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

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...

ZIGNYL

YOUR FRONTLINE IS YOUR BOTTOM LINE

Zigy was born out of the simple yet often overlooked truth that a business’s success lives or dies at the frontline. While executives may set the strategy, it’s the employees at the counter, on the floor, or behind the wheel who determine whether customers return, sales grow, and brands thrive....

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...

OVYL

OVYL-MAKING HIGH-END

MAKING HIGH-END, HIGH-TECH PRODUCTS

THE QUESTIONHave you ever had to throw your best work away? I have. It’s demoralizing, but sometimes things you can’t control go wrong and there’s nothing to do but let it go. You can start to think, “why bother?” I’ve seen it happen to our clients too. As a device...

NASHVILLE AREA CHAMBER OF COMMERCE

ADVANCING REGIONAL PROSPERITY THROUGH INNOVATION AND PARTNERSHIP

ABOUT PARTNERSHIP 2030 The Nashville Area Chamber of Commerce’s Partnership 2030 is the Nashville region’s public-private economic development initiative dedicated to Middle Tennessee’s long-term economic prosperity. The Partnership was formed in 1990 to maintain and grow the Nashville region’s economy by creating jobs through relocating and expanding businesses, attracting and...

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...

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...

Bradley

The Legal Architects Behind Innovation

A construction supervisor reviews jobsite footage delivered remotely by an onsite robot. In a rural hospital, a patient’s MRI is uploaded to an online portal, where a specialist on the other side of the country reviews it. An aviation breakthrough gains patent protection to power the next generation of supersonic...

MOTUS DRIVE

PRACTICAL MOBILITY SOLUTIONS

Motus Drive was founded by Ferhan Jemal after seeing firsthand the challenges his uncle faced due to limited mobility and the high costs associated with powered wheelchairs. Motivated by this experience, Ferhan spent eight years studying the wheelchair market, talking with industry experts, prototyping, and gathering direct feedback from wheelchair...

GO WEST CREATIVE

Go West isn’t a Direction… it’s a state of mind…and that state of mind is filled with Curiosity & Innovation!

Go West Creative. We think about things differently. Not just some things, all things. You see, our company has never seen the word NO as an absolute. There is always a why behind the NO and we want to know why? What went wrong before? What didn’t work? Why NO?...

Finwell

Innovating Access: How Finwell Makes Professional Advice Inclusive

How Finwell Innovates Finwell has reimagined financial advice by removing the traditional barriers that prevent most people from accessing professional, unbiased wealth management and comprehensive financial planning. Unlike firms driven by product sales, Finwell focuses on serving individuals and families often overlooked by traditional wealth managers. By prioritizing education, planning,...

NASHVILLE AREA CHAMBER OF COMMERCE

NASHVILLE AREA CHAMBER OF COMMERCE-Since 1847

Since 1847, the Nashville Area Chamber of Commerce has increased economic prosperity by facilitating community leadership

Since 1847, the Nashville Area Chamber of Commerce has been working for Middle Tennessee businesses. The Chamber is a nonprofit organization dedicated to creating economic prosperity by facilitating community leadership. The Nashville Area Chamber is Middle Tennessee’s largest business federation, representing more than 1,700 member businesses in 10 counties (Davidson,...

SHANE MAC

SHANE MAC

INVESTING IN THE SWITCHBOARD CITY

I have lived to work and, believe me, that’s no way to live… or work. This doesn’t mean don’t work hard. I’ve just discovered that when you love where you live you have a longer-term view of how you work. I spend my days supporting people who are in 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...

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...

Potluck

And the Reimagining of Social Tech

In an era dominated by likes, follows, and infinite scrolls, Justin Gray, founder of Potluck, is betting on a different future—one where social technology isn’t about building an audience, but about deepening real-life connections with the people we actually see: our friends, families, neighbors, and coworkers. Potluck is more than...

MEMBERS HEALTH CO

DOCTOR LED PROACTIVE HEALTH & WELLNESS DESIGNED TO SAVE MONEY, TIME, & IMPROVE HEALTH OUTCOMES

The Future of Healthcare is Here At Members Health Co, we believe the future of healthcare looks a lot like its past — when your neighborhood doctor truly knew you, advocated for you, and focused on prevention, not billing codes. By removing the middlemen and restoring direct doctor-patient relationships, we...

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...

MOMENTUM UNIVERSITY

MOMENTUM UNIVERSITY-

FOR YOUR LEADERSHIP TRAINING & DEVELOPMENT NEED, WE GOT YOU COVERED

Momentum University offers in-person and virtual sessions to over 1200 corporate leaders in over 60 companies around the globe. Whether it’s experiencing high-energy keynote speeches, training, or group coaching, the business is one of the fastest growing minority owned leadership and development companies in the state of Tennessee. The mission...

BOON LEGAL

BOON LEGAL-MAKE MORE MISTAKES AND FAIL EARLY AND OFTEN IN SERVICE OF DISCOVERY

MAKE MORE MISTAKES AND FAIL EARLY AND OFTEN IN SERVICE OF DISCOVERY

It’s all too easy to get swept up in the fervor of “innovation.” In the polished, produced world of prime-time, venture capitalists drop seven figures into start-ups while founders celebrate exits. Like most things that reach a level of celebrity status in our world of “reality” entertainment, the true story...

KENNIE PLAYHOUSE THEATRE

IMPACTING THE COMMUNITY ONE PLAY AT A TIME

Let a theatrical play be the way that immerses you in storytelling so powerful, it will live with you forever. Kennie Playhouse Theatre (KPT) is one of the city’s hidden jewels, a thriving artistic hub that brings dynamic, thought-provoking, and spirit-lifting stories to the stage for everyone to enjoy. From...

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...

THNKS

THNKS-SPARKING A MOVEMENT OF GRATITUDE

SPARKING A MOVEMENT OF GRATITUDE

At Thnks, our mission is to leverage technology and the science of gratitude to help establish and build strong relationships for the modern world, through efficient, personalized, and thoughtful appreciation. Thnks has created a movement in workplaces with over 15,000 Thnks sent every week — helping business professionals improve their...

Signature Transportation Services

Because the Experience Matters

Founded in January 2001, Signature Transportation Services – originally known as Nashville Livery, Inc. – has become synonymous with luxury, professionalism, and reliability. From its beginnings on Music Row, the company has grown into Nashville’s premier limousine and chauffeured transportation provider, now operating nationwide through an extensive affiliate network. “We’re...

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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