(EDITOR’S NOTE: The following article is based on a recent interview with Kelly Tiller about the nearly 12-year journey that resulted in Genera securing more than $118 million in new investment capital that will be used to build a manufacturing facility. Tiller will share her experience as an entrepreneur during

Speaking of the annual “Innov865 Week” in Knoxville, Oak Ridge National Laboratory has added another event to the schedule. Beginning at 4 p.m. September 26, the lab will sponsor the “Innovation Crossroads Showcase” that will feature short presentations by the start-ups in Cohort 3 and an update from two of

Local Motors, the Arizona-based company with a facility in West Knoxville, has introduced an upgraded version of its 3D-printed, electric, autonomous shuttle that was on display on Market Square several years ago during “Innov865 Week.” The Olli 2.0, as the new version is dubbed, is designed for neighborhoods, campuses, and

W.E. Cornell and Black Entrepreneurs in Training are two recently launched groups at Cornell University designed to bring entrepreneurship closer to those who have traditionally struggled to make headway in a homogenous industry with high barriers to entry. Read more about them here.

By Tom Ballard, Chief Alliance Officer, PYA There are a number of positive developments that have occurred since we last posted an update on mobius, the company that was originally founded in 2016 as Grow Bioplastics and built its early recognition by winning a series of pitch competitions. Now, Co-Founder

As noted in this recent teknovation.biz article, the inaugural “TEDxOakRidge” event attracted about 50 people to the Albert Einstein Amphitheater at Ts117 Modern Coworking Tuesday night. Thanks to organizer Daniel Hodge, I had the privilege of joining three other individuals for what can only be described as an eclectic set of topics.

Bunker Labs Knoxville will host its next “Bunker Brews” meet-up from 4 to 7 p.m. September 25 just ahead of the quarterly meeting on KnoxDevs and as part of the “Innov865 Week” activities. The event will be at the Pour Taproom, 207 West Jackson Avenue. Click here to register.

Want to see the new co-working space in Blount County? The “Sky City Initiative” team is holding an open house from 4 to 6 p.m. September 18 at the facility, 429 South Washington Street, Maryville.  You can learn more about the space by reading our recent article or going to the

Roughly 20 percent of the 300 unicorn founders – a private company with a valuation over $1 billion – have the same degree, come from one of two universities, and are found within a 60 mile stretch. Mojo Mortgages has looked at the data and made some insightful conclusions that

By Tom Ballard, Chief Alliance Officer, PYA It’s been a busy seven days for Knoxville start-up SmartRIA. In that period of time, the company that makes software that simplifies compliance for the wealth management industry has made two major acquisition announcements. The first came September 3 when SmartRIA acquired Greytwist