2025 Best Tech Startups in Washington D.C.

June 25, 2025 thetechtribune

The Tech Tribune staff has compiled the very best tech startups in Washington, D.C. 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. Prefect

Founded: 2018

Also honored in: 2022 Best Tech Startups in D.C.

“Modern workflow orchestration for data and ML engineers.”

9. Global Fishing Watch

Founded: 2017

Also honored in: 2024 Best Tech Startups in D.C.

“Global Fishing Watch (GFW) is an international non-profit organisation committed to advancing the sustainability of our oceans through increased transparency. By harnessing cutting-edge technology, our mapping platform provides a powerful tool for ocean governance, empowering anyone to view or download data and investigate global fishing activity in near real-time, for free.

GFW was founded in 2015 through a collaboration between Oceana, SkyTruth and Google. Our work is made possible thanks to the generous support of our funding partners.

Our research, data and technology partners are central to achieving our mission to accelerate innovation and deliver actionable insights to increase transparency in commercial fishing and the sustainable management of our oceans.”

8. DNSFilter

Founded: 2015

Also honored in: 2024 Best Tech Startups in D.C.

“DNSFilter offers threat protection & content filtering for MSP partners, and mid-sized and enterprise companies. Our software blocks malicious site content in real-time and provides important visibility for IT teams.”

7. Sublime Security

Founded: 2019

“Sublime is the new standard for email security. Not just another black box, our AI-powered detection engine detects and prevents email attacks, so security teams can spend less time on email-originated incidents.”

6. Zeno Power

Founded: 2018

“Harnessing radioisotope decay to generate years of reliable energy for frontiers from deep sea to deep space.”

5. Cavnue

Founded: 2021

Also honored in:

“We deliver digital and physical road infrastructure to enable the safe, efficient, and automated transportation of goods and people.

We are on a mission to give roads a major upgrade. Leveraging AI-driven insights, Cavnue’s roads enhance awareness, deliver proactive guidance, and optimize road capacity and operations. With intelligent infrastructure, we are redefining the future of road performance.”

4. Blue Whale Materials

Founded: 2018

Also honored in: 2024 Best Tech Startups in D.C.

“Blue Whale Materials provides li-ion recycling solutions to safely reclaim and responsibly supply valuable critical materials like cobalt, nickel, and lithium for the growing electrified economy.”

3. Noda

Founded: 2018

“Noda is a data and analytics company for the commercial built environment. We reimagine how modern buildings operate — because a better world needs better buildings. Better buildings are more efficient, more sustainable, and more resilient. They are intelligent, autonomous ecosystems that anticipate and adapt, seamlessly.

Powered by deep expertise and cutting edge technology, we deliver transformative solutions that target commercial real estate’s most significant operating costs. From sustainability goals to efficiency optimization, we are the essential toolkit for the future of commercial building operations.

In a landscape filled with siloed offerings and incremental fixes, we are the new industry standard.”

2. Upside

Founded: 2015

Also honored in:

“Upside is a technology company that increases the financial power of people and businesses in the real world. Since 2016, we’ve helped millions of people get more purchasing power on the things they need, and tens of thousands of brick and mortar businesses earn measurable profit – all while contributing to important sustainability initiatives.”

1. Placemakr

Founded: 2017

Also honored in:

“Whether you’re with us for a day or a year, staying in a pop-up hotel or an apartment, Placemakr is blurring the lines between hospitality and home. With convenient tech, hotel amenities, and plenty more, it’s a whole new way to stay.

We partner with developers, property operators, and investors to curate a collection of apartment-like spaces in hand-picked neighborhoods. These buildings range from brand-new apartments as they’re leasing up to established apartments looking to maximize their value.”