT), unedited and unaltered, on December 22, 2025 at 14:03 UTC. If you believe the information included in the content is inaccurate or outdated and requires editing or removal, please contact us at [email protected]