Eight startups presented Thursday at Halifax innovation hub Volta’s annual Democamp event, showcasing their technology to an audience of investors and ecosystem members.

Held at Volta’s new offices overlooking Argyle Street, one of the event’s core conceits was that entrepreneurs could not make their presentations with the aid of a slide deck. The aim of Democamp is that presenters focus on explaining a company’s technology, rather than its finances or business development strategies.

This year, Fredericton-based financial intelligence startup Profitual also sponsored the event.

Here’s a look at the companies that presented:

agiEA

Tukan Das and Sanjeevi Ramachandran

AgiEA is developing an A.I. personal assistant that users communicate with via text message.

Acuicy

Dawn Skinner and Muhammad Koya

Acuicy sells business intelligence software designed to help reduce emissions from supply chains.

Cyan Analytics

Prazzal Talukdar

An offshoot of consulting shop Barrington Edge, Cyan uses blockchains and artificial intelligence technology to track ESG metrics in supply chains.

Myomar Molecular

Rafaela Andrade and Hirad Feridooni

Myomar has developed a urine test to monitor muscle degeneration, which can be caused by diseases like amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or ALS.

Drinkable

Matt Mizzi, Youji Cheng and Danielle Dey 

Drinkable has developed a device that is smaller than a smartphone and tests water for about a dozen common contaminants, such as lead, arsenic and uranium.

trippl

Shelley Montreuil

Trippl is a travel planning app that consolidates a range of booking tasks into a single app.

DAHLIA Intelligence

Luke Mainwaring, and Luke Wagner

DAHLIA is an A.I.-based personal assistant.

EmployNXT

Shubhra Singh

EmployNXT has developed a platform to help prevent bias in the hiring process.