Hatchling chickens, newborn humans and startup businesses all have one thing in common: they need the right conditions and ample space to grow.
In the case of entrepreneurs bringing businesses to life, they must also be nimble and adapt to market conditions.
Anyone engaged with Launch Tennessee over the years has heard some version of that messaging, and can see that the public-private partnership dedicated to providing incubation space and funding opportunities for Tennessee startups is practicing what it preaches: reevaluate, reinvent and reposition.
Launch Tennessee, better known as LaunchTN, began in 2012, evolving out from the Tennessee Technology Development Corporation. The idea was to promote science and tech companies in the state’s economy by providing an ecosystem for startups where founders could find everything from mentors to collaborative opportunities to, importantly, access to grants and seed capital.
Over time, a statewide network of sites was rolled out, each focusing on the specific business sectors in its part of the state, as well as challenges entrepreneurs in that region might face.
Speed has always been part of the equation. A focus on tech at many of the network’s larger sites, as well as shifting needs in the state’s more rural economies, always meant quick pivots to new offerings.
For instance, LaunchTN is exploring and developing new programming to enhance its relevance in the race to capitalize on AI-driven advances, says Lindsey Cox, chief executive officer.
“We describe our work as focused on the three c’s: connection, commercialization and capital,” Cox says. “That’s not vastly different from what we were doing originally. In those early days, we worked to stand up a network of entrepreneur centers, helping to fund and programmatically support them.
“They have evolved over time, and we currently have a network of nine around the state,” she continues. “Along the way, we’ve also grown our partnerships with a variety of industries so that we can help drive connections between the incubators and the communities.”
Industry verticals include advanced energy, life sciences and agricultural technology, depending on the incubator. In some cases, the partnership leans toward the programmatical in terms of offering startups guidance. In others, there is financial support and a close working relationship with new companies as they move out into the world.
Whatever the case, the goal for LaunchTN and each incubator is to be a channel connecting the new with the existing. Over time, that’s led to new areas of engagement.
“In the early days, we didn’t really have a role to play in the workforce other than job-creation numbers from helping grow new businesses,” Cox says. “Now we’re playing in that space more with programs like a summer internship program. We’re taking a cohort of about 50 higher-education students across the state each year and pairing it with startups. It gets them engaged in that startup mindset that can create the possibilities for a job.”
LaunchTN also has gotten engaged in commercialization work by way of expanding its support of companies beyond applying for grants from the federal government’s Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Tech Transfer (STTR) programs, as well as other funding pools.
Strong ties have been forged with the state’s academic centers, as well as new outlets for capital, both of which speed new ventures’ time from incubator to market.
“We still are providing that support, but we’ve also gotten more into working with tech-transfer offices at universities around the state,” she says. “It’s helping us identify breakthrough research they have on those campuses, and what might have potential to spin out and be licensed. This is relatively new work for us, but we’ve had great initial success.”
Capital distribution and investment engagement occurs through InvestTN, an investment fund that accompanies direct investor engagement into Tennessee companies. That has been joined by another fund that, rather than co-investing, provides stand-alone dollars to chosen companies (see sidebar).
“We make a commitment and then [the startup] can go and raise additional capital as part of their first financing round,” she says. “We’re making sure that people know that there are financial deals happening all around the state. Nashville performs well, but we’re able to leverage this financing network across all of our physical spaces, tapping into that industry depth and expertise.”
If LaunchTN’s evolution could be summed up quickly, it’d be “getting away from niche,” Cox says.
“It never was ‘one size fits all,’ but in the early days, there’d be a coworking space, there’d be pitch competitions, at all the centers,” she says. “As we’ve evolved, we’ve been able to see each center for what its unique competencies are, and also the educational, city and regional competencies. We don’t want them to all be doing the same kinds of programs; that won’t meet the needs of their communities. For instance, Memphis might do a great job of running a medical device accelerator, but that’s not much good for the group in Dyersberg.”
The smaller-community footprint is also newer for LaunchTN and shows how it has taken larger-metro lessons and scaled them down to what a more rural economy’s capacities and needs might be.
