UPDATE: East Tennessee companies capture four of eight awards at “Governor’s Innovation Conference”
Four of the eight winners from the four “Venture Showcase” pitch competitions on Thursday afternoon during the “Governor’s Innovation Conference” were from East Tennessee.
Three of the four received top awards from an experienced panel of judges who work regularly with start-up companies. The fourth received the “People’s Choice Award” as the best in its track. East Tennessee companies won in each of the four tracks – Life Sciences/Healthcare, Technology/Electronics, Digital Media/Entertainment and Alternative Energy/Sustainability.
The East Tennessee companies that won were:
- NuMeta Sciences (Life Sciences/Healthcare) – “Judges Best”
- Dine Touch (Technology/Electronics) – “People’s Choice Award”
- Stall Talk (Digital Media/Entertainment) – “Judges Best”
- LED North America (Alternative Energy/Sustainability) – “Judges Best”
Of the 24 start-up companies that participated in the competition – six per track, 12 had ties to East Tennessee.
At the same ceremony where the “Venture Showcase” winners were named, Governor Bill Haslam presented the inaugural “Governor’s Award for Innovation Excellence” to Dr. Jeffrey Conn, Lee E. Limbird Professor of Pharmacology and Director of the Vanderbilt Center for Neuroscience Discovery.
