With how aggressive this cancer can be, scientists from Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), the University of Tennessee, Knoxville and UT Health Science Center knew all hands on deck were needed to try to explore treatment innovation. They have joined forces under an initiative called DART (Development and Advancement of Radiopharmaceutical Therapies), just one of five current convergent research initiatives of the University of Tennessee–Oak Ridge Innovation Institute (UT-ORII).

“When ovarian cancer goes metastatic, there are not really a whole lot of options,” said Sandra Davern, who leads ORNL’s Radioisotope Research and Development Section in the Isotope Science and Engineering Directorate. “This is a unique cancer that needs a lot of attention and is not really getting it.”

But now, there’s a sense of new hope with this crew dedicating their time to advancements.

The basic idea

The team is developing radiopharmaceutical drugs that can find cancer cells in the body and deliver a tiny, targeted dose of radiation directly to them. The radiation comes from alpha particles — a type of energy that only travels a few cell-widths before stopping. This is exactly where the team is spending their time.

“Targeted alpha therapy is uniquely suited to this disease pattern because alpha particles travel only a few cell diameters, delivering highly potent, localized DNA damage without harming nearby healthy organs,” said Junming Yue, a professor at UT Health Science Center’s College of Medicine.

In other words, the radiation hits the tumor hard and stops before it can damage anything else. Plus, initial studies indicate that the alpha therapy treatments could be effective in patients who have become resistant to beta therapy.

Tennessee ties

Having this initiative centralized through ORNL makes sense. ORNL has been producing medical isotopes for decades. It already supplies actinium-225, used in cancer clinical trials around the world, and actinium-227, the raw material behind an FDA-approved prostate cancer drug.

But the deep expertise in cancer biology from the UT researchers takes this one step further. One is studying how chromosomes change shape inside cancer cells, which quickens tumor growth and treatment resistance. Another has spent years building cancer cell and mouse models specifically for testing new ovarian cancer drugs.

“We anchored our proposal on the strengths we have in Tennessee, but also the problems of high cancer rates and lower outcomes,” Davern said. “Together, we can potentially do something that’s bigger than any one institution can do.”

A “Radiopharmaceutical Corridor” 

The primary goal is to create a viable treatment option and improve the chance of survival. But an overarching goal is to also develop a “Radiopharmaceutical Corridor” in Tennessee.

UT-ORII is hiring a Governor’s Chair in Nuclear Medicine to lead high-profile research and work collaboratively with a growing network of radioisotope and radiochemistry researchers through DART. ORNL has already hired four dedicated scientists in computing and isotopes, while the UT Health Sciences Center has brought on three researchers and UT has made its first related hire.

Davern sees the corridor as a natural fit with the state’s broader energy ambitions.

“The workforce that we can build around radiopharmaceutical development and radioisotope production aligns quite well with the workforce that is required for nuclear energy,” she said. “But we know partnerships are really important to make things happen. We’re uniting for impact. We’re tackling cancer through collaboration.”

Vanderbilt University Medical Center is already on board, working with the team to automate how radiation doses are prepared and delivered to patients. More hospitals, universities and companies are expected to join.

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For example, the new computing capacity gives Tech a competitive edge when it comes to obtaining federal research grants, doctoral talent, and private-public industry partnerships.

GENESIS was commissioned by Tech’s Advanced Scalable Computing, Extreme Networks and Data (ASCEND) Center, which is the university’s hub for high-performance computing and AI infrastructure research. The Center is led by Anthony Skjellum, who also serves as one of Tech’s professors of computer science.

Built across 27 server nodes and 108 AMD Instinct MI300A accelerated processing units, GENESIS can run more than 13 quadrillion calculations per second. It is built to handle workloads across engineering simulation, large-scale machine learning, AI-driven threat analysis, environmental modeling, smart manufacturing, and materials science.

“High-performance computing makes AI possible,” Skjellum said. “GENESIS offers our researchers the ability to work directly with a world-class computing system that equips them to win major federal grants, attract outstanding doctoral students and become go-to partners for national laboratories and industry leaders.”

Where the system lives is equally valuable to the Upper Cumberland region. GENESIS will be housed at Tennessee Tech’s Crossville Research Center, which the university envisions as the seed of a high-technology research park serving Upper Cumberland and Middle Tennessee.

The idea is to cluster academic researchers, companies, federal partners, and startups in one place. It’s a model that has been successfully executed, and in turn reshaped regions elsewhere in the state. One example being the University of Tennessee Research Park at Cherokee Farms in Knoxville.

“By anchoring the Crossville Research Center with world-class computing infrastructure, Tech is creating a collaborative campus where university researchers, technology companies, federal agency partners and startups work side by side on the frontier problems of AI, computing, cybersecurity and data science,” said Terry Saltsman, Tech’s chief government affairs officer and director of the Crossville Research Center.

It’s a big deal for Tech students, as well. They will have hands-on access to a similar instrument that national labs and major tech employers use. It will allow Tech graduates to be even more competitive when applying to AI and advanced computing roles in Tennessee and across the nation.

“As Tennessee’s economy becomes increasingly driven by artificial intelligence, advanced manufacturing, cybersecurity and data-intensive technologies, university research infrastructure like GENESIS plays an important role in developing workforce talent, research capacity and innovation ecosystem needed to compete nationally for high-tech investment and high-wage jobs,” said Michael Aikens, acting vice president for research and economic development and executive director for the Center for Rural Innovation at Tech.

Taken together, the machine, its home in Crossville, and the talent it is meant to draw represent a single coordinated effort to convert raw computing power into research, companies, and careers rooted in the Upper Cumberland.

Learn more about GENESIS here.

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The Dorothy and Jim Kennedy Health Sciences Building was made possible in part by an $8 million gift from the Kennedy Foundation, Inc., which has been labeled the single largest donation in the UTC College of Nursing‘s history. The facility will sit at the heart of Chattanooga’s healthcare corridor, across the street from Erlanger and down the road from Parkridge Medical Center and CommonSpirit-Memorial Hospital.

Dr. Chris Smith, dean of the UTC College of Nursing and the university’s chief health affairs officer, sat down with Teknovation to discuss what the building means for students and the nursing profession.

Q: When will the building open, and what can students expect?

The building is scheduled to be completed in June 2027, and just had a topping-out ceremony. If everything goes according to plan, we’ll start fall semester classes there in August 2027. We’ll use that summer to get settled, making sure the technology is working in the classrooms and simulation centers, making sure everyone’s furniture and computers are in place. About 70% of the building will be dedicated to instruction and simulation technology.

Q: What will the expanded simulation space allow you to do that you can’t do now?

Honestly, in our current limited space, we’re already doing most of what we plan to do over there — the difference is scale. We’re going from roughly 15% simulation space to nearly 40%. That means more students moving through simulation experiences at the same time.

“We’re also adding dedicated spaces we don’t have now. In the new building, we’ll have a dedicated labor and delivery suite, a dedicated emergency room, an ICU, four patient rooms that mirror what you’d actually see in a hospital, a real nurse’s station and a medication room. It’s going to be much closer in depth to what a new-to-the-workforce nurse would experience walking into Erlanger on their first day.”

“We’re increasing enrollment by about 150%, so we simply need the space to support that many more students in simulation simultaneously. Plus, the nation terribly needs more nurses.”

Q: Why does the nation, and our region, need so many more nurses?

The workforce shortage is a national issue, but it’s also felt here locally. We’re turning away qualified applicants not just because we don’t have classroom space, but because we don’t have enough faculty or clinical placement slots in acute care and primary care facilities. In Chattanooga alone, four or five nursing programs are competing for placements in the same hospitals.

