WAPT got great footage and interviews to help us get the word out about Accelerate 2019, with a focus on entrepreneurship and job creation in the state of Mississippi. Despite sub-freezing morning temperatures, we were thrilled at the capacity attendance and vibrant energy at Accelerate 2019 at the Westin Jackson this…
The 2019 Mississippi New Venture Challenge Pitch Competition saw startup companies from all over the state of Mississippi pitch their companies in one of three categories based on their company's current status: Pre-Revenue, Post-Revenue and Student. First place winners were MiCare Path (Pre-Revenue), EasyKale, LLC (Post-Revenue), and Crystal Game Works…
The Mississippi Seed Fund has invested $100,000 in Lobaki, a startup company that creates Extended Reality content for industry, healthcare and military applications. [Jackson, Miss.] Lobaki, Inc. is in a somewhat unique position for a startup technology company—it already has plenty of clients. Instead of seeking seed funding for sales…
Atmospheric farming—using photosynthesis to turn carbon into cellulose for products—could be the next step for Reactive Surfaces, a company that specializes in adding unique biology to coatings and sealants.For a number of years now, Reactive Surfaces has been able to do something very interesting with coatings, including the paint you…
Liza Cirlot Looser, founder and CEO of The Cirlot Agency, has been appointed Chair of the Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship Advisory Board at The University of Mississippi. The Ole Miss School of Business formed the CIE to provide students with the knowledge, skills, and experience to become successful entrepreneurs…
(Jackson, Miss.) The U.S. Small Business Administration has awarded Innovate Mississippi $125,000 to assist Mississippi research-oriented companies in getting SBIR/STTR Grants to develop and bring their research to market. MS-FAST (The Mississippi - Federal and State Technology Partnership), which is led by Innovate Mississippi and The University of Southern Mississippi…
JACKSON, Mississippi - Leaders from ten Mississippi counties recently completed Entergy Mississippi-sponsored ACT "bootcamps" that provided the training needed for their counties to become certified ACT Work Ready communities. The ACT program seeks to close the skills gap through workforce development, giving communities that are ACT-certified an edge when competing…
Jackson entrepreneur, attorney and former Innovate Mississippi board member Toni D. Cooley has added another distinction to her portfolio. The Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta has appointed her to the board of directors of its New Orleans branch. As a branch director, she provides economic information to the district bank’s…
Emerging from thousands of competitors, Jackson-based EasyKale Labs LLC has made it to the final round of Pepperdine Graziadio Business School’s “Most Fundable Companies” competition. EasyKale Labs was co-founded by Bilal Qizilbash and Richard A. Sun, CFA, both of whom were named 2019 Mississippi Top Entrepreneurs by the Mississippi Business…
Brady Hoggard, founder and CEO of Sonido Software, has two strong passions—startup entrepreneurship and music. Originally from Utah, Brady relocated to Oxford, Miss., following the acquisition of a previous software company. Being with a startup technology company from early stages through a successful exit was an exciting way to spend…