Microsoft on Monday announced the finalists for its Kinect Accelerator program, which calls on innovators to develop new ways to use its Kinect sensor technology.
The 11 finalists will spend three months in the Seattle area honing their projects under the tutelage of entrepreneurs, venture capitalists, and leaders from Kinect for Windows, Xbox, Microsoft Studios, Microsoft Research, and other Microsoft organizations. In addition to mentorships, however, they'll receive $20,000 in funding, as well as free hosting and services.
In partnership with TechStars, Microsoft will hold a Demo Day with the finalists at the end of June, when they can pitch their ideas to potential investors and, hopefully, secure funding. In exchange, TechStars will receive a 6 percent equity in the company in the form of common stock.
Initially, Microsoft only planned to select 10 finalists, but organizers received so many quality applications that they expanded the finalist pool.
"We were hoping to receive 100 to 150 applications, with a goal of selecting the best ten," Microsoft said in a blog post. "But the worldwide entrepreneurial community completely surprised us by submitting almost five hundred applications with concepts spanning nearly 20 different industries, including healthcare, education, retail, entertainment, and more."
The finalists include: Seattle-based animators Freak'n Genius; Toronto-based GestSure Technologies, which focuses on medical tech; Seattle-based IKKOS, which focuses on athletic training; Buenos Aires-based Kimetric; France-based Manctl, which produced a Kinect-based low-cost 3D scanner; Massachuesetts-based NConnex, a "try before you buy" tech for furniture; personal shopping tech from Los Angeles-based Styku; Munich-based ubi interactive, which produced a plug-and-play gesture control solution that makes any display 3D; New York-based VOXON, which is working on a volumetric 3D display; and healthcare-related, Boston-based Zebcare.
Microsoft said it provided the top 100 applicants who did not make it into the program with a free Kinect for Windows sensor since it was "so amazed by the quality, caliber, and uniqueness of the applications and teams."
Last month, Microsoft announced that the next version of Kinect for Windows will be available at the end of May. The Kinect for Windows 1.0 SDK made its debut in early February in 12 countries. The offering is intended to take the Kinect sensor technology beyond entertainment and use it for things like healthcare.
For more, see PCMag's review of Kinect and the slideshow below.
For more from Chloe, follow her on Twitter @ChloeAlbanesius.
