APEX Pro, a motorsports tech startup in Birmingham, has been granted a patent for its performance coaching applications, which gather, filter, compute and display to a driver while on a racetrack.
APEX Pro, based out of the DEFT Venture Studio in Birmingham and founded in 2015, was co-founded by Austin Gurley, who saw a need to simplify and improve the way data is displayed and communicated to a driver. He partnered with Andrew Rains, who works as a professional driver coach and who used his Pirelli World Challenge racing effort as a test bed for the APEX Pro product. With validation from drivers and professional coaches, APEX entered the market in 2017.
“Having this patent granted is a huge step for our team,” said Rains, co-founder of APEX Pro. “Our team had a vision for the real-time display and executed that vision. This patent speaks to Dr. Austin Gurley’s foresight and innovative mind.”
In addition to the patent announcement, the company also has secured an out-of-state angel investor and successful tech entrepreneur to raise its seed round of funding. The investment will enable the company to continue gaining market share and developing new technology products.
APEX Pro participated in the Alabama Launchpad competition in 2018, where it won the seed-stage prize of $100,000, as well as the People’s Choice Award.
“Since our Launchpad success, we have made new hires and developed recurring revenue streams,” Rains said. “The success of our first product was significantly bolstered by Launchpad, and we are super excited to further prove what Alabama-based startups can do by using this investment to take our business to the next level.”
The Alabama Launchpad competition is a program of the Economic Development Partnership of Alabama, a private, nonprofit organization that supports business recruitment and expansion efforts in Alabama, as well as promoting innovative and emerging startup companies.
