Innov865 logoInnov865

Menu
  • Home
  • Innov865 Week
    • Startup Day
  • Events
    • Past Events
  • News
  • About
    • About the Innov865 Alliance
    • Knoxville Region Capital Investment Firms
  • Connect
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

About the Innov865 Alliance

The Innov865 Alliance develops, supports, and promotes the Knoxville region’s entrepreneurial ecosystem. It is a collaborative effort to celebrate and showcase Knoxville as a great place for entrepreneurs to start and grow businesses and increase access to capital. Innov865 Week is our signature event; however, the Alliance coordinates other activities throughout the year, including pitch competitions, educational opportunities, and social events.

Founding Members

University of Tennessee Research Foundation

University of Tennessee Research Foundation logo

The University of Tennessee Research Foundation is a non-profit organization that promotes the commercialization of UT intellectual property, encourages an entrepreneurial culture, contributes to state and regional economic development, and promotes research and education to benefit the people of Tennessee and beyond.

In its role as the technology transfer office of UT, UTRF works to identify and support UT inventions and discoveries with the highest potential to be developed into commercial products. Through the launch of new startups and via partnerships with existing companies, inventions are brought from the laboratory to the marketplace. Technology transfer benefits the public through the launch of innovative new products in healthcare, technology, agriculture, education and more.

The UT Research Foundation frequently partners with the Oak Ridge National Laboratory and the State of Tennessee for research and education initiatives.

For more information, contact:

Robyn Geron
Assistant Commercialization Manager
865-974-1882

Oak Ridge National Laboratory

Oak Ridge National Laboratory logo

Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) is the U.S. Department of Energy’s largest multiprogram science and energy laboratory, with scientific and technical capabilities spanning the continuum from basic to applied research. These resources enable the lab to tackle an exceptionally wide range of research and development (R&D) assignments, from fundamental nuclear physics to applied R&D on advanced energy systems. In addition, ORNL has a well-deserved reputation for combining insights from fundamental science with an in-depth technical understanding of applied systems to deliver practical solutions to real-world problems.

ORNL aggressively pursues opportunities to put these solutions to work, often collaborating with industry to accelerate their deployment by the private sector.

For more information, contact:

Dan Miller,
Program Lead, Innovation Crossroads
millerdw@ornl.gov

Jesse Smith
Manager, Industrial Partners and Economic Development
smithj1@ornl.gov

Tennessee Valley Authority

Tennessee Valley Authority logo

The Tennessee Valley Authority is a corporate agency of the United States that provides electricity for business customers and local power distributors serving 9 million people in parts of seven southeastern states. TVA receives no taxpayer funding, deriving virtually all of its revenues from sales of electricity. In addition to operating and investing its revenues in its electric system, TVA provides flood control, navigation and land management for the Tennessee River system and assists local power companies and state and local governments with economic development and job creation.

For more information, contact:

Amy Henry
Director, Transformative Innovation
Innovation & Research
abhenry@tva.gov

City of Knoxville

City of Knoxville logo

Knoxville is a city in and the county seat of Knox County in the U.S. state of Tennessee. As of July 1, 2019, Knoxville’s population was 187,603, making it the largest city in the East Tennessee Grand Division, and the state’s overall third largest city after Nashville and Memphis. Knoxville is the principal city of the Knoxville Metropolitan Statistical Area, which had an estimated population of 869,046 in 2019.

For more information, contact:

Carter Hall
Policy and Strategic Projects Manager
chall@knoxvilletn.gov

LaunchTennessee

LaunchTennessee logo

Launch Tennessee (LaunchTN) is a public-private partnership focused on supporting the development of high-growth companies in Tennessee. Its ultimate goal is to make Tennessee the No. 1 place in the Southeast to start and grow a business.

LaunchTN supports entrepreneurship by providing resources, mentorship and connections for entrepreneurs, plus helping entrepreneurs obtain funding and connecting inventors with entrepreneurs and investors. The organization assists entrepreneurs with raising capital and focuses on outreach, hosting events that bring together entrepreneurs, mentors, researchers and investors from across the state and country and serving as the marketing arm for entrepreneurship in Tennessee.

For more information, contact:

Mahni Ghorashi
Strategy Director
mahni.ghorashi@gmail.com

Knoxville Chamber

Knoxville Chamber logo

The Knoxville Chamber is an economic prosperity organization located in Knoxville, Tennessee. The organization is committed to its mission of driving regional economic prosperity.

Its five-year strategic vision, Path to Prosperity, prioritizes the creation of a vibrant, innovative economic ecosystem for the entire Knoxville region that considers today’s realities while contemplating tomorrow’s aspirations.

For more information, contact:

Mike Odom
President and CEO
modom@knoxvillechamber.com

Knoxville Entrepreneur Center

Knoxville Entrepreneur Center logo

The Knoxville Entrepreneur Center (KEC) provides access to a regionally recognized company development program, an involved network of dedicated capital sources, successful local mentors, and world-class training.  The KEC connects entrepreneurs with mentors and the resources necessary to start their businesses. It inspires, encourages, and enables entrepreneurs by adding value to their business ideas. The KEC is a place where entrepreneurs come daily to move their business ideas to a higher level.

For more information, contact:

Jim Biggs
Executive Director
jim.biggs@knoxec.net

Three Roots Capital

Three Roots Capital logo

Three Roots is a 501(c)3 non-profit corporation and is a certified Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI), working to aggregate multiple pools of capital along a continuum of capital, ranging from early-stage to later-stage, including both equity and debt.

