Stories of Innovation
INNOVATE™ Estonia
ELCOGEN
HIGHLY EFFICIENT SOLID OXIDE CELLS AND STACKS FOR FUEL CELL SYSTEMS AND ELECTROLYSERS
Elcogen’s roots trace back to Estonia’s post-independence period in the early 1990s. With the country newly liberated from Soviet rule, Estonia faced a major challenge in reorganizing its energy infrastructure. Energy prices soared, and the need for energy independence became critical. Enn Õunpuu, who had helped establish the Estonian Power...
INNOVATE™ Botswana Vol.1
BOTSWANA DIGITAL AND INNOVATION HUB
THE MANDATE OF THE BDIH IS TO CATALYSE THE DIVERSIFICATION OF BOTSWANA’S ECONOMY, TOWARDS A KNOWLEDGE ECONOMY
The Hub works closely with innovation ecosystem players to commercialise innovative and tech driven solutions. The Hub does this by: The BDIH owns two subsidiary companies, the first being the Botswana Innovation Hub Property (Pty) Ltd (BIHP). BIHP leverages the strategic infrastructure that includes the Science and Technology Park and...
INNOVATE® Nashville
JE Dunn
Delivering Construction Solutions
JE Dunn Construction, founded in 1924, is the sixth-largest domestic general building contractor in the United States with offices in 26 locations. They endeavor to be an indispensable business partner, thoroughly understanding their client’s vision so they can deliver construction solutions that meet their needs. For over 30 years, JE...
INNOVATE™ South Africa
RETAIL CAPITAL
TURNING A DIGITAL FOOTPRINT INTO A FUNDING LIFELINE
Retail Capital was born in 2011 as an idea on a white napkin. Those drawings became the framework of what ended up being the first Merchant Cash Advance (MCA) product for businesses in South Africa. Driven by a deep passion to support the SME sector, Retail Capital has since innovated...
INNOVATE® Nashville
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...
INNOVATE® Philadelphia
AIA Philadelphia
A Legacy of Advocacy, Design, and Community Impact
AIA Philadelphia is a membership association representing more than 1,800 architects, over 250 architecture firms, and more than 175 allied members, organizations that collaborate with architects across a wide range of disciplines, including engineering, construction, planning, and design technology. As the second-oldest chapter of the American Institute of Architects in...
INNOVATION Quebec
IREQ, HYDRO-QUÉBEC’S
RESEARCH INSTITUTE
The energy transition is in full swing. The energy industry is undergoing profound transformations prompted by the search for sustainable solutions to address the impacts of climate change, meet our customers’ evolving needs and consumption habits and reap the benefits of the broad accessibility of new technologies. The invention of...
INNOVATE™ Alberta
ALBERTA IoT
Supporting an ever-growing ecosystem at Alberta IoT
Alberta IoT is a non-profit member-based association supporting organizations with a vested interest in internet of things (IoT) and emerging technologies. Members, ranging in size from solo entrepreneurs to large enterprise, collaborate to provide a common voice to advance the knowledge, adoption, and growth of emerging tech in Alberta and...
INNOVATE™ Botswana Vol.1
SHAREARIDE
TRANSFORMING BOTSWANA’S PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION SYSTEM
Sharearide is a service driven by Corrugated Minds, a company built by a young team who are passionate about transforming citizens’ day-to-day lives through the provision of solutions powered by technology. The Corrugated Minds journey began in 2014, with an idea to provide digital solutions to Botswana’s everyday activities, including...
INNOVATE® New Jersey Vol.2
MODERN MEADOW
A PROTEIN DESIGN AND APPLICATION POWERHOUSE USING SYNBIO TO POWER NEXT-GEN SUSTAINABLE MATERIALS
A LEADER IN BIOFABRICATIONModern Meadow, headquartered in Nutley, NJ, is a sustainable bio-design technology company that uses nature-inspired proteins to develop solutions that reduce our reliance on petrochemical and animal-derived inputs. The company creates solutions that make sustainable high-performance materials possible. Modern Meadow is a protein design and application powerhouse,...
