Hexagon calls for startups to apply for its third Sixth Sense cohort

Hexagon's Manufacturing Intelligence division has announced a call for startups to apply to participate in its third Sixth Sense cohort, which will tackle challenges around manufacturing sustainability and digital reality.

Startups with innovative technologies reducing manufacturing's CO2 emissions, eliminating waste, and optimizing collaborative design are encouraged to apply from now until the September 6, 2023 application deadline. The Sixth Sense team, program advisors, and judges will narrow applicants to a cohort of around ten companies following a pitching competition among shortlisted companies in late September.

The Sixth Sense open innovation platform and rapid accelerator program will then fast-track cohort companies through an intensive 10-week session to inform and refine their offering with Hexagon's market insights. Up to three winners from the cohort will ultimately be selected from a demo day in December to scale their business with Hexagon's resources for globalization, including potential funding, worldwide office space, and access to Hexagon's full suite of products and services. They will also be connected and published on Hexagon's open digital reality platform for manufacturing, Nexus, providing access to world-class companies such as Audi, Boeing, and Microsoft customers.

Hexagon, the industrial software leader whose technology is used to manufacture 90% of aircraft, 75% of smartphones, and 95% of every automobile produced worldwide, launched Sixth Sense in January 2022 to nurture startups in the manufacturing industry with Hexagon resources. The winners from its inaugural cohort were named in June 2022, and US-based Gelsight, the 3D tactile sensing maker that gives robots a sense of touch, was named the winner of its second cohort in February of this year.

Cohort three's challenge themes build on Hexagon's commitment to accelerate innovation and drive the global shift to a new sustainable way of operating. Sixth Sense is especially interested in welcoming diverse founders from around the world, particularly from under-represented communities – based on gender, geography, and ethnicity. The third cohort's innovation focus will be on emerging technology such as eco-design, materials and pre-process utilization, digital reality collaboration, analytics, AI, generative design, and Non-Destructive Tests (NDT)/Non-Destructive Examinations (NDE).

Josh Weiss, President, Hexagon Manufacturing Intelligence division: "The manufacturing sector accounts for one-fifth of global carbon emissions, and a product's design can determine up to 80% of its environmental impact. Therefore, as industry 4.0 is ushered in, we are searching for new innovations that can increase the insight makers have at their fingertips, increase autonomy and empower sustainable product design so that tomorrow's manufacturing leaders can lead the net-zero transition."

Milan Kocić, Head, Sixth Sense, Hexagon:  "Sixth Sense is proud to be open to innovators from around the world tackling some of the earth's biggest problems. Through our first two cohorts, we've seen how the innovation from startups can enable manufacturing leaders to meet society's future challenges and are looking forward to welcoming a new cohort with diverse backgrounds and solutions to these latest challenges in September."

The selection criteria for Sixth Sense include:

• $3 million or less in revenue
• 1-5 years in existence
• Post seed, Series A, Series A+
• Proven traction and product-market fit
• Propensity to scale

Preferred qualities:

• Validation of investment from third party
• IP & licenses

www,sixthsense.hexagon.com