It may not seem all that sexy, but much of the most significant innovation in digital technology is devoted to helping us get things done more efficiently.

Here are eight local startups that are leading the way in that regard as we enter the new year:

BlueSprig
Its mobile app, AirCover, provides a central toolkit to address a variety of security concerns on mobile devices, as well as cloud-based backup systems and an overall operating system optimization, which is meant to help you preserve your phone’s battery life, and free the device up from running too many processes in the background.

Diffbot
Diffbot is a "visual learning robot," that distills the entire web down to 30 basic page types, like product pages, event pages, news pages, which helps developers adapt all of that content for mobile devices.

Dropbox
One of our superstar startups lets you easily sync files between your computers, phones and tablets, is global in reach.

Docusign
Finally, there are personal e-signatures for everyone in the form of a product called DocuSign Ink.

Pageonce    
Offers a “remote control for your personal finances," allowing you to pay bills from mobile devices or the web.

StumbleUpon
The discovery engine that co-founder and CEO Garrett Camp calls the "forward button for the Internet."

TappMob
Their first app, "Check-in," allows an iPhone user with one tap to send their location to somone on their contact list (like a parent.) 

WePay
WePay’s co-founder Bill Clerico can sum up his company with a simple phrase: “We’re not PayPal.”