Techstars Atlanta, in partnership with Cox Enterprises, announced the 10 startups that earned coveted spots in its 2019 accelerator program. As the sole sponsor for the fourth consecutive year, Cox offers up-and-coming companies vital funding and advisement from its corporate employees as an effort to expand Atlanta's economy and culture of innovation.

Techstars received hundreds of applications from around the world to participate in the Atlanta program. This year's class concentrates on startups from the U.S. South, representing founders from six Southeastern states along with Illinois and New Jersey.

David Payne, who is in his first year as managing director of Techstars Atlanta, brought a consumer slant to the 2019 class selection, such as apps to connect people to their favorite products. One app makes it easier to resell or purchase second-hand children's apparel online; another enables retailers to stock up on consumer favorites on demand.

"When it was announced that I'd be taking over the program at the beginning of this year, I knew I wanted to focus on startups from the American South because of my personal and startup experience here and the opportunity to find world-class founders in this underserved part of the country," said Payne, well known for co-founding the discount app Scoutmob.

Payne spent six months traveling the region, meeting with over 700 founders and reviewing hundreds of applications before selecting the 10 startups for 2019. The program will culminate in a Demo Day Oct. 15 at the Tabernacle in Atlanta, where participants have a chance to present their polished pitch to hundreds of investors and community supporters. Cox Enterprises will host a private test run of Demo Day, where founders can practice their pitches in front of hundreds of Cox employees and receive live feedback—a key component of their formation.

Techstars boasts a worldwide network of successful entrepreneurs and investors. Techstars Atlanta, based out of Ponce City Market in Midtown Atlanta, is a 13-week program that helps founders #domorefaster. Over 90 days of rapid acceleration, the entrepreneurs will build their business network, receive individualized support and learn the building blocks of a successful business. The program kicks off with mentor madness, where more than 1,000 hours of mentorship is provided by the region's leading subject matter experts, including Techstars staffers and Cox employees.

Over the past three years, Techstars Atlanta has helped launch 30 companies, a third of which came from Atlanta and nearly 40 percent of which have opted to relocate or open an additional office in the city. Additionally, 40 percent of the companies have female or minority founders.

"Every year, Techstars Atlanta brings great companies and creative thinkers to our community," said Alex Taylor, president and CEO, Cox Enterprises. "With this year's focus on startups from the Southeast, I'm glad we can support growth and innovation in the region that Cox calls home."

Techstars Atlanta's 2019 Class

Bundle (Santa Rosa Beach, Fla.) | A marketplace and platform for resale boutiques, consignment stores and individual sellers to connect to buyers all over the world. Bundle is the number one destination for children's and baby resale apparel and accessories.

Coworks (Raleigh, N.C.) | Software that provides operators of flexible workspace/innovation hubs what they need to better manage their members and spaces through data, automation and member engagement.

DwellSocial (Chicago, Ill.) | A platform that helps you take better care of your home by aggregating demand for all your seasonal home projects and services, sourcing professional referrals from users and group members, and then leveraging the power of your group to negotiate competitive bids with group discounts for everyone.

Eletype (Atlanta, Ga.) | A marketing operations platform enabling marketing teams to quickly respond to issues and opportunities in their campaigns and across their MarTech stack.

MaxRewards (Atlanta, Ga.) | An app that helps consumers manage their credit cards and maximize their rewards.

Meeter (Tysons Corner, Va.) | A community events platform that bridges event engagement into giving success.

RentCheck (New Orleans, La.) | A mobile app that standardizes move-in and move-out inspections between renters and landlords by providing a guided walk-through, bringing transparency and accountability to the security deposit deduction process.

StreetMetrics (Birmingham, Ala.) | StreetMetrics uses location data to help brands tell better stories both online and in the real world by providing third-party media measurement and insights for vehicle advertising.

Talented (Durham, N.C.) | A mobile-first web platform and creative studio that converts creator's professional development content into gamified micro-courses that drive real world action, growth and impact.

WeStock (Fort Lee, N.J.) | A crowdstocking platform that lets shoppers request products at their local retailer. WeStock turns those requests into actionable data sets for brands and retailers to expedite product placement. WeStock then notifies and rewards the customer when the product hits the shelf.