Stories of Technology, Innovation, & Entrepreneurship in the Southeast

Less than a week after Oak Ridge National Laboratory welcomed the 2024 cohort of its “Innovation Crossroads” (IC) program (see separate teknovation.biz article here), the Spark Cleantech Accelerator did the same on Monday afternoon for its third cohort.

And as was the case last year, the two cohorts will participate in joint programming over the next three months focused on three key areas plus preparing for the final pitch which will occur at a “Demo Day” during the annual “Opportunities in Energy” forum hosted by the Tennessee Advanced Energy Business Council. Those broad topics are:

• Product development, led by Knoxville serial entrepreneur Bill Malkes, who said it was about proving your technology works;
• Business model and go-to-market strategies, led by John Bruck, Co-Founder of the Spark Innovation Center and a General Partner in Market Square Ventures; and
• Finances, led by Carol Seamons, a long-time banker, who explained that the goal was to have the participants understanding their finances and accounting, so they were able to “talk more comfortably” about those areas.

A total of 13 entrepreneurs introduced their companies briefly during the afternoon session, and many were already well-known in the local community. Two of them – Nick Sokol’s Algaeo and Vinit Chaudhary’s Aligned Composites Technology – were in last year’s Spark Cleantech Accelerator and are now participants in the IC program. Two others – Daniel Clark’s 3D Solar and Lance Adler’s Witching Hour – just completed the final cohort of the “Techstars Industries of the Future Accelerator” in early June and wanted more of what the community had to offer.

Three of the six start-ups in the Spark Cleantech Accelerator hail from Knoxville, and four of the seven in the latest IC cohort are from Knoxville. In our opinion, that shows the growing strength of the local start-up community.

During a brief around the room discussion, each of the participants described her or his start-up as well as what they hoped to achieve during the 12 weeks of joint programming. Several said they were focused on their business model in one way or another while others talked about their financial plan and at least one was focused on marketing.

Sokol had the best line of the afternoon, saying he wanted to “master the psychology of sales.”

Much of the week through Thursday will be devoted to understanding the role of mentors, pitching to those mentors and speed dating with them, the first pitch training session, and one on legal issues and considerations.

Participants from the IC program, other than those already mentioned, include:

• Katy Bradford is from Decatur, GA where her company named Cassette Construction is studying bio-based extruded wall and floor system panels.
• Jordan Cannon from Knoxville, and his company named Circular Biosciences is studying the integration of enzymes into Poly-L-Lactic Acid for enhanced biodegradability.
• Brian Iezzi from Asheville, NC whose company named Fibarcode is focused on integrated photonic fiber barcodes for unique and durable digital labeling.
• Kevin Roccapriore is from Knoxville and is researching scalable atomic quantum computer systems through his company named AtomQ Inc.
• Tim Vosburgh wants to relocate his start-up named Coulomb Technology and currently located in Meridian, ID to Knoxville to continue his focus on rechargeable Zinc-Ion batteries for energy storage.

Other participants in the Spark Cleantech Accelerator are:

• Bing Cao, another Knoxvillian, whose company named Z18 Engineeringhas developed recyclable magnetic nanoparticles (RMNPs) coated with an Amine-PEG ligand to eliminate PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances) from water, wastewater, and sludge.
• Rachid Essehli, also from Knoxville, is the Founder of American Advanced Membrane Technology, a clean technology company dedicated to providing zero-waste lithium-ion battery recycling and providing the highest quality advancements in environmentally friendly process manufacturing.
• Subathra Rajendran from Kettering, OH whose company named IonTech develops cutting-edge sodium-ion battery technology, offering a sustainable, affordable, and safer alternative to traditional lithium-ion batteries.
• Brian Washington from Knoxville whose start-up named AluminAiry is focused on aluminum-air battery technology for electric vehicle (EV) applications.

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