St. Louis Inno has revealed its “Startups to Watch” for 2025, and we are excited to share that five out of the eight highlighted companies were founded by WashU alumni entrepreneurs. This annual list spotlights promising new startups in St. Louis that show great potential for growth and exemplify the city’s innovative spirit. The significant presence of WashU-founded companies underscores the university’s dedication to nurturing innovation and retaining talent within the local entrepreneurial ecosystem. Continue reading below to learn more about the WashU-associated “Startups to Watch.”
Allumin8
Alyssa Huffman (EMBA ‘21) – Founder & CEO

Allumin8 is pioneering a new era of surgical implants with trademarked Therapeutic Hardware, a first-of-its-kind technology designed to reduce global reoperation rates and improve patient outcomes in orthopedic, spine, dental and veterinary surgery. Unlike traditional implants that only provide mechanical fixation, Allumin8’s proprietary porous design integrates therapeutic functionality, allowing surgeons to diagnose, treat and accelerate healing directly through the device itself. Allumin8 is a finalist in the 2025 Global Impact Award and a past participant in the Skandalaris Venture Competition. Read more about why you should watch Allumin8 here.
Metablify
Louis Connelly (LA ‘20) – Co-founder & Lead Programmer, Allen Hubbard – Co-founder & CTO, Ivan Baxter – Co-founder & CSO

Metablify is a startup that has developed a breakthrough technology platform that enables the detection and quantification of previously undetectable metabolites and chemicals in large numbers of biological samples processed using LC/MS data processing algorithms. Metablify’s platform has a wide variety of potential uses, it could lead to the discovery of new biomarkers for personalized medicine and new plant-based compounds for human nutrition, medicine and other uses. They are the latest company to be launched by the Danforth Plant Science Center. Learn more about Metablify here.
Pairidex
Andrew Young (LA ‘07, PhD ‘18, MD ‘18) – Founder & CEO

Pairidex is developing a novel droplet digital PCR platform for more accurate, personalized monitoring of blood cancer. The firm’s mission is to reduce uncertainty in the treatment of blood cancer. The ability to closely monitor a cancer patient’s response to treatment is crucial for decision-making — ensuring that a treatment is working, quickly identifying a potential relapse, and stopping maintenance therapy if the disease has been eradicated. In addition to his work with Pairidex, founder Andrew Young in an Instructor of Medicine in the Division of Hematology at WashU. Read more about why Pairidex is a startup to watch here.
Vedapointe

Glen Schuster (EMBA ‘12) – CEO & Partner
VedaPointe has created a software-as-a-service solution that helps healthcare providers succeed in the complex world of value-based care (VBC) and value-based reimbursements. Focusing on primary care, its CORE platform supports providers’ administrative interactions with health insurance companies by providing insights into what patients the providers are responsible for, the contractual rules that apply to each patient, and accruals for VBC reimbursements. Read more about VedaPointe here.
Zaiko
Franklin Taylor (MBA ‘24) – Founder & CEO

Zaiko, formerly Sustain-a-Plate, helps local independent grocery, convenience, and beverage stores save time by eliminating the need to manually manage accounts payable and inventory tracking. Its AI scans supplier invoices and transfers the data to their existing systems, reducing hours of work to just minutes. While at WashU, the startup won the Olin Cup and Disruptor Funding during the Spring 2024 cycle of the Skandalaris Venture Competition. Learn more about Zaiko and why they’re one to watch here.