HOUSTON, Feb. 25, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- HATCH, the pitch competition for revolutionary tech startups at SXSW Interactive Startup Village, announces the twelve companies it has selected as finalists. Each company will present a four minute business plan to a panel of corporate, angel, and venture investor judges in front of the SXSW audience on March 10, 2013 from 9:30 AM to 1:30 PM at the Hilton Austin Downtown in Austin, TX. The audience will also weigh in with comments and votes using mobile and web tools.

These twelve companies were chosen from around the world to participate in the competition. Each will receive one-on-one coaching from mentors to refine their presentations in preparation for the competition. Applicants were evaluated based on factors such as: How revolutionary the idea is.  The impact it will make on the world. The problem it solves and for whom. The market opportunity. The unique advantage of the startup founders and team.

Founders compete to win prizes and gain recognition to take their startup to the next stage. The judges will determine in which companies they would invest their virtual $1M. Last year's winner, Distil, announced a substantial seed investment led by HATCH judge Frankel of ff Venture Capital.

HATCH 2013 Finalists are:
Future Ad Labs  
GeriJoy Inc.  
Ginkgotree, Inc.
Lynx Laboratories
MobileX Labs
Molecule
Pervasive Group Inc.
Reactor Labs
Reality Mogul
SnapHealth
Socedo
Taskbox

HATCH is presented by the Houston Technology Center, one of Forbes' "Twelve Business Incubators Changing the World", and "Ten Technology Incubators Changing the World" and is a collaborative effort across the Houston and Austin startup communities.  More information about each company can be found on their individual profiles on the HATCH website at www.hatchpitch.com. More details on HATCH can be found at www.hatchpitch.com. Connect to the cause on twitter and facebook at @HATCHPitch.

The Houston Technology Center is a business accelerator and the largest technology business incubator in Texas, advancing the commercialization of emerging technology companies in the greater Houston area. HTC serves as the nexus of new ideas, technological innovation, and entrepreneurship. As a catalyst for change, economic growth and development, HTC's focus is to assist in the acceleration and commercialization of emerging technology companies. HTC assists Houston-based entrepreneurs within several key sectors: energy, information technology, life sciences, nanotechnology, and NASA/aerospace. More on The Houston Technology Center can be found at www.houstontech.org/

Contact: Heather Dunn
hdunn@houstontech.org
(832) 476-9235

SOURCE Houston Technology Center