“I looked at some data from the American Association of Colleges of Nursing before this conversation. Their most recent 2025 figures show that Tennessee nursing schools turned away 8,984 qualified applicants to baccalaureate and graduate nursing programs. Almost 9,000 qualified people who wanted to become nurses and couldn’t get in, despite the fact that we desperately need more nurses. If even a fraction of them had been admitted, it would put a significant dent in the shortage.”

“When we accept 40 students, and you’re number 41, you either find another school, change your major, or reapply. That’s a hard reality, and this building helps us change it. The new facility will also be open to other working nurses and healthcare systems for continuing education opportunities and workforce development partnerships, which will greatly help.”

Q: How is emerging technology — VR, AI, advanced mannequins — shaping what you’re able to teach?

We’re going to have a dedicated VR space that supports immersive experiences you simply can’t replicate in a traditional classroom. Students will be able to observe a surgery in an OR without ever leaving campus. We originally designed the VR space for our nurse anesthesia students, but as the building has taken shape, we’ve seen opportunities to use it across all of our programs.

“The simulation mannequins themselves are remarkable now. I was down in the simulation lab just this morning, and I watched a faculty member, Dr. Chris Doneski, have a conversation with one of the mannequins. He introduced himself, asked the mannequin its name, and asked what was wrong. The mannequin responded in real time. It wasn’t pre-programmed responses. That’s AI-supported verbal interaction combined with voice-tracking technology.”

“These mannequins can have seizures, strokes, cardiac events, anaphylactic reactions, and respiratory failure. When I went through my BSN program a very long time ago, I completed my entire OB rotation without witnessing a birth. We now have a mannequin that labors and delivers a neonate, and students must be present for the delivery and perform the full postpartum assessment of both mother and newborn. Being able to practice that in an environment where a wrong decision isn’t life or death is invaluable.”

Q: Can you give an example of a simulation making a real difference for a student?

One of our anesthesia students was practicing in a simulation. The simulated patient developed malignant hyperthermia, a serious medical emergency in anesthesia that a practitioner might see once in a career, if ever. The student did not know what to do since it was such a rare thing, and the simulated patient died on the OR table. Our team debriefed about it extensively — what they should have done instead and how to be better prepared if that situation ever arose again.

“That student recently came back to see me. He told me he had been in a real OR that week for his clinical rotations when a patient developed malignant hyperthermia. He, a student, was able to manage the patient through the event and the patient survived. The anesthesiologist asked how he knew what to do, because the anesthesiologist himself had never seen a case before. The student was able to say that he learned it in our simulation lab.”

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But what you may not know is that Richardson spent decades building a successful federal career in Washington, D.C. He relocated to Knoxville to pursue what he calls the “next expression” of his career, spending the past year diving into the community, identifying gaps, and meeting people.

Now he’s ready to offer that expertise through his newly launched business, Hard Knox Life Advisory.

A Tennessee Homecoming

For Richardson, coming to Knoxville was like returning to his roots. He was born and raised in the Southwest Virginia and Northeast Tennessee region and has family in Knoxville.

“I’m Appalachian born and Appalachian raised, and this business advisory that I’m starting is really about Appalachia. How can I advance the region?” Richardson said. “I’m in the last stage of my career, and at this point, I’m really just focused on giving back.”

He said Knoxville has been a refreshing change of pace from the nation’s capital. People in East Tennessee, Richardson noted, care deeply about building relationships and trust.

“As someone who loves connecting with people, I’ve really just been like a duck in the water this past year,” he said.

Never letting a crisis go to waste

After graduating from the University of Mary Washington with a dual degree in geography and political science, Richardson moved from Appalachia to D.C. to work as a technologist in private industry. He spent about 10 years on geographic information systems and mapping until his company was acquired in 2008.

“At that time, during the recession, I pivoted toward wanting a federal position, since those positions were the most secure,” he said. “I landed with the Minerals Management Service within the Department of the Interior.”

While most candidates would spend months learning the role, Richardson was thrown into the deep end. Soon after he was hired, the Deepwater Horizon rig exploded, burned for about 36 hours, sank, and spilled an estimated 200 million gallons of crude oil into the Gulf of Mexico over 87 days.

Talk about a crisis. And Richardson’s bureau was the point agency mitigating it.

“There’s an old saying that you can never let a crisis go to waste, and essentially, I was able to prove myself in a very short period of time,” he said. “I was thrown in the deep end in a major, major, major way. And that was the catalyst that set my career on an entirely different trajectory.”

Richardson worked his way up to chief of staff for strategic resources within the bureau, then became deputy associate director for natural hazards at the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS).

There, he oversaw the nation’s natural hazards portfolio, such as earthquakes, volcanoes, landslides, and coastal and marine hazards.

“That was really rewarding work, because we were touching millions of people,” he said.

One project Richardson helped bring to life at the USGS is ShakeAlert, which is now operational across the West Coast. The earthquake early warning system monitors for significant quakes and pushes alerts to nearby cellphones, warning residents that strong shaking is imminent.

Bringing that system to the public required multi-tiered cross-organizational work from scientific assessments and research, to emergency management planning, communication, rollout strategy, and public education. Richardson enjoyed leading the assembly and coordination of those pieces into a single, unified strategic vision.

The next expression

“I’ve been a technologist, I’ve been a research scientist, I’ve been a program analyst, I’ve been an executive, and now I’m going down the entrepreneurial route. I feel like I’m the best version of myself right now, like I have so much to offer at this stage of my career,” Richardson said.

His advisory launched this spring to help organizations turn complex ideas into action.

“Organizations don’t lack for ideas. What they lack is the ability to execute those ideas because of factors like tools, skills, experience, or the size of their teams,” Richardson said.

Hard Knox Life Advisory is intentionally industry- and sector-agnostic, with support for corporations, nonprofits, small businesses, academia, and regional partners. Richardson focuses on the problems a client faces: his services fit organizations that are scaling, navigating change management, realigning leadership, exploring new verticals, or restructuring.

“I feel like I can be a connective tissue amongst all these entities to help advance the region in a meaningful way,” he said.

His approach is much more diagnostic than a traditional fractional COO or consultant. Richardson said he approaches advisory work like a field geographer approaches a new landscape: he maps the system first. He figures out the people, the institutions, the gaps, and the friction before parachuting in with answers.

His website offers a series of sample assessments that Richardson built to help potential clients understand the gaps in their organization, including the Change Mirror, the Hard Knox Diagnostic (an organizational leadership diagnostic), and the Root Cause Report.

Richardson is eager to get to work, solve problems, and make a net-positive impact on the Appalachian region.

“This is the next expression of my career, and it feels right to do it in the region I call home,” he said.

Learn more about Hard Knox Life Advisory.

Connect with Trent Richardson.

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The cohort represents 16 public and private schools across the region. Priority was given to active K–12 teachers within commuting distance of Chattanooga to support in-person collaboration and classroom follow-through, but selection proved to be a tough decision due to such large interest.

“Chattanooga came in strong for its first year,” said Lillian Brunacini, QCaMP 2026 Program Manager. “We saw real enthusiasm from educators who are eager to learn, collaborate, and think creatively about how quantum concepts can be introduced in accessible ways for students. That level of engagement says a lot about the momentum already building in the region.”

