2025 Best Tech Startups in North Carolina

February 13, 2025 thetechtribune

The Tech Tribune staff has compiled the very best tech startups in North Carolina. In doing our research, we considered several factors including but not limited to:

Revenue potential
Leadership team
Brand/product traction
Competitive landscape

Additionally, all companies must be independent (unacquired), privately owned, at most 10 years old, and have received at least one round of funding in order to qualify.

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10. Well

Founded: 2019

Also honored in:

“Well is a health technology company with the human touch and advanced suggestions you expect from a trusted health partner.

Discover the first consumer health platform to proactively deliver personalized health advancement at scale. Reimagine how employers realize cost savings through improved employee health and engagement. Redefine the way humans navigate their health and benefits. Powered by a proprietary, AI-driven “health engine,” our mission is to be the world’s most effective partner in the advancement of individualized health.

Well combines personalized health suggestions with an on-demand health concierge- right at your fingertips. We empower our members to reach their health goals with small steps and daily rewards. Everyone deserves their own personalized road to better health. Well is the most human app in health.”

9. Restor3d

Founded: 2017

Also honored in:

“restor3d enables surgeons to improve the reconstruction and repair of the human body through 3D printed implants with enhanced anatomical fit and superior integrative properties. Leveraging expertise and experience in 3D printing of key biomedical materials spanning a wide range of properties, restor3d seeks to improve medical device solutions.”

8. Pairwise Plants

Founded: 2017

Also honored in:

“Pairwise is a start-up food company that uses technology to break down the barriers that keep us from eating produce. At Pairwise, we are passionate about building a healthier world through better fruits and vegetables.

Headquartered in Durham, NC, our team is made up of leaders in R&D, agriculture, and consumer products. Founded in 2017 and opened in 2018, Pairwise is working to deliver breakthrough innovation in agricultural sciences and in healthy consumer foods.

Our team of proven leaders features Dr. Tom Adams, Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Dr. Haven Baker, Chief Business Officer (CBO), and eminent scientists Drs. Feng Zhang, David Liu and J. Keith Joung serve as advisors.”

7. Pryon

Founded: 2017

Also honored in:

“Pryon provides a trusted, safe, and proven path to implementing generative AI in enterprises.

Pryon’s best-in-class ingestion and retrieval engines can be paired with generative LLMs to implement retrieval-augmented generation and securely provide accurate, instant, and verifiable answers at enterprise scale.

Using industry-leading retrieval technology, Pryon RAG Suite securely extracts answers from all forms of content, including audio, images, text, and video, stored in a myriad of sources. Pryon’s products are intuitive to use, accessible via API from any system, and can be deployed in a matter of weeks in the cloud or on-premises.

Created by the AI pioneers instrumental in developing Alexa, Siri, and Watson, Pryon is trusted by leading enterprises and government agencies. By reducing the distance between people and answers, Pryon builds high-performing, resilient, and responsive organizations.”

6. MedShift

Founded: 2015

Also honored in: 2024 Best Tech Startups in North Carolina

“Founded in 2015 and headquartered in Charlotte, NC, MedShift is a leading healthcare technology company dedicated to transforming medical manufacturing through innovative software solutions. Our comprehensive suite of services includes Velocity Enterprise, a unified commerce platform delivering omnichannel ordering, virtual payments, automated commissions, shipping, and inventory management; Velocity Lending, providing end-to-end device financing solutions; Velocity Marketplaces, a one-stop shop offering high-quality products and exclusive benefits for aesthetic practices; and Pulse IoT, a connected device ecosystem that enables remote upgrades and leverages real-time data to optimize medical device performance. Serving over 5,300 customers across North America, MedShift is committed to reducing industry costs and enhancing operational efficiency through cutting-edge technology.”

5. Caidya

Founded: 2021

“Caidya is a multi-therapeutic clinical research organization (CRO) serving innovators worldwide. Focused on delivery excellence and an elevated customer experience, Caidya offers a wide range of clinical services and vast therapeutic expertise, supporting its partners from pre-IND strategy, through clinical development to submission and post-marketing surveillance.

Caidya leverages industry-leading and proprietary clinical technology to ensure trial transparency and data-driven decision-making. Formed in 2021 following the combination of leading CROs, dMed and Clinipace, Caidya has nearly 1,800 employees in more than 30 countries throughout the world.”

4. Element451

Founded: 2017

“Element451 is the leading AI-first CRM and student engagement platform, designed to help higher education institutions attract, engage, and support students at every stage of their educational journey. From admissions and marketing to student success, Element451 provides a comprehensive suite of tools that help schools thrive in the digital age, using AI to personalize and streamline student engagement across the entire student journey.”

3. Ubiquity

Founded: 2019

“Ubiquity seeks to invest, develop and manage critical communications infrastructure necessary to facilitate truly Smart Cities where resource efficiency, climate resilience and greater digital equity is made possible.”

2. CData Software

Founded: 2016

Also honored in:

“CData is the real-time data connectivity company, simplifying access to any data, anywhere.”

1. BrightSpeed

Founded: 2021

Also honored in: 2024 Best Tech Startups in North Carolina

“We’re Brightspeed, a brand-new internet provider on a mission to bring more connectivity to America. We believe where you choose to call home shouldn’t limit your options—and we’re building the infrastructure to provide millions of homes with fast, reliable internet. So, wherever you’re streaming, gaming or working, you’ll enjoy an uninterrupted experience.”