INNOVATE™ Alberta
TECHNOLOGY NORTH
SYSTEMATIC INNOVATION
SYSTEMATIC INNOVATIONHow does one create lasting change? For over twenty-five years, Technology North Corporation has been answering this question where it can, whenever it can, with its team of dedicated consultants and industry experts. Established at the dawn of a groundbreaking era in 1998, the internet epoch, where the world...
INNOVATE® Washington DMV Edition
iUnit
Building Sustainable, Attainable Communities
Changing the way we live – and build our homes and lives – is no mean feat. That is precisely what iUnit sets out to do. It is a visionary real estate development/tech start-up spearheading a revolution in sustainable housing. Founded by Brice Leconte, iUnit is a trailblazer in merging...
INNOVATE™ Botswana Vol.1
BUSINESS RITES INVESTMENTS (BSSR)
BEGAN OPERATION IN SEPTEMBER 2020 AND HAS BEEN FOCUSING EXCLUSIVELY ON HIGH QUALITY AND COSTEFFECTIVE BIG DATA SOLUTIONS, SOFTWARE DEVELOPMENT AND IMPLEMENTATION OF SERVICES
We are advancing at a tremendous pace and with the involvement of skilled and experienced people working in the organization. BSSR is currently doing business with local SMEs and is actively taking part in hackathons and competitions, developing innovative solutions, and becoming key players in the country’s digital transformation. The...
INNOVATE® South Carolina
Fusion Cyber
HUMAN LED, AI POWERED.
HUMAN LED, AI POWERED. Founded in 2021, Fusion Cyber has grown from a small start-up to are cognized leader in cybersecurity education. It has partnerships with fourw ell-known universities: the University of South Carolina, the University of Kentucky, Florida International University, and Denmark Technical College. Fusion Cyber offers cutting-edge courses...
INNOVATION Quebec
LE CENTRE D’ÉTUDE DE LA FORÊT (CEF)
LE CENTRE D’ÉTUDE DE LA FORÊT (CEF) EST UN REGROUPEMENT STRATÉGIQUE FINANCÉ PAR LE FONDS DE RECHERCHE DU QUÉBEC – NATURE ET TECHNOLOGIES (FRQNT) DEPUIS 2006. Il est le seul regroupement au Québec à avoir pour mission centrale la formation avancée et la recherche sur la forêt. La mission scientifique...
INNOVATE® Washington DMV Edition
HALCYON HOUSE
A Haven for Big Risks and Bold Ideas
Halcyon, a non-profit incubator for early-stage start-ups, stands as a lighthouse of innovation. It is a unique and impactful organization dedicated to fostering the growth and development of impact-driven businesses. Halcyon accelerates the future of business by focusing on ventures that integrate a social mission into their core that also...
INNOVATE® Kansas City
SEARCY FINANCIAL
REDEFINING FINANCIAL PLANNING FOR THE MODERN ERA
In an industry often defined by numbers, Searcy Financial Services stands apart by focusing on people. Founded in 1976 and independently owned by second-generation leaders Jessica Kmetty, Marc Shaffer, John Fales, and Ryan Brooke, the firm has built a reputation not just for managing wealth, but for helping people make...
INNOVATE® Detroit
LIVAQ
Building the Future of Electric Off-Road, Empowering Adventure
Headquartered in Detroit, Michigan, Livaq is redefining the off-road vehicle industry with an innovative all-electric approach. As the first company solely dedicated to electric off-road vehicles (ORVs), Livaq is driving a critical shift away from traditional gas-powered machines and toward a cleaner, more efficient future. The company’s mission is to...
INNOVATE® South Carolina
SC Competes | SC Fraunhofer
The Palmetto Applied Research Council
The SC Fraunhofer USA Alliance (the Alliance) is South Carolina’s unique applied research partnership designed to help companies innovate faster, de-risk new technologies, and strengthen the state’s competitiveness in advanced industries. Managed by the South Carolina Council on Competitiveness (SC Competes) and its applied research arm, Palmetto Applied Research Council,...
