Technology entrepreneurs with big ideas for new businesses can turn their dreams into reality at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. UT is creating and growing tech-based companies right here in East Tennessee, strengthening our regional economy and creating good jobs that support families.
“As Tennessee’s land-grant research institution, we are all about speeding the transfer of UT technologies out of our research labs and into the marketplace,” said Deb Crawford, UT’s vice chancellor for research, innovation, and economic development. “Sometimes the best way to do that is by launching and supporting the growth of high-tech start-ups. And, of course, the success of these start-ups depends upon the entrepreneurial skills of their founders.”
Budding tech entrepreneurs can tap a number of resources at UT, including the Knoxville satellite of the I-Corps Mid-South Hub, a program funded by the National Science Foundation to help faculty and student researchers fine-tune their entrepreneurial acumen; the start-up incubator and accelerator programs offered by the UT-supported Spark Innovation Center; and entrepreneurship resources provided by UT’s Anderson Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation. Tech founders can access the university’s state-of-the-art research capabilities to minimize risk and attract investors.
Growing high-tech businesses in Tennessee is crucial for the state’s long-term economic growth, noted Marc Gibson, UT’s associate vice chancellor for partnerships and economic development.
“The most vibrant regional economies in the US are those with higher concentrations of tech-intensive firms,” he said. “For every one job created in these companies, another two jobs are created in their value chains. And the jobs they support are high-paying jobs.”
Full story: Launching dreams: UT helps entrepreneurs from | EurekAlert!
