INNOVATE® Nashville

Innovations of the World

INNOVATE® Nashville

Nashville – Music City, the capital city of the state of Tennessee is rightfully known as the hometown of country music, the birthplace of bluegrass, and the city with the highest concentration of music industry establishments in the nation, celebrating four times more music industry employment than any other US city.

But it’s that and MUCH more! Recently voted as the 11th best place to start a business in the USA, Nashville is a hub of innovation and entrepreneurship. It has a thriving retail, automotive, and healthcare industry, and a growing tech hub, with notable organizations like Amazon, Oracle, and Facebook investing in the city.

This city, rich in history, culture, and entertainment just topped the list of the Wall Street Journal’s 2022 hottest job markets. Developments in connectivity, infrastructure and transportation will ensure that Nashville remains one of the best cities in the US to live, work, and play.

INNOVATE® Nashville showcases and profiles the innovators and innovation enablers that are contributing to the dynamic innovation ecosystem drawing talent, industry and investment to the city.

Featured Thought Leaders

Featured Thought Leaders

Featured Innovators

Featured Innovators

Nashville Stars

Building a Brand, Creating a Venue, Inspiring a City

When the story of Nashville’s first Major League Baseball franchise is finally written, one theme will stand above the rest: innovation. Music City Baseball (MCB), the local ownership foundation behind the Nashville Stars, has approached the challenge of bringing MLB to Tennessee with a strategy that goes beyond the traditional...

MobiusAI

Equipping Fleets for the Next Generation of Mobility

In the transportation industry every extra minute and every extra mile eats away at a fleet’s profit. MobiusAI is helping fleets operate at their best. The industry struggles with inefficient planning, outdated software, and razor-thin margins, but Mobius is using AI to empower fleets for excellence. From Research to Real-World...

FIRSTBANK

FIRSTBANK-PAVING THE WAY FOR A NEW WAVE

PAVING THE WAY FOR A NEW WAVE

It’s not often you hear about companies that thrive for over a century, but FirstBank, from its humble start in rural West Tennessee in 1906 continues to evolve and conquer 117 years later. From its original mission of serving a small-town farming community, FirstBank, headquartered in Nashville, Tennessee with a...

Holland & Knight

Service Without Boundaries

Founded in 1889, Holland & Knight is a global law firm with more than 2,200 lawyers and other professionals in 35 offices throughout the world. The Firm’s lawyers provide representation in litigation, business, real estate and governmental law. Interdisciplinary practice groups and industry-based teams provide clients with efficient access to...

BluWave

Expertly Connecting Businesses with Best-in-Class Solutions

When business leaders face high-stakes decisions, they don’t have the luxury of time or guesswork. BluWave was built precisely for these moments. Founded by private equity veteran Sean Mooney, BluWave is a groundbreaking market network that expertly connects business leaders with the exact specialized third-party advisory firms, technology solutions, and...

All American Sitters

Redefining Childcare

In an industry often viewed as a basic necessity rather than a specialized service, All American Sitters has emerged as a true innovator in the world of childcare. Founded by Mrs. Teresa Bowens, a professional with more than two decades of hands-on experience, the company has transformed the way families...

CIRCA

BRANDING THAT DRIVES MEANINGFUL & MEASURED GROWTH

Circa helps organizations in vital growth periods uncover who they are, connect with who they serve, and build brands that last. In 2015, founders Tori Thomas and Laura Deleot set out with a clear vision: create what matters. They built Circa to not only deliver value for clients, but also...

SOUNDSTRIPE

WHERE MUSIC MEETS MOMENTUM

Soundstripe makes it easier for creators to find music that moves—and for artists to make a living doing what they love. Born in Nashville and built by musicians who know the grind, Soundstripe is more than just a licensing platform—it’s a growing music library of tens of thousands of tracks...

AN EXCERPT FROM CLIFF GOLDMACHER'S BOOK THE REASON FOR THE RHYMES

MASTERING THE SEVEN ESSENTIAL SKILLS OF INNOVATION BY LEARNING TO WRITE SONGS

“The leader of this team has been skeptical all day, they’re pretty much afraid of him and they do whatever he says. Oh, and before this job he was a prison warden for almost twenty years.” That was the last thing my liaison said to me before she introduced me...

BELMONT UNIVERSITY

INCUBATING INNOVATION- Incubating Creativity and Innovation to Lead to Human Flourishing

Founded in Nashville in 1890 by Susan Heron and Ida B. Hood–two female school teachers–Belmont University has been defying conventional expectations of higher education and serving as an incubator of innovation ever since. Today, the University is comprised of nearly 9,000 students from every U.S. state and 33 countries. Nationally...

CATWALK CONSULTING

GROUNDED IN RESEARCH, EXPERIENCE AND CULTURAL FLUENCY

Catwalk Consulting Group is a strategic marketing and communications firm specializing in the entertainment industry. We are known for innovative, future-focused approaches to positioning artists, executives, brands and organizations for what’s next. Our work centers on customized positioning and intentional audience development designed to elevate visibility, relevance and long-term impact....

CURCIO DERMATOLOGY

CURCIO DERMATOLOGY

A Life-Long Calling To Heal, Cutting-Edge Medical Expertise, And An Entrepreneurship-Mindset Are At The Heart Of Helping Others

ANSWERING THE CALL TO HEALFor as long as I can remember, medicine has been a special calling for me. And nearly as long, I realized my passion for healing was through dermatology. This was a gift that I inherited from my father, Frederick David Curcio, III, M.D. He knew that...