Participating schools include:

• Brainerd High School
• Chattanooga Christian School
• Chattanooga Girls Leadership Academy
• Chattanooga School for the Arts and Sciences
• Collegedale Academy
• Girls Preparatory School
• Hamilton County Virtual School
• Howard School
• Hunter Middle School
• McMinn County High School
• Red Bank Elementary, Middle, and High School
• Signal Mountain Middle School
• Soddy Daisy Middle School
• University High at UTC

Building the quantum talent pipeline

The QCaMP initiative, scheduled for June 22–26, 2026, at The University of Tennessee Chattanooga (UTC), targets the very beginning of the talent pipeline: the educators. 

By providing teachers with a $500 stipend for completing the course (and an additional $500 if they choose to implement learnings into their classroom), the goal is to foster teacher confidence so that the future workforce is quantum-literate at the K-12 level, rather than being introduced to the concepts for the first time at university.

“Supporting educators with access to high-quality professional development is a reflection of Hamilton County Schools’ commitment to investing in educator learning,” said Hamilton County Schools Chief Academic Officer Blake Freeman. “QCaMP provides our educators with the opportunity to engage with innovative ideas and strategies that foster engaging learning environments and prepare students to be life-ready after graduation.”

UTC Chancellor Lori Bruce agreed. “Part of UTC’s role in this work is helping connect research, education, and workforce development in ways that are meaningful for our region. These educators represent an important bridge between emerging technologies and the students who will eventually shape how they’re used,” she said.

Why Chattanooga?

Chattanooga is the ideal host for such a selective program due to an existing quantum ecosystem that few other mid-sized, or even large, cities can match. 

The city offers EPB’s Quantum Network, the first commercially available quantum computing and networking hub in the U.S.

UTC has also recently launched their new Nanoengineering Center. This center supports the materials, nano-enabled fabrication and predictive modeling that make quantum technologies practical.

But what truly sets the city apart is how these quantum community partners talk to one another. The Chattanooga Quantum Collaborative brings together UTC, EPB, CO.LAB and others to showcase how a city can align its utility, academic and entrepreneurial sectors for innovation.  

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We interviewed Dr. Stephen Marshall, founder of AMC, professor at ETSU and chief marketing officer of the ETSU Research Corporation, to get his insights on this initiative.

An industry in need of infrastructure

The recent census found that the Appalachian region generates $75.9 million annually in music-related economic activity, supports 503 jobs and accounts for $22.8 million in direct earnings.

But, 86% of regional music professionals said they relied entirely on DIY learning, nearly 70% said they needed audience development and marketing tools, and 59% said they wanted a community-based, collaborative organization to help address those needs.

AMC was formed to answer this call, as showcased in the above video. At its core, AMC is a digital community and education portal that provides live and virtual professional programming.

Members gain access to audience development tools, marketing resources, licensing guidance, insurance options, revenue strategies and policy advocacy for free — the kinds of professional infrastructure that exist in major music markets like Nashville, but have largely been absent across Appalachia.

A current vendor partnership in development includes a telehealth option priced at $75 per month for creative workers. AMC is also pursuing Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC) grants to extend resources to 18 coal-impoverished counties across all three states, where access to creative economy infrastructure is most limited.

AMC will take a small percentage of transactions when platform partners provide services to members, allowing the organization to reinvest revenue back into the community.

“I want to make a profit because I want to be able to put that money back into the community. I want folks to be able to get jobs. I want the economy and tourism to thrive,” explained Marshall. “When you think of the Appalachian region, you think of the bigger places like Bristol, Johnson City, and Kingsport. But you can’t forget about places like Elizabethton, Abingdon, Unicoi and Erwin. This is where a regional business model will give a greater, impactful footprint.”

Heritage, the next generation, and a once-in-a-century moment

AMC’s vision board has lots on the horizon, but a main initiative is already live.

AMC has been working with the City of Bristol, TN on a monthly showcase series called Bristol Sessions Nights, held in the historic LC King building. The events are designed to honor the 1927 Bristol Sessions, which gave rise to country and bluegrass music. Programming ranges from tributes to the Carter Family to a spotlight on younger emerging artists, and the first session debuted last month.

“We are thrilled to support the hard work of the City of Bristol, TN to make sure we’re telling the story of who we are today and how yesterday is still influencing tomorrow. We can showcase a lot of younger up-and-comers, but do that within the context of the historic sessions,” said Marshall.

The series is a runway to a full festival presented by the City of Bristol, TN l that will take place in May 2027, marking the 100th anniversary of the original sessions.

Developing the next generation of music industry professionals is equally central to AMC’s strategy.

In the fall, ETSU students will be embedded across AMC’s operations, contributing to storytelling, building a comprehensive regional music calendar and supporting content and marketing work for musicians. For the municipalities, AMC students will help determine the economic, tourism and workforce impact of these efforts. The goal is to streamline.

“We have some major folks that are super talented that just don’t know what they don’t know. Our role is to go, ‘Hey, did you know you could do this? Did you know about this tax incentive? Is there something that we could do to help you monetize your space or music? Helping put people in the same room to better their lives is the mission. AMC will be the coordination to get us out of silos,” said Marshall.

The state is on board

Gov. Bill Lee recently named Marshall and Ron Roach, Marshall’s academic partner in the Department of Appalachian Studies at ETSU, to serve on the Tennessee Music Advisory Council. This state body focuses on using music as an economic, tourism and workforce driver across Tennessee.

The appointments signal that state leadership is treating the creative economy as a serious pillar of regional development, and AMC is helping to carve that path.

“I’m a musician myself. Over the past decade, the rise of gig workers and independent creative contractors has outpaced the resources available to support them. Firsthand, I know how hard it can be to navigate business formation. AI raises the stakes further, but it also makes live, in-person experiences more valuable than ever. This is what the creative economy excels at. We want to create a sustainable model with AMC that elevates our region to a place it’s never been before and makes people want to come here because they know that they can create here while making a living,” ended Marshall.

Explore the Appalachian Music Collective site here. View the AMC one-pager here.

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Hosted by wellknown Silicon Valley venture capitalist Tim Draper in partnership with LaunchTN, the global competition had founders pitching live to a panel of celebrity guest judges for a chance at a life-changing $1 million investment.

“We’ve long-watched ‘Meet the Drapers’ travel the world showcasing the brightest and most innovative companies. As a thriving innovation ecosystem and center for entrepreneurship, we know there’s no better place for the global tour to wrap than Nashville. As we kick off our countdown to our September 3686 conference, this is another high-impact opportunity to feature Tennessee’s startup community to the world,” reflected LaunchTN CEO Lindsey Cox.

What Tennessee startups competed?

• EVRcool (Knoxville): A recent PYA Ballard Innovation Award winner, EVRcool is a chiller manufacturer that is revolutionizing process cooling with the most reliable, serviceable, efficient and scalable chillers in the market.
• Brook (Nashville): Focused on modern community banking, Brook connects customers with capital, service providers and other custom resources to grow businesses.
• Hera Health (Memphis): Biotech company specializes in a proprietary nanotechnology drug delivery platform to make therapeutics more effective and long-acting.
• Rebel Audio (Nashville): An innovative, agentic, AI-driven platform allowing podcasters to create, host, distribute and monetize their creations.

Which Tennessee startup advanced?

Nashville served as the final stop on the global tour before the finale, and the Tennessee startup community didn’t disappoint. Audience energy ran high, and for good reason: viewers held real power in this competition, casting votes for their favorite venture while the celebrity panel weighed in with expert feedback.

While Hera Health took home the official advancement spot, the top three companies with the most viewer votes throughout the entire tour will also have the opportunity to pitch during the season finale. That means there’s still a chance for EVRcool, Brook and Rebel Audio to head to the finale.

