Oh sure, Zoom’s killing it right now. You can’t turn on CNBC or read a business journal without someone mentioning Zoom, which happens to provide just the tool businesses (and people) needed for connection during the Covid-19 pandemic. And, some security issues aside, Zoom has even been able to handle its daily user-base jumping from 10 million to over 200 million in just a month without a major crash-and-burn, which is pretty miraculous.
Lesser-known tech companies have also managed to turn crisis to opportunity but without fanfare and hype, often pivoting to set their companies up for success–or at least survival–even during these rocky times. Many are small early-stage companies you’ve never heard of. Here are some I’m particularly intrigued with, which are serving four hard-hit areas of #coronalife.
Food Supply: Imperfect Foods
Imperfect Foods takes perfectly good grocery items not accepted by supermarkets and sells them at a discount direct-to-consumers. You sign up for a monthly box of groceries–items are totally customizable–and it’s delivered to your doorstep. My husband and I have had some fails with other grocery-shopping-during-Covid strategies, including pickup service at Safeway and ordering groceries from a restaurant–so we’ve decided to give Imperfect Foods a try. I also recently became interested in Cheetah, which just received Series B funding and pivoted from wholesale restaurant delivery to direct-to-consumer (at wholesale prices). I was all-in until I saw the quantities: Just couldn’t see how I was going to use 32 pounds of fresh ginger!
Events: Streamyard
As we remain in social-distancing mode for months to come, most events are going virtual. A subset of the events world includes performances, like theater. My son is involved with technical theater at his high school, and recently the drama teacher was looking for tech suitable for some auditions. Streamyard presents an interesting option, calling itself a live streaming studio. The host invites performers or interviewees into a green room and releases them to on-screen, one-by-one, on a platform like YouTube or Facebook Live.
Remote Communication: Spaces
As mentioned, Zoom is ubiquitous. But another company, Spaces, has pivoted by turning its VR technology to remote business meetings or interviews. Until recently, Spaces created VR rides in theme parks. But now that theme parks are closed, the company is using the same technology to help companies create VR conversations. It calls itself, “a bridge between a VR world and Zoom, Skype, Hangouts and more.” This is taking your meetings to a whole different level!
Entertainment: Hoovie and Goodnight Zoom
Meanwhile, we’re all craving some distraction. Beyond Netflix, several startups have come to the rescue by helping to facilitate entertainment. For example, Hoovie allows people to host movie screenings online. Participants can watch from anywhere, and then join in on a conversation. And for something truly heartwarming: Goodnight Zoom connects the young and old via bedtime stories. Socially isolated seniors can read to children via the platform. The company partners primarily with nursing homes to find warm, trustable readers. It’s a free service, blossoming into a company.
There’s plenty of news about layoffs and startups going belly-up during the pandemic-caused recession. But let’s not forget the many founders and teams adapting to the times via products we especially now need. That pivoting mindset–it’s what the startup ethos is all about.