INNOVATE™ South Africa
SHARKS RUGBY UNION
NOT JUST BLACK AND WHITE
Rugby isn’t the same as it was 20, or even 10, years ago. COVID-19 had also left a profound impact on sport. Such are the changes that the Sharks’ competition isn’t always facing them on the rugby pitch on Saturday afternoons. Instead, this team competes against other industries and entertainment...
INNOVATE™ Antwerp Vol.2
SAM
SENSORY - FRIENDLY CLOTHING THAT LOWERS STRESS
Every day we experience an overload of sensory stimuli: we see, hear, feel, smell, and taste a lot. Whenever our brain has a hard time filtering and processing all those stimuli, this can lead to overstimulation. Children who are highly sensitive, have ASD, ADHD, mental limitations, or brain injuries are...
INNOVATE™ Estonia
C2GRID
TURNING VIDEO INTO REAL-TIME 3D INTELLIGENCE
C2GRID didn’t start life as a company with a polished business plan or venture capital pitch. It began at Estonia’s Darkstar Defence Hackathon – an event uniting innovators, veterans, and investors to build technologies that strengthen NATO and its allies. The founders, originally exploring human–robot integration at Tallinn University of...
INNOVATION Quebec
ERAC DU SAGUENAY-LAC ST-JEAN
Les racinesDepuis près de 20 ans qu’au Saguenay–LacSaint-Jean – une région de plus de 275 000 habitants située à 500 km au nord-est de Montréal – des initiatives concertées sont déployées afin de stimuler l’innovation auprès des PME. Idéa innovation PME (2004-2010), puis Innovation 02 (2011-2019) ont généré tour à...
INNOVATE® Nashville
Vanderbilt University
Innovation at Vanderbilt
An R1 research institution, Vanderbilt University is known for pathbreaking research, advancing discoveries and fueling breakthroughs across multiple disciplines. With more than $1 billion in annual research expenditures, Vanderbilt fosters cross-disciplinary collaboration with global impact. But Vanderbilt isn’t just a research university, it’s a powerful economic engine that turns ideas...
INNOVATE™ Estonia
ELCOGEN
HIGHLY EFFICIENT SOLID OXIDE CELLS AND STACKS FOR FUEL CELL SYSTEMS AND ELECTROLYSERS
Elcogen’s roots trace back to Estonia’s post-independence period in the early 1990s. With the country newly liberated from Soviet rule, Estonia faced a major challenge in reorganizing its energy infrastructure. Energy prices soared, and the need for energy independence became critical. Enn Õunpuu, who had helped establish the Estonian Power...
INNOVATE™ Botswana Vol.1
BOTSWANA DIGITAL AND INNOVATION HUB
THE MANDATE OF THE BDIH IS TO CATALYSE THE DIVERSIFICATION OF BOTSWANA’S ECONOMY, TOWARDS A KNOWLEDGE ECONOMY
The Hub works closely with innovation ecosystem players to commercialise innovative and tech driven solutions. The Hub does this by: The BDIH owns two subsidiary companies, the first being the Botswana Innovation Hub Property (Pty) Ltd (BIHP). BIHP leverages the strategic infrastructure that includes the Science and Technology Park and...
INNOVATE® Nashville
JE Dunn
Delivering Construction Solutions
JE Dunn Construction, founded in 1924, is the sixth-largest domestic general building contractor in the United States with offices in 26 locations. They endeavor to be an indispensable business partner, thoroughly understanding their client’s vision so they can deliver construction solutions that meet their needs. For over 30 years, JE...
INNOVATE™ South Africa
RETAIL CAPITAL
TURNING A DIGITAL FOOTPRINT INTO A FUNDING LIFELINE
Retail Capital was born in 2011 as an idea on a white napkin. Those drawings became the framework of what ended up being the first Merchant Cash Advance (MCA) product for businesses in South Africa. Driven by a deep passion to support the SME sector, Retail Capital has since innovated...
INNOVATE® Nashville
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...