Production is reviewing the viewer votes, but once that information is in, this article will be updated if any Tennessee startups are selected to advance.

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With TVA’s service region experiencing one of the most significant periods of investment and economic growth in decades, the board announced that 3,770 megawatts of new capacity is currently under construction to keep pace.

This is enough capacity to power more than 2.1 million homes.

“TVA employees have continued to deliver on our mission of service, providing reliable electricity during rising demand, keeping our region’s electricity rates nationally competitive, and helping to grow our regional economy,” said Interim President and CEO Mike Skaggs.

How much of this new capacity will support Tennessee?

For Tennessee, the headline projects are Cumberland and Kingston.

In Roane County, the 1,500 MW Kingston Energy Complex is also under construction as part of the transition away from the site’s long-running coal operations. Hear from Construction Manager for Major Projects, Keenon Hethcoat, in the video above on why this development is significant.

The new 1,450 MW combined-cycle Cumberland facility in Stewart County recently hit a milestone — TVA completed the initial test-fire of its new combustion turbines earlier this month, with the facility expected to be fully operational by year-end.

A smaller but notable Tennessee project is the 20 MW battery storage facility in Vonore.

Going forward, Skaggs urged that the momentum will not stop.

“TVA will focus on becoming more efficient and more nimble as we work to modernize the grid, increase reliability, improve resilience, and ensure our investments align with Valley and national needs,” he said.

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The University of Tennessee, Knoxville sophomore is the founder of Soletek, a protective TPU-based vinyl film designed to shield golf irons from turf wear and scuffing.

The origin story

Fallgren, originally from Pittsburgh, transferred to UT after a year at John Carroll University in Cleveland, where he played baseball. With more free time in Knoxville, he picked up golf and quickly saw that his brand new clubs that were given as a birthday gift were getting beat up after just a few plays.

When he got home, he assumed there would be a protective cover of some sort already on the market given that golf is an investment sport.

New iron sets realistically start at $600, and that’s considered the budget end of the market. A name-brand set can run about $1,500 for steel shafts before any custom options.

But a quick Google search turned up nothing that didn’t compromise the playing experience with residue left on the club, altered feel or skewed performance data.

“I went home, ordered materials I thought could work, did the testing and prototyping,” he said. “Seven months later, we’re getting ready to launch. I know I’m not on the PGA Tour, but it is a hobby of mine. I don’t have the funds to go out and buy a new set every single year like these guys do. There’s a lot of people like me out there that need this product.”

Early traction

The company made its first sale about a few months ago to a local simulator shop in Knoxville. Fallgren expects the simulator market to be a huge one for SoleTek, given that simulator golf is played entirely off artificial turf which beats up clubs more compared to live grass.

Fallgren has also held talks with the PGA Tour Superstore in Knoxville and is targeting demo club programs at retailers like Dick’s Sporting Goods, as well as college teams.

“These stores lose a lot of money every year because they have to resell demo clubs for less than what they paid,” Fallgren said. “With Soletek, the clubs look aesthetically new.”

Knoxville has become home

Fallgren says the city has proven to be an ideal base for his venture.

“Within a 10-mile radius of UT’s campus, there are so many golf courses,” he said. “It’s year-round golf here due to the weather.”

As a pre-law student with interests in business and patent law, he is keeping his options open — but hasn’t ruled out making Soletek his full-time focus.

“I would love for this to become a full-time thing, because this is an industry I love,” Fallgren said. “Tennessee is very small and business-friendly. It’s good to know that if this thing does take off, I can stay right here. To know that I could build a business here and not have to worry about getting taxed heavily and have a high ROI, that’s huge.”

Fallgren recently took second place at the Anderson Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation (ACEI) Graves Competition, earning $3,000.

He’s using that money to retain a patent attorney and sort through distribution logistics ahead of a late June or early July launch on Amazon and Shopify.

Connect with Gavin Fallgren on LinkedIn.

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The remaining $30 million will support a campus-wide effort to recruit world-renowned faculty across academic disciplines, furthering UT’s momentum as a leader in research, innovation, and discovery.

The university broke ground on the new state-of-the-art Haslam College of Business building in August 2024, with completion anticipated in 2027.

The Haslams’ investment will help recruit distinguished faculty and strengthen student success initiatives, graduate student scholarships, and the undergraduate honors program.

“This historic investment will build on the university’s current momentum and help continue to propel us in what our chancellor has termed a ‘rise or a drive’ to the next level,” said Haslam College Dean Stephen L. Mangum.

UTK Chancellor Donde Plowman echoed that impact.

“It is rare. It’s almost unheard of that an institution receives such a transformative investment,” she said. “Over the course of my career, I’ve observed that to be a great university, you have to have a great business, and to be a great business school, you have to be part of a great university. So the two go hand in hand, and this investment really furthers our aspirations.”

The Haslam College of Business has the largest student enrollment among UTK’s 14 colleges. It’s highly competitive, accepting students both nationally and internationally.

UT System President Randy Boyd said that this donation, in particular, which is the largest in UT System history, has put UT over the $600 million threshold for fundraising this year. That is a 20% increase for UT’s highest fundraising year on record.

“There’s no family that’s done more for the University of Tennessee. And I don’t think there’s another family that’s done more for the state of Tennessee than the Haslam family,” Boyd said.

The investment builds on Dee and Jimmy Haslam’s longstanding commitment to the university. With this latest contribution, their lifetime giving to UT now exceeds $195 million.

Dee and Jimmy Haslam both attended a media briefing about the investment on Thursday, explaining their heart behind their gift.

“We want to keep the best and brightest in the state of Tennessee, because we know if you keep the best and brightest in the state of Tennessee, you’ll see growth, and the region will grow, and the state will grow,” Dee said.

“We put a lot of time and effort into the gift, deciding exactly where it would go, and I think after a lot of hard work, we decided on a great place. And, it’s our honor to be able to do,” Jimmy said.

How will the investment shape the future?

Of the $100 million that’s being committed to the Haslam College, about one-third ($30M) is going toward the Honors Growth Program, about one-third ($30M) toward hiring eight endowed faculty, and about one-third ($30M) for student success programs. The remaining $10 million is going toward graduate student scholarships – to remove barriers and open doors to new MBAs.

The other $30 million will go toward cross-campus faculty recruitment initiatives.

Read more about the historic investment from UTK.

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As the market shifted for multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs), with Chinese prices dropping more than 80% over the last few years, Douglas and her team made a proactive call: find the best possible home for the technology rather than wait for circumstances to decide for them. That home is American Energy Technologies Company (AETC), a trusted collaborator since 2021.

“We believe this is the right next chapter for the technology we’ve spent nearly a decade building,” said Anna.

But for Knoxville, the story is bigger than the IP and technology acquisition.

The Sky Is the Limit

For some, watching SkyNano’s tech move to AETC feels like the end of a chapter here in Knoxville. But in so many ways, it’s just the beginning of one. SkyNano re-wrote the regional narrative around entrepreneurship and innovation. Anna and her team proved that technical companies could build big things, navigate complex systems, and attract serious money to advance technology.

SkyNano is the living proof that programs like Oak Ridge National Laboratory’s Innovation Crossroads and the University of Tennessee’s Spark Innovation Center are effective in incubating ideas and turning them into real businesses with proven technologies.

Talented engineers and scientists from across the country moved to Knoxville to work at the company, and many UT interns got their first real taste of entrepreneurship working in SkyNano’s Louisville labs. 

