Intero Biosystems, a startup based in Denver, emerged as the winner of the TechCrunch Startup Battlefield 2026 competition. Founded by Charlie Childs and Madeline Eiken, the company originated from the University of Michigan. It focuses on developing 1mm human intestinal organoids, which are lab-grown tissues designed to simulate the human gut.
The startup offers a product called GastroScreen, which is marketed to pharmaceutical, biotech, food, and chemical companies. This technology allows these organizations to study the effects of drugs and various compounds on the human body before proceeding to human trials.
The competition featured five finalists, including Apate, Flox Intelligence, Industrial Next, and Satlyt. Apate, an Australian startup founded by Dali Kaafar, was also highlighted for its use of AI agents that interact with scammers to gather intelligence and analytics for its clients.
The Startup Battlefield program has a history of hosting notable companies such as Trello, Discord, Cloudflare, and Mint. Since its inception, more than 1,700 alumni have participated in the initiative, collectively securing over $30 billion in funding and achieving more than 200 successful exits.
