The Polsky Center Announces 2026 Build and Launch Summer Accelerator Cohorts

Published on Tuesday, May 5, 2026

The Polsky Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation today announced the startups selected to participate in the 2026 Build and Launch Summer Accelerators — intensive, 10-week programs designed to help student founders and recent alumni turn ideas into scalable ventures.

Each year, the Build and Launch accelerators bring together teams from across the University of Chicago to spend the summer working full-time on their ventures in a collaborative, high-energy environment. Participants receive funding, mentorship, and access to a network of alumni, investors, and industry experts.

This year, the Polsky Center is increasing its offerings to founders through several enhancements:

$10,000 SAFE investment for every selected team
$5,000 stipend for each eligible founder
A new San Francisco field experience, where founders will travel for a two-night, three-day immersion to connect with UChicago alumni and engage directly with the West Coast startup ecosystem

Together, these additions drastically improve the accelerators’ support for founders — combining financial backing with deeper exposure to venture capital networks and entrepreneurial communities.

The Build and Launch accelerators continue to serve founders at different stages of their journey:

Build Accelerator: Designed for early-stage ventures, this track focuses on helping teams develop core elements of their business and validate assumptions around their market, product, and customers.
Launch Accelerator: Geared toward more advanced, investment-ready teams, this track supports founders as they focus on fundraising, customer acquisition, and scaling momentum.

Across both programs, teams receive hands-on coaching from Polsky staff, mentorship from experienced entrepreneurs and investors, and structured weekly programming designed to address key startup challenges from product development to go-to-market strategy.

All participating teams also benefit from in-kind support services, including legal and incorporation resources, technical tools, and access to the broader Polsky and Chicago innovation ecosystem.

2026 Build and Launch Teams

Build Accelerator

Good Again // Good Again is a tech-enabled surplus food marketplace connecting restaurants, bakeries, and groceries to consumers and underserved communities through discounted “surprise bags” at up to 80% off via pickup and delivery. Powered by AI, Good Again optimizes surplus redistribution at scale, with a long-term vision to eradicate hunger and stunting in Indonesia.
Kinetide // Kinetide is a sports technology company developing a wearable analytics platform for competitive athletes. By combining motion sensors with performance analytics, Kinetide provides objective feedback on athletes’ technique and performance during training and competition, starting with competitive swimming and expanding into other technique-intensive sports.
Loop // LOOP is the last toothbrush you’ll ever need. The Gillette of sustainable oral care, it combines a personalized lifetime handle, replaceable heads delivered by subscription, and a closed-loop recycling program at the end of product life.
Rememberly // Rememberly turns the posts, links, and notes you save across the web into a searchable, AI-organized knowledge base — with auto-generated summaries, tags, and graph-aware recall. Stop bookmarking things you’ll never find again; remember everything that mattered enough to save.
Revelascope // Revelascope is developing a novel videoscopic surgical retractor designed to improve visualization and ergonomics during complex surgical procedures such as nipple-sparing mastectomies. By integrating a built-in camera and LED lighting, the device enables a real-time, externally displayed digital view of the surgical field while preserving a surgeon’s traditional tactile feedback.
Rooted South // Rooted South is a clean, all-natural skincare line harnessing the power of Mysore Sandal to fight acne and acne scarring. Its minimalist formulas, with less than 8 ingredients per product, treat acne the way nature intended – gently, effectively, and free from the harsh chemicals that dominate the acne aisle.
Steadily // Steadily is a post-discharge monitoring app for adults recovering from heart failure. It tracks daily weight, symptoms, and wearable signals to detect early signs of deterioration and tell the caregiver exactly what to do next.

Launch Accelerator

All Fair // All Fair is a data intelligence platform for small businesses; helping owners start, operate, and grow.
BRAIV // BRAIV is a precision medicine platform that helps psychiatrists match patients with the right medication from the start, replacing the months of trial-and-error that define mental health treatment today.
Hydrastack // Hydrastack is building the operating platform for casino gaming, starting with tools that accelerate moving casino games across platforms and formats. Its first product reduces the time required to convert slot machine games to online formats from 8 months to 8 weeks.
Handsin // HandsIn is an AI-driven American Sign Language (ASL) e-learning platform designed to eliminate the tradeoff learners face between accessibility and live feedback. Powered by proprietary Sign Language Correction (SLC) technology, HandsIn uses real-time computer vision and 3D avatar feedback to analyze handshape, movement, and spatial accuracy — transforming passive learning into active, muscle-memory-based practice.
Inzollo // Inzollo helps distributors, wholesalers, and cash and carry businesses grow sales and cut costs by streamlining orders and deliveries.
KNOWN // KNOWN is a science-backed platform and mobile app for simple, proactive menstrual cycle tracking (think Strava for your period). It empowers women to sync with all four hormonal phases, uncovering unique insights and science-based recommendations while transforming self-understanding into shared connections with partners and friends.
Unloket // Unloket is an AI concierge for mid-sized independent hotels with less than 150 rooms and short-term rental operators that centralizes guest communication, handles requests, and provides local recommendations, helping hotel staff respond faster, reduce workload, and deliver a more personalized and consistent guest experience.