Syracuse's SparkCharge Wins $1M at 43North Business Competition

Joshua Aviv, founder of SparkCharge, receives congratulations from Lieutenant Governor Kathy Hochul after winning the 43North business competition. CREDIT MIKE DESMOND/WBFO

​SparkCharge, a Syracuse University and Tech Garden startup company, recently won the $1 million grand prize in the fifth annual 43North competition in Buffalo. It was one of eight finalists of the $5 million startup contest that were announced at the awards ceremony.

SparkCharge offers a portable electric-vehicle (EV) charging unit. The company developed the “portable, ultrafast charging unit for electric vehicles that fits in the trunk of a car and charges at level 3 speed, giving users one mile every 60 seconds,” according to Syracuse University.

Founder and CEO Josh Aviv developed and launched the company as a student at Syracuse. The firm’s research and development operations are based at the Syracuse Center of Excellence in Environmental and Energy Systems (SyracuseCoE), led by CTO Christopher Ellis and lead systems engineer Richard Whitney.

Besides its win in the 43North competition, SparkCharge also captured the grand prize in the 2017 New York State Business Plan Competition.

SparkCharge is currently in the Clean Tech Center program at The Tech Garden and has received Grants for Growth funding.

The company hopes to begin manufacturing later this year meaning more jobs will be likely in the future!

​Congratulations SparkCharge!