KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (July 9, 2024) – The Spark Cleantech Accelerator at the University of Tennessee Research Park is excited to announce the participants of their third annual accelerator program. The cohort is made up of a diverse group of founders working to commercialize a wide variety of promising cleantech and climate-tech products, ranging from aluminum and sodium batteries, to solar … Read More
On June 18, 2024, at the IAMM Building at the UT Research Park at Cherokee Farm, Ashley Roccapriore hosted her Market Sizing and Assessment Workshop. Roccapriore is an assistant professor in the Department of Management and Entrepreneurship at Auburn University. Roccapriore examines firm and investment failure, interpersonal relationships, and contextual influences on stakeholders and entrepreneurs, publishing her findings in top-tier … Read More
April 2, 2023 – KNOXVILLE, Tenn. We are delighted to announce that the Spark Innovation Center, located within the University of Tennessee Research Park, has been honored with the prestigious DOE’s OTT Energy Program Innovation Cluster Round 3 Phase 1 Award. This achievement signifies our advancement to Phase 2 this summer, marking a significant milestone in our commitment to fostering … Read More
The Spark Innovation Center hosted the Department of Energy’s Office of Tenchnology Transitions yesterday in a Voucher Announcement and Roundtable discussion event! Thank you to Chief Commercialization Officer, Director, Office of Technology Transitions, Dr. Vanessa Z. Chan and her team for making it out to Knoxville for this event, to Knoxville Mayor Indya Kincannon for attending, and to the Tennessee … Read More
Knoxville, Tenn.– The Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC) announced today it will award $600,000 to the Spark Innovation Center through its POWER (Partnerships for Opportunity and Workforce and Economic Revitalization) Initiative, which directs federal resources to economic diversification projects in Appalachian communities affected by job losses in coal mining, coal power plant operations, and coal-related supply chain industries. The Spark Innovation … Read More
Orion Therapeutics is delighted to share fantastic news! They’ve been awarded a $100K competitive federal grant through LaunchTN SBIR/STTR Matching Fund program for fiscal year 2024. The Grant is a game-changer for them, accelerating their innovation journey and boosting their research and business development efforts right here in East Tennessee. We’re Grateful to Launch Tennessee for recognizing the potential of … Read More
Windmills and grid optimization are focus areas for Qubit Engineering Inc. Three years later, a start-up that originally drew skepticism is now a strong voice for quantum technologies within the energy space. “When we started our journey in 2018, what we were trying to accomplish was very clear to us but not to others,” says Marouane Salhi, Co-Founder and Chief Executive … Read More
Nick Sokol says he learned how challenging it was to convince people to grow algae for carbon capture. We first met Nick Sokol in mid-July 2022 when he took his start-up named Algaeo through the “Cultivate Appalachia Bootcamp” (see teknovation.biz article here). At the time, he was promoting algae growth as a way to provide an alternative form of food, energy, and carbon sequestration services. More … Read More
This year’s “Opportunities in Energy” program has a robust mix of content. Scheduled for November 15 at The Standard in Knoxville, the headliners are former Tennessee Governors Lamar Alexander and Phil Bredesen. Since I have not only attended every “Opportunities in Energy” program hosted by the Tennessee Advanced Energy Business Council but also participated in some way in many, one might say … Read More
Vitruvian is focused on 3D-printing homes using concrete. While an undergraduate student at Miami University of Ohio, Chris Sentz started his first company. Two decades later, he stands at the forefront of change, and his latest venture, Vitruvian, is set to redefine the very concept of home construction. Sentz’s entrepreneurial spirit first sprouted with his early eCommerce start-up, Skinsource, dedicated to beauty product … Read More
