VrTech Startup Competition 2019: Time to Vote for Your Favourite Startup

We’re pleased to announce the 20 startups shortlisted for the 2019 VrTech Startup Competition! Three of these innovative vacation rental technology companies will have the opportunity to prove themselves on stage at the VrTech Finals at the Vacation Rental World Summit on October 5-6 in Lake Como, Italy. The winners will be selected by three different groups of voters – a jury of property managers, a jury of experts and investors, and the public. We reveal here the 20 contenders (in no particular order) and the projects they’re building to revolutionise the short-term rental industry!

1. Autohost.ai

Founded date: 09/09/2017
Registered location: Canada
Category of services: guest screening

Autohost is an intelligent guest-screening assistant for vacation and short-term rental operators. They scan all reservations to identify flags, determine risk levels, and provide you with a list of action items to handle potential issues proactively, working with all major OTAs.

2. Have You Got

Founded date: 10/01/2017
Registered location: Australia
Category of services: guest referral system

Have You Got is a global network of independent short-term accommodation providers, offering monetised referrals and a no-search accommodation service that connects guests to book direct.

3. My-Cierge Inc

Founded date: 09/01/2017
Registered location: USA
Category of services: welcome app, guest communication

My-Cierge provides the technology to vacation rental managers, empowering them to digitise all things related to their guests’ experiences.

4. Operto

Founded date: 10/01/2016
Registered location: Canada
Category of services: home automation, smart locks & keyless entry, noise control

Operto provides a range of tech solutions – from keyless entry to temperature control, noise monitoring and more – that help property managers achieve operational efficiency and a highly personalised guest experience, all managed from a single dashboard. 

5. Key Data Dashboard

Founded date: 11/07/2017
Registered location: United States
Category of services: data solutions

Key Data is the leading provider of real-time data for the alternative accommodations sector. Through direct integrations with the reservation systems for vacation rental professionals and resorts around the world, Key Data aggregates historical and forward-looking data in real-time to create the industry’s leading analytics dashboards for vacation rental managers, DMOs, and real estate professionals.

6. StayFi 

Founded date: 05/18/2018
Registered location: United States
Category of services: data solutions, marketing automation

StayFi‘s mission is to empower vacation rental managers with guest data to grow their brands and deliver a better rental experience. We enable rental managers to collect and monetize guest data through branded captive WiFi splash pages.

7. CheKin

Founded date: 05/20/2017
Registered location: Spain
Category of services: check-in automation

CheKin is a digital guest reception provider for touristic accommodations. It’s the number one mobile app solution for easy and safe digital check-ins that are in compliance with the law. 

8. Modosmart

Founded date: 01/01/2017
Registered location: Spain
Category of services: home automation, IoT solutions

Modosmart is a plug-and-play solution for intelligent control of air conditioning in vacation rental properties. It saves money, time and problems for property managers and owners, and it helps the environment.

9. Keesy

Founded date: 12/06/2016
Registered location: Italy
Category of services: check-in automation, payment solutions, smart locks & keyless entry, key safes & drop boxes

Keesy is the first self-check-in and check-out service for vacation rental properties, available 24 hours, 365 days a year. It’s a time-saving solution that provides a worry-free hospitality experience with the help of tools like Keesy box (for picking up and depositing keys) and Keesy Smart (a smart system designed to manage secure and affordable property access).

10. Check-In Scan 

Founded: 2017
Registered location: Spain
Category of services: check-in automation

Check-In Scan is an app that lets property managers quickly scan in their guests’ photo IDs and send them to the police for security checks. It’s a fast and easy way to automate your check-in process and meet all legal requirements. 

11. Bookipro

Founded date: 10/05/2019
Registered location: Spain
Category of services: property management system

Bookipro gives professional vacation rental property managers the steering wheel they need to run their business. Their open plug&play PMS lets them take control and raise their productivity.

12. Rabbu

Founded date: 01/01/2017
Registered location: United States
Category of services: home automation

Rabbu‘s smart home automation software combines features like automated guest entry, energy savings, and Wi-Fi management to help owners and property managers make guest stays better, internal operations more efficient, and property offerings unique. The hands-off solution is tied into popular booking channels and property management systems, meaning users can count on comprehensive, event-triggered smart device automation that responds to live guest interactions.

13. Padlifter

Founded date: 05/01/2017
Registered location: Australia
Category of services: software comparison, marketplace 

Padlifter is the world’s largest marketplace of short-term and vacation rental service providers. Find products and services, both locally and globally, that simplify your life, enhance your guests’ experience and make you more money.

14. Vrolio 

Founded date: 01/01/2018
Registered location: United States
Category of services: investment technology, data solutions

Vrolio is aiming to offer short-term rental investors a single place to buy and sell investment properties by providing an all-in-one platform with investment information and data analytics. Their sophisticated search function helps investors eliminate the guesswork involved in looking for properties for sale by owner and broker.

15. Mi Casa Es Tu Casa

Founded date: 09/13/2017
Registered location: UK & France
Category of services: referral network

Mi Casa Es Tu Casa is a trust-based network to rent out homes for long or short-term via a freemium offer of ads posting.  They provide a way to rent an apartment or house to friends and acquaintances with complete confidence, without difficulty and without any agency. 

16. TripsCommunity

Founded date: 02/09/2019
Registered location: Estonia
Category of services: peer-to-peer booking platform

TripsCommunity is a peer-to-peer booking platform for vacation rentals built on the Ethereum blockchain with 100% open-source software. They are creating an open and neutral protocol on which every participant can build a business, free from the constraints and costs associated to the centralised OTAs. The project is tokenised: all participants in the community will be rewarded in Trips Tokens when value is created.

17. Cohosting

Founded date: 01/07/2017
Registered location: Spain
Category of services: guest services, upselling

Cohosting gives vacation rental property managers access to a wide range of commercial agreements with local suppliers, so they can offer complementary services and earn a commission for each service booked. It also allows you to create customised guestbooks, present information about your property and provide guests with a things-to-do guide. 

18. EDGAR Smart Concierge

Founded date: 12/03/2017
Registered location: Italy
Category of services: check-in automation, welcome app

EDGAR is a Guest Management Service that enables Hosts to customise their own App Concierge to assist Guests before, during and after their stay and to increase revenues by up-selling both internal and external services. 

19. B2BOOK

Founded date: 04/17/2017
Registered location: Italy
Category of services: distribution

B2BOOK helps all travel operators (travel agents, TO, B2B wholesalers) get global vacation rental offers at the best commission fees in the market, using a B2B-only vacation rental platform. It’s the only pure B2B platform able to enlarge the global vacation rental distribution through API integrations with all travel online operators like airlines, OTAs, and B2B wholesalers.

20. iGMS (formerly AirGMS)

Founded date: 08/16/2016
Registered location: Canada
Category of services: property management system

iGMS is a professional all-in-one vacation rental software with native integration to major platforms such as Airbnb, HomeAway, and VRBO. iGMS offers automated guest communication, reviews, team management, channel management, financial reporting and lots more to set your vacation rental business on autopilot.

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