The Knoxville-Oak Ridge corridor is adding another resource to help make the region an innovation hub for clean energy companies. The University of Tennessee Spark Innovation Center is recruiting early-stage, high-growth startups for its Spark Cleantech Accelerator focused on developing decarbonization solutions and advancing circular economy efforts in East Tennessee.
Tennessee
Memphis Inno: Local startup looks to transform epilepsy diagnosis via at-home tech
When MBJ asked Mark Myers what he did over the weekend, he said the “ever-living hamster wheel” of work took up most of his time.
Look at his various responsibilities, and you’ll see what he means.
NashvillePost: Nashville tech startup adds four executives
Four months ago, Zerv Access Solutions — a Nashville-based technology startup — announced plans for rapid growth after raising $15 million in its Series A fundraising round.
NashvillePost: Telemedicine company completes $10M capital raise
Locally based telehealth venture VisuWell announced Wednesday it has completed a successful $10 million Series B capital raise led by Fulcrum Equity Partners, an Atlanta-based growth equity firm, with continued participation from existing investors, Longmeadow Capital, PJC and UltraGroup, per a release.
Memphis Inno: U of M professor looks to help solve dental problem, using material derived from shellfish
Annually, the average American eats over four pounds of shrimp, according to The New York Times.
Yet few of us realize that on the exoskeleton of these creatures — and some of their crustacean cousins — is a material called chitosan, which has an array of potential uses. And a University of Memphis biomedical engineering professor, Joel Bumgardner, Ph.D., believes it can help improve treatment for a widespread dental disease.
Main Street Nashville: Greater Nashville Tech Council appoints new board members
The Greater Nashville Technology Council welcomed 11 new board members during its January quarterly board meeting:
• Amy Harris, Program Director, MTSU
• Lindsey Morgan, Managing Director, Vaco
Nashville Inno: Cloud Range cybersecurity startup nets first outside equity, from funds in three states
Company name: Cloud Range
Amount raised: About $1 million — the company’s first outside equity
From whom: The round was led by Circadian Ventures, an Atlanta-based early-stage venture capital fund. The other investors were TechFarms Capital, of Panama City Beach, Florida; and Connetic Ventures, of Covington, Kentucky.
The Pulse: Walker County Awarded Multi-Million Dollar Grant to Improve Rural Broadband Access
Walker County Government will receive more than $6.2 million to improve broadband access in unserved and underserved communities.
Georgia’s Broadband Infrastructure Committee selected Walker County’s proposal to expand gigabit access throughout the southern half of the county as one of 49 American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) grant projects.
Walker County will collaborate with Georgia Windstream, LLC to leverage their existing infrastructure, engineering experience and construction management to deploy a Fiber-to-the-Premises (FTTP) solution to 3,339 homes and businesses in rural areas. The project involves extending 323 miles of fiber throughout the Armuchee Valley, Center Post and Kensington communities, among other locations.
Read the full article at the Chattanooga Pulse.
MemphisInno: Memphis startup Avadain looks to unlock the ‘revolutionary’ potential of graphene
In 2016, researchers at Germany’s Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Solid State Physics captivated Brad Larschan with a demonstration.
They asked him to put a glass football in a bowl of ice. As soon as the glass and ice touched, the entire ball matched the ice’s temperature.
Read the full article at MemphisInno.
NashvilleInno: Music City ranks high for places to start a business
Nashville’s reputation as a tech city is growing and entrepreneurs are taking note. A recent study by Clever, a real estate data company, showed Music City is the 15th most popular city in the country for people looking to start a new business.
The study found Nashville is the best city to network with startup founders — there are a reported 4.14 CEOs for every 1,000 residents of the city.
Read the full article on Nashville Inno.
