A company that developed a computer software platform to help health care providers arrange rides for patients to medical appointments emerged as the top winner in an awards ceremony Tuesday for Richmond-area startups.
Roundtrip was named the Founder of the Year in the annual rvAwesome Founders Awards. The event at the Bon Secours Washington Redskins Training Center kicked off the second annual UpRiver summit.
The rvAwesome Founders awards recognize ventures with the potential to have a significant impact on the Richmond region’s economy. Nominations were submitted for 67 startup businesses and entrepreneurs in the area. A panel of five judges selected the winners in five categories and one overall winner.
Roundtrip was founded in 2016 with a mission to solve the problem of people missing medical appointments due to a lack of transportation. The company, which has offices in Richmond and Philadelphia, partners with health care providers in 27 states to book rides for patients
The company also is partnering with transit providers such as the GRTC Transit System to help arrange transportation for people with disabilities to daily activities.
“I think every single person who works at Roundtrip is genuinely excited and proud of the impact we can make in people’s lives every day,” said Ankit Mathur, co-founder and chief technology officer of Roundtrip.
Raina Thomas, co-founder at Richmond-based startup Skraach and board member of The Venture Forum who led the panel of judges, said the judges chose winners that have had the most impact on the Richmond economy.
Roundtrip “is a business that is not only needed here and has done well in Richmond, but you know it is going to grow because it impacts a lot of lives,” Thomas said.