Anna has been a mentor, collaborator, and trusted voice for startups across Tennessee, including advocating for the ecosystem on a state, national, and international level.

She proved that the sky is the limit for hardtech founders in Tennessee.

How SkyNano Changed the Narrative in Knoxville

In 2017, Anna left Nashville and paused her Ph.D. program at Vanderbilt to relocate to Knoxville to join the first cohort of Innovation Crossroads at ORNL. Tom Rogers, the program’s inaugural director, said the first year was like “building a plane while flying it,” and that Anna was a perfect fit.

“We just did as much outreach as we possibly could to find pioneers, and that’s really what Anna is to me in this space. She was one of the original four pioneers,” he said.

Rogers acknowledged that all four of the inaugural companies were strong champions for the program; however, Anna quickly stood out to him as a unique connector of people and ideas.

“Some of her greatest contributions have been sharing her experiences, being the voice and face of Innovation Crossroads, and advocating for East Tennessee to be better,” he said.

Knoxville Mayor Indya Kincannon tells a story about knocking on Anna’s door during a campaign. When she asked what the city could do better, Anna didn’t hesitate.

“Wet labs… the city needs more wet labs,” Anna had said. That’s just one example of how she always took the initiative to vocalize and advocate for innovators’ needs. 

Anna graduated from Innovation Crossroads and became one of the first companies – alongside Eonix– to move into the Spark Incubator at the UT Research Park, and eventually became the first to open a commercial lab.

Rogers said a portion of the funding allocated by the city and state toward innovation and entrepreneurial programs has largely been due to success stories, like SkyNano, charting the path for others to follow in step.

“Today, there’s really a robust community of hardtech entrepreneurs in this town who help each other, and I think Anna setting the precedent made a real difference in that culture,” Rogers said.

A Voice for Tennessee Founders

Beyond the Smoky Mountains, the ripple effect of Anna’s advocacy was present on the Hill in Nashville, Washington, D.C., and beyond.

Lindsey Cox, the CEO of Launch Tennessee, said Anna never missed a mark when it came to advocating for additional funding for founders.

“I can sit in a room and tell state or federal lawmakers why these dollars are important. I can throw out numbers and metrics, but until you hear from someone like Anna, who leveraged Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) grants to scale her technology and team, you can’t really understand how life-changing this mission is,” Lindsey said.

Anna scaled the tech from a laboratory beaker to a 20,000 square foot facility. She hired a team from across the nation. She secured millions of dollars’ worth of competitive state and federal grants and contracts, without giving up equity in her company.

“Anna represents so much. She’s so dynamic. She’s a technical founder who pushed her industry forward, a CEO, a wife, a mother, an advocate for Knoxville, and an integral part of the community,” Lindsey said.

A Trusted Hand-Off for SkyNano

SkyNano’s plans to wind down operations by the end of 2026 come in the form of an acquisition by AETC, which has been a partner to SkyNano since 2021.

Most recently, in 2025, AETC worked with SkyNano and Eonix on a high-profile U.S. Air Force project, which generated fully viable CO2-derived domestic synthetic graphite for use in lithium-ion battery anodes.

“We’re grateful to know our work is passing into the hands of an organization we trust deeply,” Anna said. “That trust was built over years of working side by side, and it makes this transition one we feel good about.”

As for SkyNano’s leased space in Louisville, it is currently being transformed into the new manufacturing facility for Endeavor Composites. The founder, Hicham Ghossein, is also an Innovation Crossroads alumnus.

Still in the Game

Anna has committed to remaining involved in the Tennessee entrepreneurial ecosystem. That news was a breath of fresh air to technical founders across the state, and particularly those who graduated from the Innovation Crossroads program. Ghossein is one of those thankful founders.

“I’m glad that Anna will still be involved in the community, because her expertise adds a lot to the ecosystem and the entrepreneurship spirit. She proved that the right collaboration with the government can yield a lot of growth,” he said. 

But one of the most notable compliments on Anna’s navigation of the ecosystem over the last decade is her spirit of collaboration rather than competition.  Throughout SkyNano’s history, they led projects including Eonix, Endeavor Composites, and multiple labs across UT to bring in more funding for innovation across the region.

“Her contributions, in that respect, have really made all the difference,” Rogers added.

Even though the business chapter for SkyNano is turning a page, the foundation Anna built is a resounding expression of a new story emerging in East Tennessee: Anna and SkyNano played a huge role in transforming this ecosystem into a place uniquely suited to support the growth of innovative technology companies.

Connect with Anna Douglas.

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This builds upon EPB’s existing collaboration with UTC by expanding the access of its students and researchers to the EPB Quantum Center^SM, the nation’s first facility to offer commercial access to both quantum computing and quantum networking.

“Through this partnership, we are enhancing Chattanooga’s ability to prepare people in our region for the jobs of the future,” said UTC Chancellor Lori Mann Bruce. “By expanding access to education and research opportunities in quantum technology, we are building a workforce that can support long-term economic growth and innovation in Chattanooga and beyond.”

The partnership funding will support:

• Expanding UTC’s quantum programs across every level, from K-12 through working professionals.
• Opening new public education opportunities to help the broader community engage with quantum technology.
• Building the quantum workforce pipeline by adding 135–240 faculty, staff, and students over five years.
• Advancing research in quantum algorithms, machine learning, networking, and sensing.
• Pushing said research toward commercial applications in energy, cybersecurity, transportation, and infrastructure.

Read the full release here.

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Willers recently took the stage at the Knoxville Entrepreneur Center‘s “What’s the Big Idea” pitch competition to introduce SUBI to Knoxville’s entrepreneurial community.

Since then, he’s been pulling stunts across the region’s waterways, testing his invention and turning heads. It’s been working. With almost no marketing budget beyond him and his wife on the water with a GoPro, SUBI has gone viral, racking up close to 70,000 likes on social media videos.

What separates SUBI from earlier water bikes, Willers says, is the fandom it inspires and how it feels to ride. While floating watercraft have existed before, SUBI is the first to prioritize the aesthetics and freestyle capabilities of a traditional bike.

From BMX to Business

Willers’ path to SUBI is almost as wild as the water bike itself. A native of New Zealand, he relocated to California in 2010 to compete in BMX before retiring from the sport in 2015 and transitioning into investing and day trading.

“BMX was an adrenaline-pumping sport, and I still get that same fix from day trading to this day,” he said. “I guess I’m quite risk-averse in a sense.”

After years on the West Coast, Willers and his wife eventually landed in Knoxville.

“Believe it or not, Knoxville is very similar to New Zealand. Four seasons in any one day, nice and green most of the year, not too extreme in either direction. A lot more laid back than the California hustle,” he explained.

Wanting even more of an adrenaline rush than day trading, he dedicated 18 months to constructing the first prototype of SUBI. Initially, he was only building the bike to give himself an outlet.

However, once he got on the water, he knew there was a real business opportunity. He began sourcing materials from suppliers around the world to build a scalable product. When the products make their way to Knoxville, Willers assembles the bikes in his garage.

“I set out wanting to surf my bike. It was that simple. But then, I had so much fun I needed someone else to ride with. Boom, the business behind SUBI was born,” he said.

A market for SUBI

SUBI is positioning itself as a premium brand, a market disruptor leading a category it created. To Willers, the target customer is the wake boat owner, the avid mountain biker, the professional BMXer, and the surfer. He also sees a secondary opportunity in the resort and rental market, where well-used SUBI bikes can find a second life.

