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

Frost Brown Todd

National in Scope. Excellence in Practice and Client Service.

Frost Brown Todd isn’t just a law firm—we’re a strategic collaborator and advisor to businesses nationwide. With more than 600 attorneys in key markets across the U.S., we bring solution-driven legal insight to every corner of commerce. Our firm is especially known for its strength in the middle market and...

QUORE

QUORE

Is a hospitality technology company dedicated to revolutionizing how hotels operate worldwide

During your last hotel stay, if your room was clean, the in-room appliances were fully functioning and your request for extra towels was addressed quickly then that hotel was probably using Quore. Our cloud-based operations app supports hotel staff in their day-to-day for better guest experiences, which means smarter teams...

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...

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...

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...

SwitchPoint Ventures

We build companies around pioneering technologies.

Our journey began a decade ago, here in Nashville – a city known for creativity and reinvention. That same spirit shaped how we approach innovation: with collaboration, grit, and a builder’s mindset. At SwitchPoint Ventures, we build companies around pioneering technologies – particularly in AI, data science, and digital innovation...

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...

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...

PAT SUMMITT

LEADERSHIP IN A TIME OF CHANGE

The workplace is evolving at record speed. Artificial intelligence, hybrid schedules, and multiple generations sharing the same office are reshaping how we work, creating challenges even seasoned leaders haven’t faced before. We all know that “the only constant is change.” During Pat Summitt’s 40 years of championship-level coaching, she worked...

GEEQ

FROM THE VULNERABLE ECONOMY TO THE VERIFIED ECONOMY

It’s Time for a Major Change For two decades, the digital economy has been driven by growth at any cost. Platforms built fortunes by selling data first and asking forgiveness later. Success was measured by clicks and likes – often at the expense of genuine value. That playbook is collapsing....

CAPITOL VIEW DENTAL

DENTISTRY WITH A CLASSICAL TOUCH, WHERE NASHVILLE COMES TO SMILE!

When I started college in 2005 at Indiana University, if you would have told me I’d be opening the first black owned dental practice in the North Gulch in Nashville by 2025, I would have been totally shocked. I would be trying to figure out how a musician studying classical...

NASHVILLE INNOVATION ALLIANCE

FUELING INNOVATION FOR A THRIVING NASHVILLE

The Nashville Innovation Alliance aims to make Nashville one of America’s leading centers of technology innovation by bringing the community together to create a shared vision, set ambitious goals and advance strategic initiatives. Established by Mayor Freddie O’Connell and Vanderbilt University in 2024, and anchored by participation from LaunchTN, the...

FORESIGHT

FORESIGHT-Bring Value To Life

Bring Value To Life

Foresight is elevating the sales profession by arming reps with their buyer’s unique needs and pain points so they can have more effective meetings. In the information age, buyers want consultants (not sales reps) to guide them through the process. We make that vision a reality. Freshly baked sourdough and heirloom...

LIPSCOMB UNIVERSITY

INSPIRING INNOVATION AROUND AN ENDURING PURPOSE

What never changes: Christ-centeredness and transformative experiences.What drives change: Curiosity and courage. For more than 134 years, Lipscomb University has been a Christ-centered academic institution rooted in purpose-driven education. Located in the heart of Nashville, Tennessee, Lipscomb is one of the few institutions in the nation offering educational pathways from...

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...

TEACH FOR AMERICA

TRANSFORMING CLASSROOMS AND EXPANDING POSSIBILITIES

A National Movement to Expand Educational Opportunity This year, Teach For America marks its 35th anniversary – a milestone that celebrates a movement of leaders working alongside communities to expand opportunity for all children. Since its founding in 1990, Teach For America has recruited, developed, and supported a diverse network...

Nashville Entrepreneur Center

Where Bold Ideas Become Businesses

If you’re serious about building a startup in Nashville, meet your secret weapon: the Nashville Entrepreneur Center (EC). Founded in 2010, EC is a nonprofit built by business leaders to be—literally—Nashville’s “home to entrepreneurship.” What sets it apart? It’s not just talk: EC has helped over 14,000 entrepreneurs, including more...

JAILCORE

LISTENING FIRST, INNOVATING FAST

Guided by real-world feedback, JailCore blends clear logic with human understanding to create technology that truly serves those who serve. When JailCore was founded, it wasn’t built on the old “if you build it, they will come” mindset. The goal wasn’t to create software and hope facilities would adapt to...

Harbor + Union

The Growth Hub Powering Nashville’s Next Generation of Business

In the historic Factory at Franklin, just outside of Nashville, a new kind of business environment is quietly transforming the way local founders, executives, and creatives work. Harbor+ Union is more than a co-working space. It’s a purpose-built ecosystem designed to fuel growth, connection, and innovation among the region’s most...

MCVANTAGE

ROOTED IN LEGACY, BRANCHING INTO INNOVATION

McVantage Packaging stands as a testament to resilience and forward-thinking in the wood pallet, crate, industrial lumber, and supply chain industry. Founded nearly 75 years ago in Tuscumbia, Alabama, the company has evolved from a family-run lumber operation into a regional powerhouse serving the Central-Southeastern United States. With plants in...

DECODE HEALTH

DECODE HEALTH-Advancing Precision Medicine to Improve Lives

Advancing Precision Medicine to Improve Lives

Current methods of managing healthcare are unsustainable, with chronic disease treatment alone putting a $4 trillion annual strain on the U.S. economy. Healthcare professionals across the board agree that earlier diagnosis, better preventative care, and improved disease management will significantly reduce those costs while improving the lives of millions of...

KCI

BRIDGING THE BUILT AND NATURAL WORLDS: KCI’S NASHVILLE LEGACY

From transportation networks to environmental stewardship, KCI’s multidisciplinary team is redefining what it means to engineer progress. The architectural, engineering, and construction (AEC) industry is constantly evolving at a rapid pace, driven by advancements in technology, sustainability, and design thinking. As cities grow and infrastructure needs intensify, firms are embracing...

FreightWise

Bringing transportation technology and supply chain solutions to SMB and midmarket businesses.

FOUNDED IN 2015 IN BRENTWOOD, TN, FREIGHTWISE HAS BECOME A TRUSTED PARTNER FOR ITS CUSTOMERS, PROVIDING TRANSPORTATION EXPERTISE AND TECHNOLOGY TO DRIVE EFFICIENCY AND INNOVATION FOR BUSINESSES. Agile transportation technology and solutions FreightWise offers flexible Transportation Management System (TMS) technology to SMB and mid-market businesses through FreightWise TMS and Kuebix...

FoxFuel

Reviving the soul of brands with sophistication & rebellion

FoxFuel Creative is a sharp-tongued, no-nonsense agency, built on the tension between sophistication and rebellion. Because brands need an agency that knows the rules and when to break them. That’s where the magic happens. In the friction between polish and punch. Between the curve in a classical column and the...

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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