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Four startups won $100,000 each Monday night in the second InvestMaryland Challenge, a state-run competition to help promising new firms and encourage out-of-state companies to establish a Maryland presence.
The state Department of Business and Economic Development said 260 businesses entered the InvestMaryland contest, 29 of them from out of state.
The general business category, open to companies anywhere in the U.S. if they open a location in Maryland, was won by New York-based Healthify. The firm, a Johns Hopkins University startup, helps health plans address patient social needs that affect well-being — access to food, housing and the like.
Bethesda-based Brain Sentry won the life sciences category. The company's helmet-mounted sensor — an impact detector — blinks red when the athlete wearing it should be evaluated for concussion.
Gaithersburg-based ClickMedix won the IT category for its mobile-health platform aimed at helping doctors and hospitals reach more patients in areas of the world where medical care is hard to get.
Frederick-based Luminal won the new cybersecurity category. The company, which moved from West Virginia this year, focuses on cloud-computing security.
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