A Kickstarter campaign is about to launch, with pre-orders already in place and an estimated ship date before the end of the year. But like a true entrepreneur, Willers will never stop iterating.

“Every time I get on the bike, I get better at riding it. And every time I make a change to the bike, it allows me to ride it better,” he said. “Every time I look at it now, as good as it is, I know it’s the worst it’s ever going to be.”

To learn more, email Marc Willers or follow SUBI on Instagram.

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This year will feature visionary keynotes, two premier pitch competitions, thought-provoking panels, breakout sessions, and more.

Doors will open at 8:30 a.m. for a networking breakfast and registration. Programming will begin at 9 a.m., with lunch provided.

At the conference, six Knoxville start-ups will pitch before a live audience and panel of judges in hopes of winning the Judges’ Choice Award and the Crowd Favorite Award, totaling $15,000 in cash prizes.

Last year’s Judges’ Choice winner was Lance Adler with Witching Hour ($10,000), and the Crowd Favorite went to Joel Smith with TeachCraft ($5,000).

Applications are to be considered for that competition, as well as the Emerging Entrepreneur Pitch Competition for college student entrepreneurs or recent graduates in the past year.

Last year’s Emerging Entrepreneur winner was Katy Daniels, with the Henry Bnb.

Apply for the Pitch Competitions at this link.

Learn more about 865 Fest.

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Currently containing about 20 angels, the network exists as a connection point between UT funders and UT founders.

In early 2023, Maha Krishnamurthy was named President of the UT Research Foundation (UTRF). Reaching that appointment, however, was no easy feat. As president, Krishnamurthy leads one of the largest research foundations in the state and oversees three wholly owned subsidiaries, as well as the foundation’s broader strategic and programmatic initiatives in support of the University’s research mission. The role also carries responsibility for the foundation’s overall financial leadership and for translating UT’s innovation and discovery into products and services that advance the public good.

“I had a coffee meeting with Tom Ballard, and he challenged me to think big,” Krishnamurthy recalled. “The problem I saw most as the President of the Tech Transfer Office was that UT forms great startups, but they struggle to get money. So, I pitched the idea of an alumni venture group to UT President Randy Boyd, and he was all for it.”

After receiving a thumbs up, Krishnamurthy and her team had to go make it happen. They began benchmarking aspirational peers, exploring funding structures, and reaching out to a passionate alumni network. They also hired Robyn Geron to lead UT Ventures as its inaugural Director.

“I’m really fortunate to have a very supportive leadership like Dr. Deb Crawford, Chancellor Donde Plowman, and President Randy Boyd. I’m also thankful to have a very supportive UTRF board, but most importantly, I’m really fortunate for the founding eight members who signed up in January 2026,” Krishnamurthy said.

The founding angels

With any new idea, particularly when it involves building a collaborative network, getting the first few “yeses” is the most difficult part. Finding the founding members happened over a series of coffee conversations, dinners, and connections.

“We started with eight in January, and today, I am proud to share that we are at 20,” Krishnamurthy said. “The only major qualifications are that you have to be passionate about founders and passionate about the university, which typically means you’re an alum.”

One of those founding members is Marty Brown, the CEO of PYA, board member for the UT Research Foundation, and a long-time donor to the University of Tennessee, Knoxville.

“I wanted to become a founding member because it is a fascinating way to give back to the university, and also get involved in investment decisions, while simultaneously creating opportunities for startups,” Brown said.

It’s the first angel network that Brown has been a part of; however, it’s not his first rodeo as a funder. In addition to UT Ventures, he is one of the five founding general partners for Market Square Ventures (MSV).

“It’s an angel network, not a venture fund. So, members pay a small annual fee to be involved with the network, we bring them companies, and they get to decide if they would like to invest individually,” Krishnamurthy said.

Brown said the structure of UT Ventures was a big selling point for getting involved.

“It is a wonderful opportunity to make an investment, share the risk, and do so in a way that’s not terribly burdensome,” he said.

Searching for investable UT companies

Everywhere you look, there are University of Tennessee alums. Given that the largest UT campus is in Knoxville, many founders are graduates from the flagship campus. But, UT Ventures is a system-wide endeavor, which also includes the UT Health Science Center, UT Chattanooga, UT Southern, and UT Martin. 

To receive investment, the major qualification is that someone on the founding team must have educational ties to UT, but they can build their business anywhere in the United States. Investments have no geographic or sector focus. 

“This is actually one of the first types of venture angel investment groups within the university in the Southeastern Conference, and maybe the first that allows for investors to invest outside of the state of Tennessee,” Brown said.

The investors in the angel network are also intentionally industry agnostic about selecting companies to invest in.

“We train our students to be in every field; whether it be nuclear, human health, animal health, plant health, you name it,” Krishnamurthy said. “These students go on and form companies, it can be deep-tech, ag-tech, retail, health, who knows, there are no limits to what our alumni can do.”

However, most of the companies that the UT Ventures angel network looks at will be at the Seed to Series A stage, especially while the network is still in startup mode.

UT funders for UT Founders

The mission for UTRF is to support UT research, transfer technology from the university labs to the marketplace, grow an entrepreneurial culture across all campuses, and contribute to economic development.

“UT Ventures fits perfectly within that mission,” Krishnamurthy said.

UT Ventures is now open for business, accepting both new investor members and applications for investment. They are eager to expand the angel network and are also seeking to make their first investment.

Learn more about UT Ventures.

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A sit-down with the U.S. Deputy Secretary of Energy

To lead the conversation around Tennessee’s role in the national energy strategy, U.S. Deputy Secretary of Energy James P. Danly attended the conference’s first day.

We sat down with the Deputy Secretary to learn how the Department of Energy (DOE) is executing its Genesis Mission, and how Oak Ridge is playing a core role in it. He was effusive about Tennessee, ORNL, and the public support for DOE’s missions in East Tennessee, and his comments bore that out.

“Oak Ridge National Laboratory is one of the jewels of the national lab system. It has some of the fastest computing power in the DOE footprint, it has an extraordinary wealth of human capital, physicists, and engineers, and it also has an extremely appreciative population who loves Oak Ridge and is proud of the legacy for the United States,” Danly said.

The Genesis Mission was first announced in November 2025 at the Tennessee Advanced Energy Business Council (TAEBC) Opportunities in Energy event by the DOE Chief of Staff, Carl Coe. It was presented as a plan to connect and leverage the assets of all 17 U.S. National Labs to build one unified scientific platform for accelerated discovery. The mission, as detailed by the DOE, also aims to connect academia and private industry to help meet that strategic vision.

“We’re trying to include as many people as possible, so that we can achieve our goals as quickly as we can,” Danly said. 

It’s only been a few months since the rollout of that national objective; however, Danly said early data and collaborations have given him hope for the ambitious project. To build a unified platform, the DOE will need new data centers, more nuclear power and advanced energy to power them, and a more robust onshore supply chain.

Tennessee is focused on the nuclear pipeline

“We have been trying not just to get prototypes like small modular reactors (SMRs) to market, but also ensure that the entire ecosystem, from fuel fabrication and processing all the way to ultimate disposition, is made available. It requires different steps in the supply chain, all of which we’re trying to support simultaneously,” he explained. “We can’t do this without private enterprise and academia being part of it.”

Academia on the research side, yes. But also on the talent and workforce pipeline side of the equation. The DOE is trusting that universities can produce viable candidates to fill the highly technical roles of the future.

