By Tom Ballard, Chief Alliance Officer, PYA Little did Jonathan Spangler know that being selected by the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of his employer to be a member of the company band would result in launching a very unique guitar manufacturing company. “I was tapped to be the Paul Shaffer

One of the participants in Cohort 2 of the “Innovation Crossroads” program operated by Oak Ridge National Laboratory just secured a seven-figure investment. Nth Cycle, the maker of a recycling technology that extracts critical metals from batteries, e-waste, low-grade ore, and mine tailings so they can be reused to make

Just a reminder that the finals of this year’s “What’s the Big Idea?” will be held this Sunday afternoon. Festivities for the “pitch festival” begin at 4:30 p.m. EDT and will include a mix of pitches, five to be exact, and performances from musicians. To register, click here. To see

The latest issue of the monthly newsletter from the University of Tennessee Research Foundation (UTRF) spotlights Tony Skjellum, Director of the SimCenter at UT Chattanooga. Ironically, we just interviewed the long-time researcher for an article that will post soon as an update to this teknovation.biz post from October 2019. In the meantime,

About 18 months ago, we posted this short article about efforts by two Durham, NC businessmen to raise a $10 million fund focused on Black-led start-ups. Fast forward, and the duo behind Resilient Ventures has announced its first close at $3.45 million from 24 investors along with investments totaling $680,000

The prestigious “Babson Connect: Worldwide” has announced a different format for this year’s entrepreneurial summit that brings the world together for the college community. Under the new approach that will be virtual, the event will visit five regions in five days. Starting April 19 at 3 p.m. EDT with a

By Tom Ballard, Chief Alliance Officer, PYA Technology transfer offices exist for a reason, and that is to ensure that promising inventions see the light of day where they can bring benefit to individuals and society. So, readers should celebrate the fact that the University of Tennessee Research Foundation (UTRF)

Memphis-based AgLaunch has been awarded a $750,000 grant under the U.S. Economic Development Administration’s SPRINT Challenge, officially known as the “Scaling Pandemic Resilience Through Innovation and Technology” program. AgLaunch will use the funding for the “Resilient AgriFood Innovation Network” (RAIN) that is focused on scaling technology-based pandemic response in the

Soon after announcing three innovation hubs as part of a Buckeye State initiative, JobsOhio has made another major announcement. The JobsOhio Growth Capital program will invest $50 million in the next year to help fledging businesses attract funding while making a profit that JobsOhio can invest in future companies. The

Proof, the Chattanooga-based organization that has been offering its “Restaurant Recovery” program in cooperation with three entrepreneur centers in the eastern half of Tennessee, has announced plans to do the same thing with its “Consumer Goods Accelerator.” The 10-week program is designed to help emerging consumer-packaged goods brands rapidly expand