Stories of Technology, Innovation, & Entrepreneurship in the Southeast

February 14, 2024 | Tom Ballard

Awards made to 15 organizations under South Carolina’s Relentless Challenge

The focus of the statewide competitive grant program is on projects that foster a sustainable innovation ecosystem.

The South Carolina Department of Commerce has announced the recipients of its 2024 Relentless Challenge grant, which totaled $880,000 granted to 15 projects around the state.

The Relentless Challenge is a statewide competitive grant program for projects that foster a sustainable innovation ecosystem. Awarded projects must address at least one of four goals that guide the program: (1) catalyzing high-growth entrepreneurship; (2) increasing access to risk capital; (3) supporting collaboration between industry and South Carolina-based institutions of higher education; and (4) enhancing talent development for a sustainable knowledge economy.

Recipients and their projects were:

  • Build Carolina – Build Carolina Minimum Viable Product (MVP) Studio;
  • Charleston Digital Corridor (CDC) Education Foundation – CDC Learning Center;
  • Clemson University Research Foundation – Piloting a New Capital Investment Strategy for High-Growth MedTech Start-ups;
  • eMYRge – SaaSConn: Creating the Flywheel Effect for Software-as-a-Service-Inspired Economic Growth in South Carolina (SC);
  • FRESH at Clemson University – Connecting SC Businesses with the Next Generation of Sustainable Packaging Designers;
  • GrowCo – Catalyzing Columbia: ColaStarts Bootcamp for Enhancing Statewide Networks and Beyond;
  • Harbor Entrepreneur Center – PROPEL: Re-accelerate Companies Beyond Start-up Stage;
  • Hi Mark Capital Foundation ­– SC Innovation Business Simulation Program;
  • NEXT SC – NEXT SC Entrepreneur in Residence (EIR) Program;
  • OneSpartanburg – Spartanburg Area Ecosystem Foundations Project;
  • Platform at Greer – Platform at Greer Bootcamp: Expanding to Help Established Small and Medium-Sized Businesses Statewide;
  • SC Tech College System Foundation – Create Opportunity Expansion Project;
  • SCbio – SCbioDrive Life Sciences Accelerator;
  • The Hill Institute for Innovation and Entrepreneurship at Furman University – The Summer Business & Innovation Bootcamp; and
  • University of South Carolina’s Faber Entrepreneurship Center – Faber Entrepreneurship Center Expanded Opportunity Workshops.


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