At the TVC Summit, Randy Boyd, president of the University of Tennessee System, participated in a workforce panel alongside university leaders from Oak Ridge Associated Universities, Chattanooga State Community College, The University of Alabama in Huntsville, Vanderbilt University, and Tennessee Tech University to discuss how nuclear workforce development is a shared, multi-state priority.

And on the private sector side, the TVC hosted a panel conversation with representatives from BWXT, TRISO-X, and Bechtel, all companies that are building the nuclear technologies of the future.

Quantum Conversations

Another field whose capabilities aren’t fully realized is quantum computing. Chattanooga has leaned into its emerging identity as a quantum hub through organizations like the Chattanooga Quantum Collaborative (CQC), led by Charlie Brock.

Between the work at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga‘s Quantum Center and the quantum network run by EPB, Chattanooga’s municipal utility, which the company bills as the first industry-led, commercially available quantum network in the U.S., the summit framed quantum as another field where the Southeast, and Tennessee specifically, can compete.

In addition to nuclear and quantum, the summit also featured conversations about national security and space.

The TVC, founded in 1995 and headquartered in Knoxville, positions itself as a coalition linking the Tennessee Valley’s federal laboratories, universities, utilities, and the private sector. Its summit has become one of the more substantive gatherings for anyone tracking the intersection of federal R&D investment, energy policy, and regional economic development in the South.

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That’s the problem Voltair is trying to solve. The San Francisco-based startup just wrapped up The Company Lab (CO.LAB) 2026 Energy Innovation Accelerator in Chattanooga. They are focused on building fixed-wing autonomous drones that can provide utility companies with regular updates on power line health.

“What we’re really trying to do is build technology that allows them to have visibility into their infrastructure,” said co-founder and Chief Growth Officer Avi Gotskind.

Gotskind explained that utilities have hundreds of miles of aging infrastructure and not nearly enough eyes on it. Voltair’s vision is to deploy autonomous drones at charging stations throughout a utility’s service area. When the utility companies need data, preventative maintenance, or even just eyes in the sky, the drones will be ready to launch and inspect lines on demand, no truck or pilot required.

Right now, they are doing this through part 107 waivers, which allow the drones to fly beyond a visual line of sight; however, Gotskind is hopeful that regulatory changes coming down the line may make it simpler for Voltair and other innovative drone companies to operate.

“Part 108 is set to be codified, which would make our processes even simpler,” he said.

The FAA originally aimed to publish the final rule by spring 2026, though a couple of extensions for public comments pushed the target. The final codified rule is realistically expected later in 2026, with implementation extending into 2027.

Voltair was one of four startup teams that participated in CO.LAB’s 2026 Energy Innovation Accelerator in Chattanooga. It was a first-of-its-kind six-week program that focused specifically on helping early-stage energy startups land real customers.

Gotskind and his other co-founders, Warren Weissbluth, Hayden Gosch, and Ronan Nopp, are focused on learning.

“We want to learn as much as possible. We want to hear the problems these utility companies are facing. We want to meet the people doing it. We want to meet the linemen, the operations team, the managers, anyone who can give us insight into the day-to-day challenges,” Gotskind said. “A drone can do a lot of things. It’s really just a flying sensor in the air. We want to learn how to best fit their needs.”

Learn more about Voltair here.

Connect with Avi Gotskind.

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This initiative aligns with Governor Bill Lee‘s Tennessee Quantum Initiative, a $43 million statewide strategy to grow quantum-focused companies, create high-wage jobs and strengthen Tennessee’s standing in advanced manufacturing, life sciences and logistics.

“The collaboration and partnerships at the center of K-Quantum will drive innovation and position both our university and our region as power players in the future of quantum systems,” said UTK Chancellor Donde Plowman. “Leveraging our expertise and capabilities to develop solutions and opportunities in Tennessee is core to our mission as the state’s flagship land-grant university.”

K-Quantum partners

The effort brings together a strong cast of regional partners: Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), CGI and quantum computing firm IonQ.

“CGI is committed to investing in the East Tennessee region through high-value careers, university partnerships, and workforce development programs that prepare talent for the future of quantum and AI-enabled industries,” said Matt Kittrell, director of consulting at CGI. “K-Quantum represents the kind of public-private collaboration that positions Tennessee for long-term economic growth and technology leadership. We are excited to help bridge research, innovation and commercialization to ensure Tennessee remains competitive in the rapidly evolving global technology landscape.”

Two new facilities

 Two significant physical investments anchor the initiative:

• A 100,000-square-foot quantum foundry to be built at the UT Research Park.
• A hybrid quantum and classical computing hub planned for Knoxville’s new Maplehurst Innovation District.

“The Maplehurst Innovation District is especially exciting because it creates a new gateway connecting our downtown and the UT campus — a place where students, researchers, startups and companies can work side by side to turn discovery into opportunity,” said Knoxville Mayor Indya Kincannon. “This initiative reflects our shared commitment to building a stronger innovation economy that attracts and retains talent, supports high-wage jobs and creates pathways for economic mobility across our community.”

Both facilities are designed for co-location of researchers and private-sector partners, with UT’s Spark Innovation Center providing startup incubation support backed by the City of Knoxville, TVA, and the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE).

The impact

Think of today’s most powerful supercomputers as extraordinarily fast calculators. They are still bound by the same binary ones and zeros outlined decades ago. Quantum computing throws out that rulebook entirely to tackle problems in a much more optimized, unbound way than what we, and traditional machines, are used to.

This opens doors to enable breakthroughs in areas like drug discovery, cryptography, secure communications and advanced manufacturing (and a ton more applications that we can’t even begin to fathom just yet).

This sentiment resonates across the region’s business community.

“We have long believed that quantum research and development is the next innovation frontier and that Tennessee, and Knoxville in particular, is perfectly positioned to leverage the technology to drive our innovation economy,” said Mike Odom, president and CEO of the Knoxville Chamber. “Our community’s assets, along with our history of deep tech leadership, provide us with a unique opportunity to build a quantum ecosystem that has significant economic impact.”

With K-Quantum’s launch, Knoxville joins Chattanooga and Oak Ridge as the three strategic nodes in Tennessee’s broader quantum build-out that will only attract more capital, talent and opportunity over time.

“The Knoxville Quantum Accelerator represents the kind of bold, forward-thinking innovation that will fuel new company creation, attract top talent and drive long-term economic growth,” said Braden Stover, senior advisor to the commissioner for nuclear and quantum strategy in the Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development (TNECD). “TNECD is proud to support this effort in alignment with the Tennessee Quantum Initiative and believe it will strengthen Tennessee’s leadership in quantum technologies while complementing the state’s broader efforts to expand this infrastructure statewide.”

Read the full release here.

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His track record through UT’s Anderson Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation (ACEI) pitch competitions includes ResQTalk, a voice-to-voice translation service designed to streamline 911 calls between callers and operators who don’t share a language, and Alert X, a campus-focused initiative to expand access to Narcan.

But Rise Alarm is really what has taken off.

What is the Rise Alarm?

Rise Alarm is a physical pod that can be placed anywhere in a home. Once an alarm goes off, it won’t stop until the user physically locates the pod and scans it with their phone, forcing them out of bed.

Gallinek’s target market: college students who need to make it to class, work or anywhere else on time.

Two things drove the idea. He’s never been great at waking up on time. Plus, he has always enjoyed building practical tools to solve problems in his own life.

But he’s the first to admit the alarm space is crowded. That’s why Rise’s early success isn’t just about the product. It’s vital who’s selling it and where.

Gallinek built his name on UT’s campus long before Rise launched, competing in pitch competitions, showing up in local news and becoming a recognizable face in the community he was trying to serve and is part of himself.

