We’re honored to share that VERN AI has been named the #2 seed in the MBC Region for Startup Mania in Austin on March 11th.
Startup Mania is structured like March Madness — startups go head-to-head in a bracket-style competition until one makes it to the finals. It’s competitive, fast-paced, and designed to surface companies with both traction and conviction.
We’re grateful for the recognition.
But this isn’t just about a seed.
It’s about what that seed represents.
Why This Moment Matters
AI is moving from novelty to infrastructure.
Healthcare systems are deploying it.
Customer service organizations are relying on it.
Education platforms are scaling with it.
But most AI systems are emotionally blind.
They can answer questions — but they can’t detect frustration.
They can generate responses — but they can’t interpret fear.
They can simulate empathy — but they can’t measure it.
That gap is expensive. And as AI adoption accelerates, that gap becomes dangerous.
VERN AI exists to close it.
The Emotional Infrastructure Layer
We built VERN AI to be the real-time emotion recognition layer for conversational systems.
Not sentiment analysis after the fact.
Not dashboard reporting.
Real-time detection of emotional signals — anger, sadness, fear, love/joy — as interactions happen.
That signal becomes behavioral control.
- Tone adjusts.
- De-Escalations prevent problems.
- Trust compounds.
When AI understands emotion, outcomes improve.
And in trillion-dollar industries built on interaction, outcomes matter.
The Bigger Vision
Startup Mania is about competition.
But this moment is about direction.
The next user interface isn’t just text on a screen.
It’s a face.
AI Humans powered by VERN are already demonstrating what happens when emotional intelligence meets real-time interaction. And as AI becomes the front door to digital services, emotional awareness won’t be optional.
It will be infrastructure.
See You in Austin
We’re grateful to be recognized as the #2 seed in the MBC region.
Now it’s time to compete.
Austin, we’re coming.
#StartupMania #SXSW #VERNAI #AIHumans #EmotionAI #AIBeCrazy
