Rizome

Company description

Rizome set out to make charitable giving more impactful and community-focused, building software meant to strengthen the connection between philanthropic efforts and local business engagement. The company pitched at the 7th Startup Texas Demo Day for the Emerging Industries track on December 14, 2023, one of nine entrepreneurs competing for a pool of $70,000 in seed funding, in a program sponsored by the Brownsville Community Improvement Corporation (BCIC) in partnership with UTRGV's Entrepreneurship and Commercialization Center (ECC) and taught at the eBridge Center.

Rizome was one stop in a longer entrepreneurial journey for founder William Steele, a serial entrepreneur who made the eBridge Center his home base for building multiple ventures. He first came to eBridge with Represent.dev, a platform meant to connect citizens, candidates, and elected officials to make democratic participation easier, working alongside co-founders Jack Sawyer and Jorge Valenzuela. After launching Represent, Steele joined the Startup Texas Emerging Industries Accelerator, and it was there that he and his team built, tested, and launched Rizome — reportedly in a roughly 15-day sprint ahead of Demo Day, which also produced the company's first revenue after more than a year of trying to build network products.

Founder: William Steele

Program: 2023 StartUp Texas Accelerator - Emerging Industries cohort