8:30 am – 9:00 am: Registration + Networking
Registration will begin at 8:30 a.m ET. Light breakfast and coffee will be provided!
Agenda
9:00 am – 9:05 am: Meet the Hosts
Hosts
Katelyn Biefeldt
PYA / teknovation.biz
Chris McAdoo
Spark Innovation Center
9:05 am – 9:25 am: Welcoming Remarks
Speaker
Mayor Indya Kincannon
City of Knoxville
9:25 am – 9:55 am: Quantum Momentum: Powering the Region's Innovation Economy
Presented by Three Roots Capital
Speakers
Moderator: Grady Vanderhoofven
Three Roots Capital
Deborah Crawford
University of Tennessee, Knoxville
Shaun Gleason
Oak Ridge National Laboratory
Rebekah Jane (RJ) Justice
City of Knoxville
Ryan Harring
IONQ
9:55 am – 10:10 am: Networking Break
Presented by We Know People Media
10:15 am – 10:45 am: Breakout Session presented by LocaliQ
The Psychology of Being Chosen: Why people choose to do business with you
Speaker
John Montouri
LocaliQ
10:15 am – 10:45 am: Breakout Session presented by PYA
We Know People Media Meet & Greet: Abby Ham and Heather Waliga share their pivot from the newsroom to entrepreneurship
Speakers
Heather Waliga
We Know People Media
Abby Ham
We Know People Media
11:00 am – 11:30 am: A Seat at the Table: Knoxville's Rise as a Culinary Destination
Presented by Visit Knoxville
Speakers
Moderator: Kim Bumpas
Visit Knoxville
Joseph Lenn
J.C. Holdway
Laurence Faber
Potchke
11:30 am – 12:15 pm: Emerging Entrepreneur Pitch Competition
Presented by the Anderson Center for Entrepreneurship & Innovation Center
Joseph Shinkle
Edura
Alex Del Vechhio
Big Al's Hot Mustard
Kendra Mueller
WarmWave
Patrick Ragozzine
Arbor AI
Jack Ford & Alan Schneider
JobWillow
Blake Hopkins
Cofluence
12:15 pm – 1:40 pm: Lunch + Traction Award Presentation
2026 Traction Award presented by Axle Logistics
1:45 pm – 2:00 pm: Remarks from Knox County Mayor
Mayor Betsy Henderson
Knox County
2:15 pm – 2:45 pm: Breakout Session presented by LocaliQ
The Psychology of Influence: Why people choose to do business with you
Speaker
John Montouri
LocaliQ
2:15 pm – 2:45 pm: Breakout Session presented by PYA
TITLE
Speakers
Maha Krishnamurthy
University of Tennessee Research Foundation
Marty Brown
Market Square Ventures
3:00 pm – 4:00 pm: Startup Pitch Competition
Six Knoxville startups pitch their startup for cash prizes!
Judges
Michael Dirla
Greater Sum Ventures
Rachel Mehta
She's Independent Investments
Mike Thibodeaux
Comcast
3:00 pm – 4:00 pm: Startup Pitch Competition
Pitchers
Marton Krivan
Aquafer Technologies, Inc.
Spencer Dore
New Horizon Precision
Alec Readel
Applied 2D Materials
Gustavo Alvarez-Suchini
DataRook
Brian Iezzi
Fibarcode
Kevin Roccapriore
AtomQ
4:00 pm – 4:15 pm: Networking Break
Presented by LocaliQ
4:15 pm – 4:45 pm: Where Are They Now? 865 Fest Alumni Share Their Startup Stories
Speakers
Moderator: Tom Rogers
Anna Douglas
SkyNano
Tommy Nguyen
Storage Pug
Brandon Bruce
Market Square Ventures
John Sorochan
University of Tennessee, Knoxville
4:45 pm – 5:00 pm: Awards Presentation
Emerging Entrepreneur Award, presented by the Anderson Center for Entrepreneurship & Innovation
Crowd Favorite Award, presented by the Innov865 Alliance
Judges' Choice Award, presented by Comcast
5:00 pm – 6:00 pm: Happy Hour
Networking + happy hour to follow the formal programming!