• by Steve McClellan  @mp_mcclellan, September 26, 2012

You’ve probably never heard of Zoetic. But that could change now that it has won the top prize in a media startup competition created by General Electric and the company’s media shop OMD, a unit of Omnicom.

Zoetic emerged from a 10-week development program called the GE|OMD Incubator with the $10,000 top prize.

Founded by Afghanistan war veterans Joe Adelmann and Jim Jablonski, the company's first product, NOD, is an app that helps improve automobile safety. Using the smartphone's accelerometer, gyroscope, GPS and video camera, NOD tracks key data points and alerts drivers to unsafe actions, including a loud verbal warning if they are falling asleep at the wheel.

"While this technology is often built into luxury cars, it has been out of reach for most drivers, making NOD the safe driving tool for the 99%," stated Zoetic CEO Adelmann, a former Air Force systems engineer.

Jablonski, the company’s chief technology officer and a former Army helicopter pilot, added that Zoetic has plans in the works for multiple products. “We see applications for the technology across multiple consumer [product lines]  including mobile medical, 3D printing and imaging, and activity-specific fitness mapping to name just a few," he said.

Two other companies from the GE|OMD Incubator program earned honorable mention this year including PearUp, a mobile app for the athletic-minded looking for a quick workout that enables them to book and pay for classes offered at nearby sports clubs.

Also receiving honorable mention kudos: Piggyback, an app that helps you discover new songs, restaurants, and videos by following the activities of your trusted friends. The full list of startup participants can be found at geomdincumbator.com.

In addition to free work space, stipends, and networking opportunities with venture capitalists, entrepreneurs and other industry experts, participating startups in the program receive advertising, marketing and media advice from OMD.

GE and OMD executives say the program is designed to keep them ahead of the curve on innovative ideas in the media space. Six of the seven participating startups in the 2011 program went on to raise outside funding and launch products, the companies said.