Public-private partnership Launch Tennessee has spent more than a decade creating a unique statewide startup ecosystem, supporting entrepreneurs in all 95 counties across the Volunteer State by providing capital, commercialization support, and connections.
“It’s a great privilege to work on behalf of the entire state to boost innovation and entrepreneurship,” LaunchTN CEO Lindsey Cox said. “We’recommitted to our vision of making Tennessee synonymous with high-growth startups.”
History
In 1997, the Tennessee General Assembly created the Tennessee Technology Development Corporation, in an effort to strengthen the economy and support businesses through science and technology.
In 2012, the Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development joined the Board of Directors of the Tennessee Technology Development Corporation to reimagine the organization as a public-private partnership under the LaunchTN brand.
Capital
Launch Tennessee manages funds to make direct equity investments into venture-aligned companies. The current, most active fund, InvestTN, is made possible by the state’s Fund Tennessee program. Fund Tennessee is $117 million of federal funding to Tennessee small businesses and entrepreneurs, as part of the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s SSBCI (State Small Business Credit Initiative) program.
Fund Tennessee has three core programs – equity (InvestTN), loan (LendTN) and assistance (AssistTN). Launch Tennessee manages InvestTN, which is a$70-million fund; the other two programs are overseen by the TNECD.
A core difference between InvestTN and Launch Tennessee’s previous capital funds is that InvestTN does not provide “matching” capital. Instead, InvestTN provides “catalytic” capital that is required to be matched by private capital investors.
Commercialization
Launch Tennessee supports innovators and researchers taking theirtechnologies from academic lab to commercial market with resources,including grant writing support and matching funds for research anddevelopment. The goal of commercialization is to support risky, early-stage technology development and get more Tennessee innovators to thepoint where they can be competitive for venture capital (via programs likeInvestTN).
Through a new initiative, the Tennessee Technology AdvancementConsortium (TTAC), LaunchTN supports universities that are working toenhance their technology transfer offi ces.
LaunchTN also supports entrepreneurs’ applications for Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) federal funds, and when founders land that funding, LaunchTN invites the company to apply for matching funds in addition.
The organization provides grant-writing support to prepare successful applications and administers the SBIR/STTR Matching Fund to cover additional business development expenses not covered by SBIR programs, enabling companies to advance their technologies, and scale to achieve sustainable revenue.
Launch Tennessee’s annual Innovation Week, held every February in Nashville, is a chance to showcase founders who’ve had success with SBIR grants.
Connections
Network Partners
LaunchTN provides funding and support to 8 regional entrepreneur centers and 6 statewide industry partners across the Volunteer State. Through collaboration and community, LaunchTN makes resources and support more accessible for entrepreneurs and investors, right in their communities.
Internships
LaunchTN leverages connections, in part, through its coveted internship program. To date, more than 360 undergraduate and graduate students have participated in and gotten a taste of Tennessee’s entrepreneurial ecosystem via LaunchTN’s paid Summer Intern Program, which draws hundreds of applicants each year.
Interns work in high-growth startups, venture capital firms, and regional entrepreneur centers throughout the state. Many host companies extend their engagements past the summer, and some have even ended up hiring their interns.
3686
LaunchTN’s annual entrepreneur conference, 3686, is the place to be if you want to engage with Tennessee’s startup ecosystem.
In 2024, the conference drew more than 900 people over 3 days, and LaunchTN facilitated more than 1,100 one-on-one meetings between entrepreneurs and investors.
In particular, a “Meet the Mayors” discussion – which gathered together mayors from Chattanooga, Knoxville, Nashville, and Memphis for a historic conversation on the main stage – was an audience favorite.
Tennessee House
For the second year, Launch Tennessee showcased innovation, emerging tech, and culture from across the state in Austin, Texas, at the world-renowned South by Southwest (SXSW) festival with a three-day activation called the Tennessee House. The acclaimed activation drew packed crowds and lines stretched down the block, day after day – nearly 4,000 attendees, representing 28 countries and 40 states.
Leaders from the four largest Tennessee cities came together to power the House and build out a robust programming schedule. The crowds heard from groundbreaking founders and leaders on quantum technology, sustainable mobility, artificial intelligence and why Tennessee was the ideal location for both Oracle’s new world Nashville headquarters and Elon Musk’s new xAI supercomputer. Guests also enjoyed an Elvis lookalike contest, sang with HipHop Karaoke, and boogied the night away with line dancing.