Three Roots Capital provides impact capital products and advisory services that create successful outcomes for client companies and attractive returns for financial partners.

For more information, contact:

Dennis Corley
Business Development and
Community Relationships Manager
dennis@3rootscapital.org
865-220-1713

PYA

PYA logo

PYA provides timely insight and delivers comprehensive support in accounting, consulting, and management. The company has a proven track record of unsurpassed performance in healthcare, finance and business practice. PYA has been built with an unyielding commitment to integrity at all levels, objective research and reporting, creative problem solving and an attention to clients that starts at the executive level and filters through the entire organization.

PYA launched Teknovation.biz in 2012 as a vehicle to allow East Tennesseans to spotlight and celebrate “all things” related to technology, innovation and entrepreneurship in East Tennessee. It is intended to help create more awareness of our region’s assets and help drive technology, innovation and entrepreneurial job growth.

For more information, contact:

Tom Ballard
Chief Alliance Officer
tballard@pyapc.com
865-684-2826

UT Research Park at Cherokee Farm

UT Research Park at Cherokee Farm logo

The University of Tennessee Research Park at Cherokee Farm in Knoxville, Tennessee, is the Southeast’s only research and development park where the resources of a major research university and a leading national laboratory are combined with globally recognized researchers expressly for the benefit of tenants. The campus offers tenant access to the research capabilities at UT and Oak Ridge National Laboratory. Located on 188 acres on the banks of the Tennessee River, the campus has 77 developable acres and includes 16 building sites that support approximately 1.6 million square feet of development. Parcels are available for immediate development, and research suite leasing is underway.

For more information, contact:

Rickey McCallum
Vice President
UT Research Park at Cherokee Farm
rickey@tnresearchpark.org
865-202-5554

Veteran Ventures

Veteran Ventures logo

Veteran Ventures Capital specializes in making private investments into veteran-affiliated companies that show great promise in regards to revenue growth and business acceleration. Specifically, Veteran Ventures Capital focuses on making investments into new businesses that have promising technology, an innovative business concept, or are existing businesses that are seeking rapid growth within their field.

For More Information, contact: 
Derren Burrell
Founder & President
derren@veteranventures.us

University of Tennessee, Knoxville

University of Tennessee, Knoxville logo

The University of Tennessee, Knoxville, which includes the UT Space Institute and the UT Institute of Agriculture, serves the state by educating its citizens, enhancing its culture, and making a difference in people’s lives through research and service.

We embody excellence in teaching, research, scholarship, creative activity, outreach, and engagement.

For more information, contact:

Marc Gibson | Associate Vice Chancellor for Research, Innovation and Economic Development | mgibson4@utk.edu

Robyn Geron | Director of Operations, Anderson Center for Entrepreneurship & Innovation | rgeron@utk.edu

Bunker Labs Knoxville

Bunker Labs Knoxville logo

Bunker Labs – a 501(c)(3) non-profit – is a national network of veteran entrepreneurs dedicated to helping new veteran entrepreneurs start their own business. We are committed to seeing that every entrepreneur in the veteran community has the network, tools, and resources they need to start their own business.

25% of transitioning service members want to start a business and they need places inside their community where they can connect with the people, resources, and support they need to start and grow their businesses. We’re here for them!


Innov865 Events

The Innov865 Alliance hosts events throughout the year that celebrate entrepreneurship and innovation, and showcase Knoxville as the destination for startups and entrepreneurs in East Tennessee.


Innov865 News

The Innov865 Alliance is an advocate for Knoxville’s startups and entrepreneurs, ensuring our ecosystem is strong, vibrant and coordinated. Tune in for articles, Q&As, press releases, and other updates about our community’s thriving entrepreneurial ecosystem.

September 12, 2023

Fueling Knoxville’s Entrepreneurial Excellence: Startup Day 2023 Celebrates Local Innovators

CONTACT: Hannah Whitson | hannah@piper-communications.com | (423) 408-4203 KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (Sept. 12, 2023) — Hundreds of business leaders, students and investors came together today, both in person and online, to celebrate Knoxville’s entrepreneurial ecosystem at the Innov865 Alliance’s annual Startup…

August 30, 2023

Innov865 Week 2023 Showcases Knoxville’s Vibrant Entrepreneurial Scene with 20+ Engaging Events

Contact: Hannah Whitson | hannah@piper-communications.com ⎜423-408-4203 KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (Aug. 30, 2023) – The Innov865 Alliance is gearing up for an extraordinary lineup of more than 20 events showcasing Knoxville’s entrepreneurial ecosystem during its annual Innov865 Week, set to run from Sept. 8  to 15. The spotlight event…

July 25, 2023

Decade of Innovation: Innov865 Alliance Announces Six Pitchers for Startup Day 2023

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (July 25, 2023) – The Innov865 Alliance is proud to unveil an impressive lineup of entrepreneurs to take the stage at Startup Day, the signature event of Innov865 Week (Sept. 8 – 15).  The event will take place…


More articles →

Keep up-to-date

Sign up for the latest Innov865 news, emails, and event notices. We’ll update you on how the Innov865 Alliance is continuing to develop, support, and promote the Knoxville region’s entrepreneurial ecosystem.

"*" indicates required fields

Name*

Copyright © 2023 Innov865 Alliance. Contact Us