The new incubator and cooperative, Hacker Lab, is creating quite a commotion in our great golden state’s capital. Boasting a cast of iconoclasts, the space is a successful nest for several up-and-coming Sacramento startups.

One of the startups is Minnick, a sophisticated yet simple full-service mobile, web and video development and production firm. Founded in 1997 by CEO and all-around Renaissance man Chris Minnick, the company has continued to expand, iterate, and launch new products and services. In the last 12 months, Minnick has launched a turnkey business video service, a monthly online class, several mobile startups, and a book for a major publisher.

Based in Sacramento, Minnick has a core team of project managers, philosophers, and designers in California, and a worldwide network of programmers and video producers who can complete any size of project.

An author, educator and vintner, Chris Minnick had this to say about his company, “I started Minnick with the goal of creating the perfect work environment for myself and my staff. Part of this includes creating a relaxed, fun, and creative atmosphere. It also means constantly striving to do better work for our clients. My goal is to continue to do interesting and new things and to get paid to do them.”

In this same vein is the timely startup Chrometa. Launched in 2008 and currently about to release its fantastic fourth edition, Chrometa is a time-tracking startup that aids in your ability to tailor time for billing or project tracking purposes.

Instead of manually managing your minutes, the business provides a 21st Century update to this tradition by capturing and making sense of your PC, Mac, and Smartphone time. In this way, Chrometa serves as your own personal timekeeper.

Growing rapidly, Chrometa’s user base consists of solo and small firm attorneys, graphic designers, freelancers, accountants, and others who need to accurately account for their time throughout the day. Says Brett Owens, CEO and Co-Founder of Chrometa, “Our world domination strategy is now extending to mobile devices, where we are figuring out ways to capture time spent on the go.”

Simultaneously hatching at Hacker Lab are the subsidiaries of the established investment group Aulon Trading Company. Owned, along with a few partners, by entrepreneur David Long, the company includes small research and development subsidiaries. The most active of these is Bicycle Planes R&D, whose primary focus is on the development of UAVs (Unmanned Aerial Vehicles), and aerial photography. Says David Long, “Our emphasis is on research. Our main goal is to stay informed of trends through hands-on testing”.

This commitment to community education and collaborating with talent is what inevitably brought Bicycle Planes to Hacker Lab’s shared shores. Amply making use of their new stomping grounds, Bicycle Planes will be sponsoring a quad-copter race team based at Hacker Lab.

iSuggest is a startup that empowers local businesses to receive instant feedback from their customers, while similarly protecting their online reputations. Mike Machado, Technical Co-Founder of the suggestively titled startup, says “By being located at the Hacker Lab, iSuggest has access to technical and entrepreneurial talent and advisors that would otherwise be out of reach for a small startup”. Requiring a mere monthly or annual fee for use of their unique platform, iSuggest’s content is entirely hosted in the cloud.

For individuals intrigued by Hacker Lab’s habitat, one designer offered her perspective, “As a freelancer—the connections you make are your livelihood and knowing how to do the "design hustle" makes all the difference from client to client. Being a part of Hacker Lab has helped me gain a whole new perspective on the web design industry. I expect many great design opportunities to come out of the space, to launch my career and help fuel Sacramento's tech scene”. Nichole Payne, who occupies the office “Payne and Stone” with local graphic designer Melody Stone, is involved with multiple emerging projects.

The Hacker Lab Grand Opening Gala will be held at Hacker Lab Headquarters on October 16th, from 6-9pm.

Hacker Lab is a Non Profit and community-funded space.

Event Details:
Location: 1715 I St Sacramento, Ca 95814
Hours: Mon-Fri 9am to 6pm
Phone: 916.514.7044
Email: info@hackerlab.org
http://www.hackerlab.org

Upcoming Minnick events include a live introductory class on Mobile Web Apps: http://www.skillshare.com/Introduction-to-Mobile-Web-Apps/1036318311

Nichole Payne may be reached at: www.nicholepayne.com