What’s been found are communities with plenty of entrepreneurs, as well as fairly active angel investors. Such discoveries are not entirely surprising, and they fuel what Cox says is a large and growing wish list for the LaunchTN network as it moves through its second decade.
“I’d love to do more startup recruitments; we do that through hosting major events like 3686, or going to places like SXSW and storytelling about why Tennessee is a great place for innovators and entrepreneurs,” she says. “Our friends in economic and community development do a great job of recruiting large businesses to come to the state, and I think we can do our own version of that.”
And with its ninth center, the New Opportunities, Venture & Advancement (NOVA) Entrepreneur Center, opening last year, LaunchTN now has coverage for every Tennessee county.
There’s somewhere fairly close by for any entrepreneur to connect with, and while there currently are no plans for an additional physical location, if an industry pops up that could support further emerging commercialization, Cox says “never say never.”
And yes, there’s a plan for AI, despite that technology being a moving target on any given day of the week.
“It’s everywhere, and we’re certainly seeing it in terms of the companies who are applying for investment funds,” Cox says. “Most of those are not developing AI but rather using it in their business model. They’re using it to improve, in some cases, a more traditional model of doing something.
“AI is a big story for our more rural locations, because sourcing talent here can be an issue,” she continues. “Now an entrepreneur there can use the new technology to build out much faster without having to try to find a software engineer who’s willing to move to the area. I think we’ll see more of our startups leaning into that advantage.”
Still, it all comes back to the founders – the idea people who want to take their vision off the napkin or envelope back and bring it into the world.
“We are very much working as intended and aligned with what we were set out to do in our statute,” she says. “We’ve created an organization that can support innovation and entrepreneurship all across the state. We’ve been able to make a lot of headway in terms of partnerships with universities, as well as growing an investment fund to give us some in-house decision-making power.
“I meet up with versions of myself in other states through direct outreach and discovery trips, and people are very envious of the LaunchTN model,” Cox says. “We’re all collaborative, and plugged into each other, across the state.”
Chattanooga: The only ‘gig’ in town
Chattanooga offers a clear example of how Tennessee’s startup support network has matured over time. At the center of that evolution locally is The Company Lab, or CO.LAB, whose mission has narrowed as the city’s competitive advantages have sharpened.
Begun as CreateHere in 2009, its goal was to help invigorate and revitalize the city’s Main Street area. That quickly morphed into an entity charged with helping entrepreneurs, particularly women and minorities, start and scale their business. Now CO.LAB anchors the bustling Innovation District, says Tasia Malakasis, chief executive officer.
“We’re totally different now. When we began, accelerators were not as much in vogue as they are now, so we were starting at the very beginning of that movement. And at the same time, Chattanooga and its power utility had invested big in the gig-internet project, so suddenly we had the fastest internet in the world to include in pitches.
“We launched programs like GigTank for people who had early-stage businesses that would stimulate the economy around this new asset,” she continues. “At the same time, we were cheerleading for all other kinds of entrepreneurs. You could come in here and get support if you were going to open a nail salon or start a software company. It was a very generalist approach.”
Over time, and as other support entities came online to help new companies start and grow, CO.LAB began to streamline and refine its offerings.
Malakasis, who describes herself as a “serial entrepreneur,” moved to the area four years ago. When she learned about LaunchTN and CO.LAB, she began thinking about how the center could own its lane, could support both Main Street-style startups as well as venture-backed, tech space businesses. She knew how to build a scalable business, so decided to join forces with CO.LAB when the CEO position became available.
“I asked for 100 days to look around and see what Chattanooga had to offer that is distinctive from Nashville or Atlanta nearby, or as far away as Boston or Miami,” she says. “What are our centers of excellence, and what should we be focusing on to leverage Chattanooga in a way that would attract startups to build here? So, we launched programming around sustainable mobility, a four-part focus around people, goods, energy and data.”
That’s meant capitalizing on the presence of Volkswagen and myriad other automotive businesses, not to mention the groundbreaking internet-access capabilities provided by the Electric Power Board, or EPB.