Going viral

Rise Alarm’s momentum has been hard to miss. This past spring, a viral marketing video filmed on UT’s pedestrian walkway sent sales soaring.

“January 1st through March 1st, we did $750 in sales,” Gallinek said. “March 1st through April 1st, we did $7,000. So we multiplied our sales by almost 10 times, which was pretty incredible.”

Rise also just earned first place in the Growth Category of the Graves Competition, taking home $5,000. This prize money helped the Rise team hire a marketing student. Their next marketing campaign idea is to target parents of incoming college students.

“Parents want their kids to succeed,” Gallinek said. “My parents, before my freshman year, bought me so much random stuff. If it had the slightest chance of helping me succeed in college, they bought it, thankfully. A lot of kids have that same experience with parents just wanting to support their college kid.”

Despite the momentum, Gallinek is in tune with reality.

“Alarm clocks aren’t the one idea that’s going to retire my family,” he said. “I see it as an opportunity to learn along the way. I’ll make a couple extra bucks and it was fun. But I do see myself being an entrepreneur for life, whatever that means.”

This kind of self-awareness and his passion for building has led him to pivot to his most technical venture idea yet.

Introducing Reefy

Gallinek has long wanted to compete in Red Bull Basement, a global innovation competition. He applied last year and didn’t make it. When he looked back at past winners, he saw a pattern. Nearly all businesses that made the cut had a sustainability angle, but Rise doesn’t.

“I’m a big scuba diver,” he said. “I was talking to a dive instructor about how messed up the ocean has become over the past 10 years. I went home and did a bunch of research on coral reefs. Over the past 10 years, 70% of the coral reef on this planet has died, and it’s continuing to increase at an exponential rate.”

During this research, he learned of a promising coral reef restorative method called acoustic enhancement. You play the sounds of a healthy reef near a dying one, and marine life will be drawn back to it. While the science behind acoustic enhancement has been validated, the problem is scale.

Reefy aims to solve that through a networked, AI-powered smart approach.

“When I say smart, what I mean is that there is a pod,” Gallinek explained. “The pod is an underwater speaker with an AI brain and a microphone in it. You drop it at a coral reef, then another one at the next reef, then another one down the way. You get all of these spread across the planet.”

The pods play sounds, listen and communicate. Reef A can learn from Reef B, comparing which sounds are working, at what times of day, in what climate conditions, at what depths.

“Over time, because there’s a giant network of them and it becomes this AI brain, maximizing the recovery cycle for each individual reef based on hundreds of factors,” he said.

Early proof points

Reefy didn’t win Red Bull Basement, but just making it to the stage was huge. Out of 24,000 applicants, Gallinek was selected as a top-60 semifinalist and then advanced to the top 15, presenting at nationals in Detroit earlier this month.

Two days after posting about Reefy on LinkedIn, a family friend who lives in the Cayman Islands reached out asking for a pitch deck to send to the head of marine research there.

For an idea still in the concept phase, these are meaningful signals. Still, Gallinek knows there is still a hill to climb.

“I’m not a marine biologist and I’m not an engineer,” he said. “And those are the two things needed for this. I had the idea, now how do we move to the next step of it?”

He’s looking for collaborators, advisors and connections who can help bridge that gap.

Connect with Max Gallinek on LinkedIn.

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The event was, by design, a small one. The invite described it as “a curated gathering of a select group of leaders designed for meaningful conversation and connection,” and the room reflected that — roughly 40 attendees made up of officials, angel investors, and ecosystem builders.

Think Mina Sartipi, interim vice chancellor for research at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga; Lindsey Cox, CEO of LaunchTN; and Jay Shaffer of Venture South, to scratch the surface.

Barry Grove, CO.LAB’s Chief Commercial Officer (CCO), opened the reception by welcoming guests to what he described as a true networking space built for real connection, not business card swapping.

Keynote

The keynote came from David Wade, CEO of EPB. Given the cohort’s energy focus and CO.LAB’s reputation for pairing start-ups with industry partners, the choice made sense.

Wade’s message centered on his own journey in energy. He explained that those in the industry are trained to prioritize safety above all else. After all, you’re often working with live voltage. But that instinct can become a barrier to innovation. Instead, leaders have to be willing to fall and get back up.

EPB’s decision to lean into fiber when others weren’t is what ultimately led to the company being tapped for history-making quantum initiatives. Wade credited his predecessor for inspiring him to never settle for the status quo, a sentiment he shares with the founders in the room, who are always pushing boundaries.

Pitches

Bryan Barringer, CO.LAB’s program director, then facilitated the pitch portion of the evening. Rather than just standard stand-and-deliver pitches, each started with a sit-down, conversational interview between Barringer and the founder.

The rationale: investing isn’t just about the business model. It’s about getting a read on the person behind it. Guests heard about backstories, past careers and candid first impressions of Chattanooga. All founders, for the record, had great things to say about the city and this program.

CubeNexus

Steven Brandt, co-founder and CEO of CubeNexus, kicked off the pitches. This real-time decision intelligence platform organizes complex spatial data into a 4D map of space and time — spanning from underground infrastructure to the sky. Brandt’s inspiration behind the company grew from his time in the military, where he saw firsthand the need for this kind of spatial data software.

He came into the room with $200,000 in active traction. They raised $650,000 a year ago and are currently working on a $4 million round. Brandt made a direct ask to the room: Tennessee isn’t yet on their map for active traction, but he wants to change that.

Rassket

Sankung Fatty built Rassket, which he describes as the end of manual energy forecasting, out of San Francisco. A proud Gambian, Fatty has spent his career focused on expanding access to reliable energy — a mission shaped in part by the reality that some remote villages in Gambia still lack power and basic resources. His business partner, who described himself as an “Army brat” and diplomat, shares a similar worldview.

As of this week, the company entered conversations with Silicon Ranch, has 42 active users and recorded a strong month of signed revenue.

OwnWatt

OwnWatt founder Yingchen “YC” Zhang built a gamified mobile platform designed to help everyday people understand and reduce their energy use. The app uses data and predictive modeling to help users cut costs and lower their carbon footprint. Mentors in the accelerator took to calling him a “humble expert” — noting that Zhang nearly got through six weeks before anyone realized he had a long list of published academic citations to his name.

His goal is to make energy conservation feel less like homework and more like a game. The platform can sell to individual consumers and to utilities, which have long struggled with customer engagement. Zhang is raising a $2 million seed round, with plans to scale pilots and, eventually, make OwnWatt’s penguin mascot as recognizable as the Duolingo owl.

Voltair Labs

Co-founder Avi Gotskind was supposed to take the mic for Voltair Labs, but as Barringer explained, he went so hard this past week that he ended up in the ER. Barringer said that all is well, and that this level of dedication says a lot about him and his startup. Barringer stepped in to pitch on his behalf.

Voltair Labs uses drones for routine power line inspections, putting critical, actionable data directly in the hands of utility companies and field technicians. But, this isn’t your standard drone. Barringer has watched the third model iteration come to life over the past few weeks, and it’s designed for tough weather and long distances. The company came to Chattanooga fresh off completing the well-known Y Combinator.

Closing

Rather than a typical Q&A portion after each pitch, the reception concluded with open conversation. CO.LAB intentionally sent guests straight to the founders to ask their questions one-on-one — a format meant to spark the kind of local connections that could eventually bring these companies further into the Tennessee ecosystem.

For more information on these founders and startups, email Bryan Barringer.

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