The Techies — Colorado Companies to Watch 2023

This year’s 50 Colorado Companies to Watch winners represent most of the state, with headquarters in at least 20 Colorado cities and operations in 77 locations in the state. They come from seemingly every industry imaginable: aerospace, architecture, engineering, construction, health and wellness, food and beverage, outdoor gear, to name just a few. 

The Companies to Watch program was created by the Edward Lowe Foundation to recognize and celebrate the achievements of second-stage companies that might otherwise go unnoticed or underappreciated on a statewide level. This year’s winners were judged the best out of more than 1,150 nominations, so it’s a select group indeed. Read on to learn more about them. 

Read on to learn more about our favorite Techies.

10x People 

Littleton 

10x People builds software for more than 50 clients in the telecommunications industry. The company’s products allow for number porting, acquisition, inventory and intelligence and are designed to keep pace with the changes in the way telephone numbers are used as they have evolved into unique identifiers. 

The company has created products to provide recurring revenue to cover its costs without taking on outside consulting work. The company projects it will reach $12 million in recurring revenue at 75% profitability in 2024. “We will continue to invest in bringing innovative SaaS (software as a service) solutions to the market and adding new local employees as needed,” CEO Lisa Marie Maxson said. 

10x People is committed to listening to the needs of its customers and prospects; remaining agile in product development and implementation; automating and streamlining business practices; and investing in the development of new products and services in its target market. 

“We continue to innovate to help our customers fight fraud in the marketplace,” Maxson said.  

Common Knowledge Technology

Englewood 

Common Knowledge Technology ensures business owners have the most reliable and professional information technology (IT) service possible.  

The company has invested in automation, so it has more time to spend developing relationships with clients. Accounts are managed by technical employees who are responsible for getting clients what they need and keeping them running.  

The company, which specializes in small- and medium-sized businesses, offers managed IT services, cloud computing and virtualization. Common Knowledge does not require long-term contracts and provides answers to clients’ questions in easy-to-understand terms so it becomes “common knowledge.” 

With ransomware, attacks and data theft on the rise, cybersecurity should be a priority for organizations, and Common Knowledge has the expertise and strategies to provide the best cybersecurity protection possible while keeping a business’ budget in mind. 

“Cybersecurity and compliance are driving many new requirements,” Common Knowledge President Peter Horewitch said. “COVID has taken nearly all customers hybrid to some degree. Many IT firms have been rolled up in big M&A plays. IT talent is hard to find. Artificial Intelligence is bringing new risks and opportunities.” 

The company has increased its net profit percentage of sales over the last 10 years by more than 600%. 

“I believe we have reached a maturity to the point we are beginning to scale,” Horewitch said. 

DevReady

Englewood 

DevReady is a global community of software developers working through an on-demand engagement model and forging partnerships for long-term technology growth.  

Software developers and end clients increasingly prefer to hire a remote, contract team rather than hire full-time, in-office employees to handle their needs.  

“As that demand continues to increase, we continue to match up the best developers in our community to companies needing support,” DevReady Vice President of Marketing Bob Clary said. “We’ve been hyper-focused on growing our community of elite tech talent throughout the world.” 

Traditional staffing solutions haven’t worked for many companies — nearly half of traditional placements fall short of expectations, and projects are not completed on time or within budget.  

But DevReady’s developer engagement model helps the community thrive and keeps DevReady’s developers ready and able to take on client projects as they come up. The flexible model allows for three- to five-day project placement times and gives clients perfectly matched developers to start working on their project needs almost immediately. 

FusionAuth

Denver

FusionAuth is an authentication and authorization platform built for developers by developers. For technical leaders creating products for external users, FusionAuth tames the risk and complexity that comes with typical identity systems and scales to millions of users across thousands of applications.  

The company’s self-hosted or cloud options, extensive documentation and no-hassle process helps developers meet authentication feature and compliance requirements so they can focus on building their applications.  

The company has had more than 10 million downloads from developers on six continents. “Our strengths are our incredible product, the strong community engaging with our software, our tremendous support team and our commitment to continuous improvement, FusionAuth Marketing Manager Blair Ewalt said. “Our capacity for growth is only limited by our revenue and profit growth, which has continually been trending upwards since the advent of FusionAuth.” 

Innate.ly

Colorado Springs

When Innate.ly CEO Tyson Hartshorn founded Innate.ly, he had a mission to intelligently leverage technology to preserve horse culture and elevate the equine sport.  

Innate.ly provides high-end enterprise registry and performance-tracking applications that streamline, innovate and revolutionize the horse show and racing industries. Innate.ly tracks everything that makes a horse valuable, connecting breeding records to performance data. This preserves the integrity of the sport and allows associations to refocus resources on efforts that add value and enhance their members’ experience.  

With 214% growth from 2021 to 2022, Innate.ly’s platform will continue to grow as the software as a service (SaaS) tech startup sets out to capture its share of the $650 million global market.  

The equine industry is poised for global consolidation, but current operational and technological practices make it impossible, Hartshorn said.  

“We are paving the way for something similar to what the American Kennel Club has done in the canine industry,” Hartshorn said. “This would unite the current $650 million industry and create new possibilities for a younger generation to get involved.” 

Founded in 2014, Innate.ly has been funded primarily by Colorado-based angel investors and was selected to participate in the Exponential Impact Accelerator program, which it completed in 2021. 

True Anomaly 

Englewood 

Someone has to keep space safe. Amid geopolitical conflicts, climate events and natural disasters, space systems are more critical than ever for ensuring economic prosperity and global security. However, today’s systems are outdated and highly vulnerable to both physical and cyber threats. True Anomaly is protecting the freedoms and interests of the U.S. and its allies by developing full-stack, mission-driven technologies. The firm has seamless satellite, navigation and data capture technologies to provide national security capabilities to meet a rapidly evolving space environment.  

The leadership team has more than three decades of experience in the U.S. Air Force, U.S. Space Command, and large government contractors. They have expertise in high-performing software, design, engineering, AI capabilities and mission strategies.  

Founded in 2022, the fast growing space company delivers a fully integrated technology platform that combines training and simulation tools, advanced spacecraft manufacturing infrastructure and autonomy systems. True Anomaly’s clients include the Department of Defense, as well as the commercial space market. In its first year, True Anomaly – the phrase is a celestial mechanics term – designed its first spacecraft, the Jackal Autonomous Orbital Vehicle, opened a 35,000 square foot factory, and hired 57 employees.