Those assets, Malakasis says, makes CO.LAB look less like an accelerator and more like an MBA-track provider these days.
The beneficiaries for CO.LAB companies, she says, are like a three-legged stool: the sponsoring corporate community, the startups themselves and the Chattanooga community itself.
As an example, if someone is developing a tool for connected, autonomous vehicles, that’s of benefit to automotive companies, and after testing and rollout, would be of benefit to local residents.
“We’re recruiting globally for people to come and work alongside the corporations and infrastructure here,” she says. “When we get applicants, we see if one of our corporate partners is interested in the tech enough to pilot it or be the first customers. By getting someone’s intellectual exercise partnered with a marquee customer, that young business can see its trajectory change rapidly.”
Down the road, Malakasis says she’d love to develop dedicated space where AI-focused companies can access EPB’s Quantum Network, the nation’s first. Also on the wish list are more venture funds and capital access, so that CO.LAB is even more a center of gravity when it comes to partnering its cohorts of startups with major players that continue to move to the area to capitalize on such innovations as the Quantum node.
“We want to continue building the infrastructure here where people cannot just start, but also test and grow,” she says. “I’d love to have a demo center, where a robotics company could show a hospital’s leaders how it would move goods around in their facilities. That’s absolutely at the top of my list. We’re already innovating here, and getting noticed, so now we want to do the work to make even more happen.”
Knoxville: Creating spaces for innovation
The Knoxville Entrepreneur Center (KEC) has been operational for more than a decade, and in that time has aggressively grown both its programming and its presence, says Kelsi Walker, communications director.
“KEC was founded with a clear mission: to serve as a front door for entrepreneurs in East Tennessee,” Walker says. “In the early years, that meant helping people turn ideas into businesses through mentorship and accessible programs like CO.STARTERS. Over time, our role has expanded to support a much broader range of entrepreneurs like creative makers, small-business owners and tech founders alike.”
Tethering itself in many ways to other centers across the LaunchTN network is essential to that work, she says.
“KEC and other centers across the state are vital connectors in Tennessee’s economic development ecosystem. We translate big-picture goals like job creation and innovation into tangible local outcomes by helping individual entrepreneurs start, grow and sustain their businesses. Our mission continues as we change lives through entrepreneurship and work to create sustainable impact in our city and throughout East Tennessee,” Walker says.
By sharing resources, data and best practices with those partners, the KEC team can complement cohorts of makers, small businesses and tech founders with what others are doing in venture spaces statewide. That definitely includes finding ways to capitalize on the increasing presence of AI.
“AI is changing the landscape of entrepreneurship, and we’re embracing it as both a tool and a teaching opportunity,” Walker says. “Internally, we’re integrating AI tools into operations and learning from those in our community who are stepping up as authorities in the industry. Programmatically, we’ve hosted panels that demystify the technology for small-business owners and creatives.”
These days, KEC bills itself as “operating at the intersection of community and innovation.” Its programs include The Maker City, 100Knoxville and The Works, all of which target entrepreneurs at a specific point in their journey.
“We’re still rooted in mentorship and storytelling, but now we connect entrepreneurs across industries to help Knoxville’s economy thrive through innovation, collaboration and creativity,” Walker says.
Going forward, Walker says KEC is also focusing on connecting entrepreneurs with finances as a growing part of its programming.
“We’re always looking to expand our capital readiness and financial literacy programming – especially for makers and small businesses who might not fit traditional venture models,” she says. “Building pathways to investment, microloans and grant readiness continues to be necessary work for our ecosystem in East Tennessee.”
Nashville: Serving as a local, regional and statewide hub
The Nashville Entrepreneur Center (NEC) also has evolved greatly since its founding, moving well beyond being “the place for pitch parties,” says Sam Davidson, chief executive officer.
“I grew my businesses alongside the NEC, but never really went through it. When I took this seat a little over two years ago, I wanted to figure out who the center is for these days,” Davidson says. “My perception had been that if I wasn’t involved in tech or health care, it wasn’t for me. I learned that the NEC is doing different things for different people, and now it’s really for any entrepreneur who wants to grow, full stop.
