Mark your calendar | Knoxville’s innovation community is coming to the ballpark
The centerpieces of the afternoon are a $100,000 investment opportunity from Market Square Ventures (MSV) and the U.S. Department of Energy's Lab-Embedded Entrepreneurship Program (LEEP) Demo Day.
For months now, Brandon Bruce and John Bruck have been up to something. In addition to their work as General Partners in Market Square Ventures and co-founders of the 121 Tech Hub in the Old City, the two community builders are putting into action something long imagined: an innovation community takeover of the ballpark downtown.
Thanks to a collaborative partnership between several key organizations like 121 Tech Hub, Innovation Crossroads at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), LaunchTN, Market Square Ventures, and One Knoxville SC, May 13 will be the inaugural Innovation Night at the Park.
The highlights to expect
The centerpiece of the afternoon is a $100,000 investment opportunity from Market Square Ventures (MSV). Selected founders will pitch to partners in MSV in a lunch session from noon to 2 p.m. inside the Clubhouse, with three minutes each to make their case. If you are a founder seeking investment, apply to pitch.
From 2 to 4 p.m., the event transitions to a demo day featuring startups from the U.S. Department of Energy’s Lab-Embedded Entrepreneurship Program (LEEP), a national initiative that embeds deep-tech founders inside federal research facilities. Represented programs include Innovation Crossroads at ORNL, Chain Reaction Innovations at Argonne National Laboratory in Illinois, Cyclotron Road at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory in California, and West Gate at the National Laboratory of the Rockies in Colorado. Register for the Demo Day.
At 5:30 p.m., gates open for an Innovation Showcase on the Concourse. During this time, people who are planning to attend the ball game can stroll around the stadium, meet the founders, and see their products and services firsthand. This time will also include live product demonstrations in a broad range of industries, including energy, artificial intelligence, mobility, and advanced manufacturing. Apply to exhibit on the concourse.
Once the game begins at 7 p.m., the festivities will continue with founder introductions on the field at halftime. Get tickets.
Learn more about the flow of events here.
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