Stories of Technology, Innovation, & Entrepreneurship in the Southeast

The State Science and Technology Institute, better known as SSTI, cast its spotlight recently on Launch Tennessee and the Tennessee House at last month’s SXSW event.

Under the headline of “Taking TBED on the Road: Launch Tennessee’s Experience at Austin’s SXSW,” Michele Hujber wrote, “A handful of showcase events across the country are known widely by mere nicknames, gather lots of media attention, and attract tens of thousands of people or more each year. Can a state’s lead technology-based economic development (TBED) stand out in this kind of crowd? Is it worth the investment to try?

“For Lindsey Cox, CEO (Chief Executive Officer) of Launch Tennessee, the answer has been a ‘yes’ for the past two years and likely will be again in 2026. She led Tennessee’s participation in SXSW (South by Southwest), an annual conference in Austin, Texas, that features tech, film, music, education, and culture. Launch Tennessee took over a centrally located event space, transforming it into Tennessee House with Tennessee-branded decor and programming.

“The programming at the Tennessee House provided a reason for SXSW attendees to want to check it out and to, while they were there, meet the Launch Tennessee team, the start-ups Launch Tennessee brought with them, and representatives from the partner business and civic organizations. Programing ranged from informational panel discussions and keynote addresses to fun-filled Tennessee-relevant activities, such as ‘Nooga in the Morning’ (including a localized Chattanooga trivia game) and ‘Meet Memphis at 901 Day’ (including a pitch competition for Memphis start-ups).

“You need to think about programming in this holistic way of showcasing your innovators but also understand that it just can’t be all talk, talk, talk,” said Cox.

Did Launch Tennessee meet its objectives in 2025? Yes, said Cox. The numbers for Tennessee House in 2025 are impressive:

• Total attendees: 3,922 (an 80 percent increase over 2023). Cox estimated that Launch Tennessee would have to attend eight conferences to make contact with the close to 4,000 that visited their venue during the two and one-half days it was open.
• Total program RSVPs: 13,412 (a 68 percent increase over 2023).
• Countries represented by visitors: 28 (17 percent over 2023).
• U.S. States and Washington, D.C. represented by visitors: 40.
• Top four originating countries after the United States: Brazil (75), Canada (33), Korea (19), and Japan (16).
• More than 100 notable corporate and R&D brands visited Tennessee House over the two and one-half days of programming.

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