“I’d say we have two groups: One is members who leverage our resources on an ad hoc, on-demand basis,” he continues. “The others are cohort participants. We have five accelerators, with 12-week cohorts, which might be all someone ever needs or wants. Combined, they represent almost every stage of industry and business. They’re all sizes, industries and ambitions.”
Davidson says the LaunchTN affiliation helps bring together support from the state with local money and relationships. “Our life blood is the successful entrepreneurs who want to see others succeed in Nashville. We track what we do in terms of our economic-development impact, and that’s current cohorts and alumni,” he says.
Evolving to that more multifaceted programming has been possible thanks to LaunchTN and its fellow centers around the state. That synergy creates myriad efficiencies that allow for nimble recruiting when it’s time to retire or reinvent programming and timelines, Davidson says.
“If you’re activating a small business or taking part in a new-business accelerator, there’s some in-person attendance required,” he says. “With centers across the state, you can stay where you are, or not have to go very far to get the same access to programming, mentors and camaraderie.
“If you’re looking at an industry-specific incubator, like our health care or financial technology ones, you’d need to come here, but only three of the 12 weeks are in-person,” Davidson continues. “It’s a great way to get started and build relationships without having to uproot and be gone for long periods of time.”
The advent of AI has also given rise to some programmatic tweaking, but like his peers elsewhere, Davidson says it’s more about using the technology versus developing it.
“My take is that it’s not an industry; it’s a tool,” he says. “Every entrepreneur is using it in some way, maybe as a core part of their business model. We’re certainly hearing it more in pitches, as far as how people are leveraging and incorporating it.
“The use cases we’re seeing are more along the lines of a financial tech firm we’re working with offering an AI-driven service for detecting fraud in loan applications, a growing problem because of AI-generated documents that inflate earnings or falsify proof of employment.”
Cookeville: Small but mighty on the Cumberland Plateau
A core directive for LaunchTN, from inception to now, is to ensure that the state’s smaller communities and rural areas have access to programming. At The Biz Foundry in Cookeville, that’s the mission every day, says Tiffany Anton, vice president.
“When The Biz Foundry launched just over a decade ago, the big goal was culture-change: helping people in the Upper Cumberland even see entrepreneurship as an option and giving them a place to experiment,” Anton says. “Early on that looked like youth programs, workforce development and coding classes, a digital media studio and networking events like monthly happy hours, plus a basic coworking space tucked into a converted dialysis clinic near the Tennessee Tech campus.”
Today, the mission statement is more refined: “To build economic and community vitality in the Upper Cumberland through entrepreneurship, worker independence and cooperation, by giving people the tools and connections to turn ideas into reality.”
“Our mission hasn’t really changed,” Anton says. “The Biz Foundry still exists to meet the community’s entrepreneurial needs. What has changed is the scale and sophistication of how that happens.
“It’s evolved from a single coworking space running coding classes and networking nights into a regional entrepreneur center: multiple locations (Cookeville, McMinnville and Crossville) with more private offices and dedicated desks to meet demand, structured programs, specialized communities like Powered By Her and Made Here Market and a growing role in connections with financing and supporting high-growth companies.”
Along the way, “entrepreneurship” has morphed into “launch and grow a company.” Same idea and same goals, just a broader way to talk about what’s available.
“Programming has matured into structured entrepreneur pathways,” she says. “Coaching, mentoring, workshops and formal programs like ‘Start Up: Business Bootcamp’ and ‘Start Up Your Startup’ that walk people from idea to launch and early growth.”
The Biz Foundry now touts its ability to provide both general support and aid to specialized communities. That includes bringing programming like Powered By Her for women founders and Made Here Market to elevate local makers.
“We’ve created targeted on-ramps into entrepreneurship for people who might not have seen themselves as ‘startup’ material,” Anton says. “It’s a move from local help to ecosystem builder. The Biz Foundry is now charged with providing one-on-one support to building the entrepreneurial ecosystem across 14 counties, with an increasing focus on high-growth companies and capital access – such as championing a regional angel fund and deeper partnerships with chambers, TVA, SBDC and others.”