INNOVATE® Philadelphia
AIA Philadelphia
A Legacy of Advocacy, Design, and Community Impact
AIA Philadelphia is a membership association representing more than 1,800 architects, over 250 architecture firms, and more than 175 allied members, organizations that collaborate with architects across a wide range of disciplines, including engineering, construction, planning, and design technology. As the second-oldest chapter of the American Institute of Architects in...
INNOVATION Quebec
IREQ, HYDRO-QUÉBEC’S
RESEARCH INSTITUTE
The energy transition is in full swing. The energy industry is undergoing profound transformations prompted by the search for sustainable solutions to address the impacts of climate change, meet our customers’ evolving needs and consumption habits and reap the benefits of the broad accessibility of new technologies. The invention of...
INNOVATE™ Alberta
ALBERTA IoT
Supporting an ever-growing ecosystem at Alberta IoT
Alberta IoT is a non-profit member-based association supporting organizations with a vested interest in internet of things (IoT) and emerging technologies. Members, ranging in size from solo entrepreneurs to large enterprise, collaborate to provide a common voice to advance the knowledge, adoption, and growth of emerging tech in Alberta and...
INNOVATE™ Botswana Vol.1
SHAREARIDE
TRANSFORMING BOTSWANA’S PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION SYSTEM
Sharearide is a service driven by Corrugated Minds, a company built by a young team who are passionate about transforming citizens’ day-to-day lives through the provision of solutions powered by technology. The Corrugated Minds journey began in 2014, with an idea to provide digital solutions to Botswana’s everyday activities, including...
INNOVATE® New Jersey Vol.2
MODERN MEADOW
A PROTEIN DESIGN AND APPLICATION POWERHOUSE USING SYNBIO TO POWER NEXT-GEN SUSTAINABLE MATERIALS
A LEADER IN BIOFABRICATIONModern Meadow, headquartered in Nutley, NJ, is a sustainable bio-design technology company that uses nature-inspired proteins to develop solutions that reduce our reliance on petrochemical and animal-derived inputs. The company creates solutions that make sustainable high-performance materials possible. Modern Meadow is a protein design and application powerhouse,...
INNOVATE™ Alberta
TECHNOLOGY NORTH
SYSTEMATIC INNOVATION
SYSTEMATIC INNOVATIONHow does one create lasting change? For over twenty-five years, Technology North Corporation has been answering this question where it can, whenever it can, with its team of dedicated consultants and industry experts. Established at the dawn of a groundbreaking era in 1998, the internet epoch, where the world...
INNOVATE® Washington DMV Edition
iUnit
Building Sustainable, Attainable Communities
Changing the way we live – and build our homes and lives – is no mean feat. That is precisely what iUnit sets out to do. It is a visionary real estate development/tech start-up spearheading a revolution in sustainable housing. Founded by Brice Leconte, iUnit is a trailblazer in merging...
INNOVATE™ Botswana Vol.1
BUSINESS RITES INVESTMENTS (BSSR)
BEGAN OPERATION IN SEPTEMBER 2020 AND HAS BEEN FOCUSING EXCLUSIVELY ON HIGH QUALITY AND COSTEFFECTIVE BIG DATA SOLUTIONS, SOFTWARE DEVELOPMENT AND IMPLEMENTATION OF SERVICES
We are advancing at a tremendous pace and with the involvement of skilled and experienced people working in the organization. BSSR is currently doing business with local SMEs and is actively taking part in hackathons and competitions, developing innovative solutions, and becoming key players in the country’s digital transformation. The...
INNOVATE® South Carolina
Fusion Cyber
HUMAN LED, AI POWERED.
HUMAN LED, AI POWERED. Founded in 2021, Fusion Cyber has grown from a small start-up to are cognized leader in cybersecurity education. It has partnerships with fourw ell-known universities: the University of South Carolina, the University of Kentucky, Florida International University, and Denmark Technical College. Fusion Cyber offers cutting-edge courses...
