SSR - October 4, 2024

Our thoughts go out to anyone impacted by Hurricane Helene which hit a large portion of our coverage area last week. Included is a guide to aid and recovery resources. We hope everyone stays safe as we ride out the remainder of the season. 

Entrepreneur put out a list of the 20 Best U.S. Cities for Small Business and we're happy to say that HALF of them are in our coverage area. The cities that made the list include Miami, Atlanta, Tampa, Fort Lauderdale, Huntsville, Cape Coral, Wilmington, Nashville, and Jacksonville.

Louisiana

There are several exciting announcements to report on in Louisiana, including the six finalists for the 2024 BioChallenge pitch competition, which will take place on October 31. The finalists Vocxi Health, SiVEC Biotechnologies, Anvil Diagnostics, Informuta, Vaxess Technologies, Inc., and EriVan Bio, will pitch for over $100,000 in prizes. NexusLA announced the nine participants in its Ignition 1.0 cohort.

Congratulations to Chef Serigne Mbaye of Dakar Nola for being named on the TIME100 Next list, which highlights 100 emerging leaders in various industries. Louisiana has a history of shining in the food and beverage industry. JEDCO is highlighting that history recently announcing it received $4.2 million in grant funding to build a food and beverage incubator. The facility will allow small business owners and entrepreneurs to rent space with access to kitchen equipment, storage, and loading space, as well as technical support, programming, mentorship, and marketing. We should note two other program announcements. First, the Idea Village opened applications for its Villagex 2025 Accelerator Cohort. Second, the City of New Orleans announced the launch of the Set-Aside Program to allow the city to allocate up to 25% of its contracts to economically disadvantaged businesses. 

Alabama

gener8tor and Birmingham-based venture fund Bronze Valley have teamed up to create the Bronze Valley Investment Accelerator. The program selected five fast-growing startups and brought them to Alabama for mentorship, coaching, networking opportunities, and over $1M in deals and perks. The program culminates in a startup showcase at the regional Founder Fest in December. 

Arkansas

Congratulations to 3 Arkansas startups on announcing fundraisings. Little Rock-based Truck Park Management (TPM) announced a $15M investment by FoxDen Capital in its reservation-based truck parking platform. Bentonville-based Empathy Health Technologies announced a $2.8M Seed funding round. Empathy Health Technologies provides an app that helps individuals in their recovery efforts. The app has already hit impressive milestones, with almost 500,000 downloads and nearly 1,000 new users joining daily. Fayetteville-based Field Agent, a retail technology platform, also announced it had received an undisclosed amount of growth funding from Five Elms Capital. 

Small businesses in the agriculture and farming industries will soon have access to $2.1M worth of grants provided by the USDA. The programs will help these businesses adopt clean energy initiatives. 

Florida

The Embark Collective released its 2024 Southeast Capital Landscape Report. The report catalogs the Southeast capital landscape to increase transparency and funding opportunities for startups throughout the Southeast. They also released their annual findings, including that there are over 388 investment firms in the report's covered area, doubling the number seen at the report's conception in 2019. Check out all of the report's findings here, and make sure to bookmark this great startup tool. 

Congratulations to Miami-based Crosshatch on completing a $2.7M fundraising round. Crosshatch's platform helps brands provide a personalized experience for customers while allowing customers to maintain control of their data. And congratulations to AL mental health company Yung Sidekick on completing a $895K financing. 

Georgia

Congratulations to several Georgia-based companies that announced new fundraisings. AI company Toolpath announced a $10M Seed round to bring AI disruption to the manufacturing industry. Infinite Giving, a non-profit-focused tech company, announced a $2M Seed round led by Cubit Capital, Morgan Stanley, and Atlanta Ventures. City Detect, a company using AI to identify and solve blight and property issues, announced a $2M Seed round. Finally, AgTech startup Good Agriculture closed a season of pitching with $650K in pre-seed funding. 

Mississippi

The Mississippi AI Collaborative and its AI Agency are shaping the economy. A new article from the Mississippi Business Journal highlights the Mississippi AI Collaborative's efforts to integrate AI into local businesses and education. It emphasizes the role of AI in streamlining business processes and enhancing educational experiences while addressing concerns about job displacement by highlighting new opportunities created by AI. Check out the article here. 

North Carolina

NC IDEA, a private foundation committed to supporting entrepreneurial ambition and economic empowerment in North Carolina, announced today that it has selected 20 semi-finalists from across the state in its 38th SEED grant cycle. The finalists represent cities across the state and industries from agriculture to food and beverage. The NC TECH Association announced the finalists for the NC TECH awards. NC TECH will announce the winners in December. Check out the nominees here. 

Tennessee

Congratulations to Nashville-based event booking platform EVA on raising $2M in funding. InvestTN announced three additional investments in Tennessee companies: Authentrics.ai, Clear Health, and LUCI. Finally, congratulations to Nashville-based Daily Crunch on closing a $4M Series A financing. Launch TN led the round.

Memphis' medtech-focused accelerator, ZeroTo510, announced its Fall 2024 cohort. The cohort participants were chosen from applicants across 15 states and will complete a 90-day education course.