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

UTRF introduces its first two Executives-in-Residence Bob Vanderhoff, a seasoned corporate executive, and Ryan Ginder, an academic researcher turned entrepreneur, are filling those roles. It was a little more than five months ago when The University of Tennessee Research Foundation (UTRF) announced the launch of its $5 million Accelerator Fund and Venture Launch Program (see Teknovation.biz article here). Both initiatives are focused on starting, … Read More

The Knoxville start-up that came out of stealth mode just a year ago is on a roll. Orion Therapeutics Inc., a Knoxville biotechnology company that had been operating in stealth mode until about a year ago, has come out swinging. After being selected to join the prestigious MassBioDrive accelerator program as a member of the 2022 cohort (see September 26, 2022 teknovation.biz … Read More

Primary Outlet: Frontier Climate (Source Article) Contact: media@frontierclimate.com Additional Outlets: Bloomberg, CNBC Notes: this is an emerging story, and will be updated throughout the day as news emerges Today marks a significant milestone in Holocene’s journey, as we announce our first-ever carbon removal purchase agreement. Holocene is proud to have secured a purchase agreement via Frontier Climate, an advance market … Read More

Energy Program Innovation Clusters Success Story   Introduction  The University of Tennessee’s (UT) SPARK Innovation Center, part of the Heartland Climate Tech Partnership, supports more than 15 cleantech startups per year.  SPARK Innovation Center was first awarded a $50K award from the Office of Technology Transitions’ Energy Program for Innovation Clusters (EPIC) in 2020 to launch operations (check out our conversation with their team in … Read More

The new group of entrepreneur fellows in Innovation Crossroads, a US Department of Energy Lab-Embedded Entrepreneurship Program at Oak Ridge National Laboratory, will complete the Spark Cleantech Accelerator, a 12-week program offered by the University of Tennessee, Knoxville’s Spark Innovation Center at the UT Research Park. “By combining the resources of Innovation Crossroads and the Spark Cleantech Accelerator, we are building a stronger program for … Read More

Failing Forward with TAEBC, as told by Anca Timofte, CEO and Co-Founder of Holocene, a company that TAEBC works with: In August 2022, Holocene ended its lease at a laboratory near Stanford, where we did our first tests of a direct air capture technology. We were in need of a new home.  After trips to Toronto, Pittsburgh, and New York, we finally … Read More

Entrepreneur-fellows in Innovation Crossroads will complete the Spark Cleantech Accelerator, a 12-week program offered by the Spark Innovation Center at the University of Tennessee Research Park. Entrepreneur-fellows in Innovation Crossroads, a Department of Energy Lab-Embedded Entrepreneurship Program at Oak Ridge National Laboratory, will complete the Spark Cleantech Accelerator, a 12-week program offered by the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, Spark Innovation Center at the UT … Read More