INNOVATION Quebec
LE CENTRE D’ÉTUDE DE LA FORÊT (CEF)
LE CENTRE D’ÉTUDE DE LA FORÊT (CEF) EST UN REGROUPEMENT STRATÉGIQUE FINANCÉ PAR LE FONDS DE RECHERCHE DU QUÉBEC – NATURE ET TECHNOLOGIES (FRQNT) DEPUIS 2006. Il est le seul regroupement au Québec à avoir pour mission centrale la formation avancée et la recherche sur la forêt. La mission scientifique...
INNOVATE® Washington DMV Edition
HALCYON HOUSE
A Haven for Big Risks and Bold Ideas
Halcyon, a non-profit incubator for early-stage start-ups, stands as a lighthouse of innovation. It is a unique and impactful organization dedicated to fostering the growth and development of impact-driven businesses. Halcyon accelerates the future of business by focusing on ventures that integrate a social mission into their core that also...
INNOVATE® Kansas City
SEARCY FINANCIAL
REDEFINING FINANCIAL PLANNING FOR THE MODERN ERA
In an industry often defined by numbers, Searcy Financial Services stands apart by focusing on people. Founded in 1976 and independently owned by second-generation leaders Jessica Kmetty, Marc Shaffer, John Fales, and Ryan Brooke, the firm has built a reputation not just for managing wealth, but for helping people make...
INNOVATE® Detroit
LIVAQ
Building the Future of Electric Off-Road, Empowering Adventure
Headquartered in Detroit, Michigan, Livaq is redefining the off-road vehicle industry with an innovative all-electric approach. As the first company solely dedicated to electric off-road vehicles (ORVs), Livaq is driving a critical shift away from traditional gas-powered machines and toward a cleaner, more efficient future. The company’s mission is to...
INNOVATE® South Carolina
SC Competes | SC Fraunhofer
The Palmetto Applied Research Council
The SC Fraunhofer USA Alliance (the Alliance) is South Carolina’s unique applied research partnership designed to help companies innovate faster, de-risk new technologies, and strengthen the state’s competitiveness in advanced industries. Managed by the South Carolina Council on Competitiveness (SC Competes) and its applied research arm, Palmetto Applied Research Council,...
INNOVATE™ South Africa
SHARKS RUGBY UNION
NOT JUST BLACK AND WHITE
Rugby isn’t the same as it was 20, or even 10, years ago. COVID-19 had also left a profound impact on sport. Such are the changes that the Sharks’ competition isn’t always facing them on the rugby pitch on Saturday afternoons. Instead, this team competes against other industries and entertainment...
INNOVATE™ Antwerp Vol.2
SAM
SENSORY - FRIENDLY CLOTHING THAT LOWERS STRESS
Every day we experience an overload of sensory stimuli: we see, hear, feel, smell, and taste a lot. Whenever our brain has a hard time filtering and processing all those stimuli, this can lead to overstimulation. Children who are highly sensitive, have ASD, ADHD, mental limitations, or brain injuries are...
INNOVATE™ Estonia
C2GRID
TURNING VIDEO INTO REAL-TIME 3D INTELLIGENCE
C2GRID didn’t start life as a company with a polished business plan or venture capital pitch. It began at Estonia’s Darkstar Defence Hackathon – an event uniting innovators, veterans, and investors to build technologies that strengthen NATO and its allies. The founders, originally exploring human–robot integration at Tallinn University of...
INNOVATION Quebec
ERAC DU SAGUENAY-LAC ST-JEAN
Les racinesDepuis près de 20 ans qu’au Saguenay–LacSaint-Jean – une région de plus de 275 000 habitants située à 500 km au nord-est de Montréal – des initiatives concertées sont déployées afin de stimuler l’innovation auprès des PME. Idéa innovation PME (2004-2010), puis Innovation 02 (2011-2019) ont généré tour à...
INNOVATE® Nashville
Vanderbilt University
Innovation at Vanderbilt
An R1 research institution, Vanderbilt University is known for pathbreaking research, advancing discoveries and fueling breakthroughs across multiple disciplines. With more than $1 billion in annual research expenditures, Vanderbilt fosters cross-disciplinary collaboration with global impact. But Vanderbilt isn’t just a research university, it’s a powerful economic engine that turns ideas...