The Founders Arena—an Arlington-based global WealthTech accelerator operating in collaboration with First Rate, Inc., SEI, the city of Arlington, and the Arlington Economic Development Corporation—has announced its fifth cohort of startups who are redefining the future of financial services in the age of AI.
The program, now in its third year, has a track record of identifying companies and supporting founders “that solve real problems—not just chase trends,” the accelerator said. This newest cohort features two startups from Arlington and Plano and four others from Atlanta; Denver; Toronto, Canada; and Dublin, Ireland.
“Our mission has always been to champion the founders who blend intelligence with integrity,” Founders Arena CEO Pamela Cytron said in a statement. “We’re not here to chase every shiny AI pitch. We’re here to elevate evidence-based technology that is built to withstand both market euphoria and scrutiny. And while our companies come from around the globe, this program proudly includes our very first founder from our hometown of Arlington, Texas.”
With its latest cohort, Founders Arena aims to champion “human-centric innovation” in an AI-driven era. The accelerator offers a boutique, high-touch experience built around market access, connecting founders directly with buyers, investors, and decision-makers. Each company is selected through a rigorous, evidence-based process focused on measurable impact, transparency, and real-world adoption, Founders Arena said.
Here are the six companies selected to take part in Founders Arena’s newest cohort:
AlgoPear: Arlington, Texas
Led by Founder Ronnie Green, AlgoPear is an embedded “investing + coaching + rewards” experience inside digital banking apps that turns young users into investors and qualified advice prospects through guided engagement.
Mili: Plano, Texas
Led by Founder Chirag Gandhi, Mili is an AI-powered practice-management assistant for wealth teams, automating meeting prep, CRM updates, follow-ups, and document parsing — saving advisors hours each week.
STRATxAI: Dublin, Ireland
Led by Founder Paul Clifford, STRATxAI is an AI-driven portfolio construction and optimization engine that enables advisors to build personalized, tax-aware model portfolios with hedge-fund-level analytics through scalable API and white-label integration.
Finliti: Toronto, Ontario
Led by Founder Jennifer Schell, Finliti is a behavioral finance platform that helps advisors understand client personalities, biases, and risk tendencies through a validated profiling system, strengthening engagement and retention across generations.
bQuest: Denver, Colorado
Led by Founder Lauren Clough, bQuest is a platform equipping advisors with a vetted national network of care and estate providers, plus digital and concierge support, to help clients navigate aging, end-of-life, and after-loss transitions.
TrustStamp: Atlanta, Georgia
Led by Founder Andrew Gowasack, TrustStamp is a privacy-first biometric identity solution replacing vulnerable passcodes with irreversible “IT2” tokens, securing high-risk transactions in milliseconds while reducing fraud.
“The future of finance will be built by humans who know how to apply AI with purpose,” Cytron said. “Our role is to make sure the best of those builders have the access, visibility, and relationships they need to accelerate their business mission.”
Past participants have gone on to exits, seed rounds, and big wins
According to Founders Arena, the program has seen a good deal of success to date, with past participants having four exits (Sora, CharityVest, Caribou, and upSWOT) and another, Tax Status, experiencing “exemplary growth and expansion.” Israeli-based Quinn, a financial planning platform, raised an $11 million seed round this past June. And Milan, Italy-based MDOTM—a fintech specializing in AI-driven investment solutions for financial institutions like banks, wealth managers, and asset managers—was the winner of the 2025 Morningstar FinTech Showcase.
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