Cohort Five of GENIUS NY Graduates and Continue to Grow in Central New York

It’s officially been one year since GENIUS NY and the Central New York community welcomed the program’s fifth cohort. The cohort consisted of five companies, three of which were international, a first for the program. The companies were Airtonomy (North Dakota), Airial Robotics (Germany), CarScanner (Poland), Circle Optics (Rochester) and WindShape (Switzerland).

Throughout the year, these companies worked out of The Tech Garden (TTG) alongside other members of GENIUS NY and TTG. Companies participated in business workshops, met mentors in the space, grew partnership connections, went to conferences around the country and globe, and grew their footprint here in Syracuse. Three companies have already hired locally and are excited to continue to expand their presence.

So, what's next for these companies in Central New York?

Airtonomy won the grand prize of $1 million during GENIUS NY’s Pitch Finals back in October of 2021. They have been able to nearly double in size since then and continue to hire positions in Syracuse. The company recently announced a partnership with Marquardt Switches of Cazenovia to help design and manufacture its modules, which plug into drones and control their radar, cameras and other sensors and wirelessly transmit the data for analysis.

Airial Robotics is expanding its office at The Tech Garden as they start to assemble and manufacture their UAV in the U.S. Back in May the company tested and flew its Gyrotrak GT20, a hybrid helicopter and gyrocopter UAV at the FAA-designated New York UAS Test Site at Griffiss International Airport managed by NUAIR. This was the first flight demonstration of its kind in the United States. The company continues to work with NUAIR to get to market. 

CarScanner made its first U.S. sale in Upstate New York. The company is continuing to bring its robots to Central New York and plans to do road trips across the country to demonstrate its solution to dealerships. 

Circle Optics has made multiple hires in the Central New York area since starting the program. After raising $2.5 million in contract awards from the Airforce and USAF Phase II, Circle continues to collaborate with its cohort 5 winners and other UAS companies to advance optics for drone companies. 

WindShape hired its first VP of Business Development in Syracuse and is continuing to attract drone manufacturers to test on its WindShaper. The company is working on building a test facility in the region and continues to partner with organizations such as NUAIR and Syracuse University.

GENIUS NY will welcome its sixth cohort to Syracuse on August 15. The new companies will be announced August 3!