SolidBase Structural Engineers

Solid Foundations, Strong Futures

THE STORY OF SOLIDBASE STRUCTURAL ENGINEERS For SolidBase Structural Engineers (SBSE), every project begins with one guiding principle — that a structure is only as strong as the foundation it’s built on. Based in Nashville, Tennessee, SBSE has earned a reputation as a trusted name in residential and commercial structural...

SUPERWISE

AI That Works for the Real World

SUPERWISE® is leading the next evolution in AI – making intelligent technology work for real-world industries, not just research labs. With practical, scalable, and low-friction tools, SUPERWISE empowers organizations to use AI to increase efficiency, improve decision-making, and transform how work gets done – from the executive suite to the...

ACQUIRE

ACQUIRE-The last time we had a technology this versatile

The last time we had a technology this versatile, it changed and improved every element of nearly every business

People used to wonder whether blockchain technology would survive. Then the question transitioned to “It’s not a matter of if, but when it will take hold?” Now the key question being asked is “who is using it and how?” To answer that question, you must understand that Web2 and Web3...

Schneider Electric

Global Industrial Energy Technology Leader

Schneider Electric is a global industrial energy technology leader bringing world-leading expertise in electrification, automation and digitalization to smart industries, resilient infrastructure, future-proof data centers, intelligent buildings, and intuitive homes. Anchored by deep domain expertise, the company provides integrated end-to-end lifecycle AI-enabled Industrial IoT solutions with connected products, automation, software,...

TREVECCA NAZARENE UNIVERSITY

TREVECCA NAZARENE UNIVERSITY-Was the first university in Nashville to offer weekend and evening formats for adults who are balancing school

Was the first university in Nashville to offer weekend and evening formats for adults who are balancing school, work and family life

Located in the heart of Nashville, Trevecca offers students an exciting, fulfilling college experience as they pursue a personal calling in a thriving city. A Christian liberal arts university, Trevecca’s diverse, supportive community is a safe haven for spiritual and personal growth, vocational discernment and opportunities for service.   Growth...

The Innovation Studio

Building Industrial AI Companies That Solve Real-World Problems

The Innovation Studio is a venture studio based in the Nashville region that exists for a single purpose: to build technology startups that solve pervasive industry problems by developing and using the best artificial intelligence. From the origin of an idea through company exit, the Studio uses a disciplined, repeatable...

NASHVILLE ENTREPRENEUR CENTER

NASHVILLE ENTREPRENEUR CENTER-The Hub

The Hub, the Heart, the Front Door - Nashville Entrepreneur Center is the City’s Home to Entrepreneurship

At the heart of innovation lies a problem and entrepreneurs are the needed visionaries that see a better way to live, work, or play. At the Nashville Entrepreneur Center, commonly known as “the EC,” we help entrepreneurs develop and build upon their business with an organizational vision to make our...

TRACTOR SUPPLY CO

POWERING LIFE OUT HERE

How Tractor Supply Blends Tradition, Technology and Trust to Serve Rural America. Tractor Supply Company (NASDAQ: TSCO) has quietly become one of the most successful and innovative retailers in the United States, earning a loyal following while staying true to its core mission: serving the needs of rural lifestyles. Since...

RJ Young

How RJ Young and Velocity1 Are Redefining Technology Solutions Across the Southeast

For more than 70 years, RJ Young has stood at the forefront of helping businesses adapt to change. What began in 1955 as a local provider of office equipment in Nashville has grown into one of the Southeast’s most respected and comprehensive business technology partners. Over the decades, RJ Young...

NEW ORCHARD

NEW ORCHARD-Leaders are getting catfished by the promise of data. New Orchard helps lessen those odds

Leaders are getting catfished by the promise of data. New Orchard helps lessen those odds

If 2020 proved anything, it’s that change is inevitable, whether that is decided on internally or not. “The ability to be resilient lies within confidently understanding where your organization is today, where it desires to be, the team that makes it up, and the processes that support it, fast,” says...

INTERAWORKS

INTERAWORKS-IS YOUR ORGANIZATION READY FOR THE FUTURE@WORK?

IS YOUR ORGANIZATION READY FOR THE FUTURE@WORK?

InteraWorks is an answer to how companies and their employees can elevate the human experience at work, leading to higher performance and new models of leadership, learning, and culture.   The world has changed, and it is time that companies realize that people absolutely must come first. Their capacity and...

IDEMIA

IDEMIA-A twenty-year innovation journey positions Tennessee as the technology backbone of the fingerprinting background check industry

A twenty-year innovation journey positions Tennessee as the technology backbone of the fingerprinting background check industry

In March 1996, Casey Mayfield interviewed with a small biometrics company in Springfield, IL in a stylish business suit she’d purchased for $25 at a secondhand store. She met the owners, was fascinated with the technology, and signed on to be a Fingerprint Technician. She soon met Erik Wolle, who...

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The Publisher

Glen Edwards

Glen Edwards was born and raised in Philadelphia. He graduated from Pennsylvania State University and served in the United States Marine Corps Services. For the next 10 years, Glen worked as a Juvenile Probation Officer in Philadelphia, counseling underprivileged children in North and West Philadelphia. In 1983, Glen left the court and went to work... click to read more

The Publisher

Glen Edwards

Glen Edwards was born and raised in Philadelphia. He graduated from Pennsylvania State University and served in the United States Marine Corps Services. For the next 10 years, Glen worked as a Juvenile Probation Officer in Philadelphia, counseling underprivileged children in North and West Philadelphia. In 1983, Glen left the court and went to work... click to read more

Other Ecosystems