Nashville · Pre-Seed–Series B · 1 people tracked
Investment thesis
Launch Tennessee operates as a public-private partnership serving as Tennessee's hub for startups and innovation. Its mission is to empower innovators statewide by providing capital, commercialization support, and connections. On the capital side, it invests in venture capital firms and provides insight into Tennessee deals to help investors navigate the ecosystem, and it also makes direct investments. Its commercialization team supports researchers with grant-writing and funding assistance as they move ideas from lab to market. The organization fosters collaboration among founders, investors, researchers, the private sector, and government.
Source: firm website, verified Aug 3, 2026.
Team · 1 people
from public directoriesWhat they invest in
from 33 of 47 portfolio companiesHealthtech ×12SaaS ×7Deep Tech ×6Hardware ×6Medical Devices ×5AI & Machine Learning ×4Biotech ×4Digital Health ×4
HQs:United States×24
Who they back
founder profiles across 14 portfolio companiesFounding team size:solo founder×32 founders×93 founders×2
Accelerator rootsportfolio companies that came through a program
Investments · 47 tracked
founders shown can be your intro pathBy year:2024 · 22023 · 12022 · 12018 · 12017 · 16 dated
American Hometown Media provides content, monetization, and technology products for digital publishers and online influencers, including its CuratorCrowd traffic and engagement platform and a large collection of user-submitted recipes.
AdTechMarketing TechMedia & EntertainmentNashville, US
Lee Daniel Hammond(Executive Officer, Director)
AngelEye Health offers a cloud-based platform for hospital neonatal intensive care units (NICUs) that combines NICU navigation and discharge coordination, feeding management, and secure live-stream video and messaging.
Digital HealthHealthtechSaaS
Co-investorsCapital Innovators
Branch Technology uses patented digital fabrication and additive manufacturing to enable architects and designers to construct complex structural designs at scale.
Advanced ManufacturingConstruction TechDeep TechHardwareChattanooga, US
Ryan Lusk(Chief Executive Officer)in
Co-investorsBonaventure CapitalGlobal BrainMetaPropBrick Mortar Ventures
Nashville, US
Tomer Ben-David(Director)Derek Brown(Executive Officer, Director)
CET evaluates early-stage biomedical technologies from researchers, universities and entrepreneurs and partners with them to support development and commercialization.
BiotechDeep TechHealthtech
Children's Media Studio produces educational media, including the Sing And Spell phonics song and animation system, to teach early literacy skills such as letter sounds, sight words, and vocabulary.
EdTechMedia & Entertainment
Cathy Vangieri(President)Mark Radice(Director of Music)Todd Carter(Director of Animation & Technology)
CivicEye develops cloud-based records management, case management, and digital evidence solutions for law enforcement agencies, prosecutors, courts, and jails.
Enterprise SoftwareGovTechSaaSCharlotte, US
Joshua South(President)in
Co-investorsCreativeCoRelevance Ventures
Couture Technologies provides an AI-powered sizing and fit suite—including size recommendations, fit agents, and 3D virtual try-on—delivered via API and web-based experiences to reduce size-related returns and speed up fittings.
AI & Machine LearningE-commerceRetail Tech
Daily Crunch is a women-owned snack brand that makes sprouted, seed oil-free nut snacks using a patented process of soaking and dehydrating (rather than roasting) nuts.
ConsumerDirect to ConsumerFoodTechNashville, US
Laurel Orley(Co-founder)Diane(Co-founder)Dan Stephenson(Executive Officer, Director)
Co-investorsAtlanta Technology AngelsMarket Square Ventures
Nashville-based company funded via the INCITE Fund
Diatech Diabetes is a medical device company developing SmartFusion, a software platform and mobile app that monitors insulin infusion pumps for medication delivery failure and measures the accuracy of insulin delivery for people living with diabetes.
Digital HealthHealthtechMedical Devices
John Wilcox(Co-founder & CEO)Luis E. Blanco(Co-founder & CTO)
Co-investorsJohnson Venture PartnersRevUp Capital
Knoxville-based company funded via the INCITE Fund
Healing Innovations develops robotic rehabilitation technology aimed at improving health, mobility, and independence for people recovering from neurological injuries.
HealthtechMedical DevicesRoboticsNashville, US
Scott Benda(Executive Officer, Director)inLuke Benda(Executive Officer, Director)in
Co-investorsTechFarms Capital
Hera Health Solutions is a biotechnology company that develops a proprietary nanotechnology platform to reformulate existing pharmaceutical compounds into more effective and longer-acting therapies.
BiotechDeep TechHealthtechMedical DevicesMemphis, US
Garrett Whitfield(Executive Officer, Director)Idicula Mathew(Executive Officer, Director)
Co-investorsInnova Memphis, Inc.Techstars
Knoxville-based company funded via the INCITE Fund
BiotechMemphis, US
Kenneth William Tobin, Jr.(Executive Officer)Ed Chaum(Executive Officer, Director)Mike Sherman(Director)
Boomin University (Boomin U) provides small business owners with access to capital, coaching, and growth programs, including zero-interest business funding as well as marketing and bookkeeping support.
FintechImpact & Social Good
First Stop Health provides virtual healthcare for employees through employer-sponsored plans, offering primary care, urgent care, and mental health services at no cost to members and their dependents.
Digital HealthHealthtechMental Health
InvestTN, powered by Launch Tennessee, is a state investment program that makes equity investments in Tennessee-based early-stage startups (Pre-Seed through Series B) and commits capital to venture capital funds investing in Tennessee companies.
Sector Agnostic
Hytch is a map-native group messaging app that combines chat, maps, and coordination tools such as plan suggestions, polls, location sharing, quests, in-location reviews, SafeRide designated-driver coordination, and a shared group memory system.
ConsumerMobility & TransportationSocialNashville, US
MedProctor operates a platform for colleges and universities to manage student health compliance, including immunization record intake, student communications, and data tracking for regulatory requirements.
Digital HealthEdTechSaaS
Octerra is a marketing procurement platform that centralizes marketing production spend, giving brands, agencies, and vendors visibility into non-working spend, vendor management, and secure bidding.
Enterprise SoftwareMarketing TechSaaS
Co-investorsClaritas Capital
Co-investorsMetaPropMetaProp VenturesVSC VenturesOutsidersPathbreaker Ventures
Nashville, US
Shani Dowell(Executive Officer, Director, Promoter)Christine Fisher(Founder)
Co-investorsWocstar Capital
Preteckt uses AI and vehicle sensor data to provide predictive maintenance software that detects issues early, speeds up diagnostics, and reduces breakdowns.
AI & Machine LearningIoTLogistics & Supply ChainMobility & TransportationSaaSMemphis, US
Krishnaraj Inbarajan(Executive Officer, Director)Peter Alexander Kucharczyk(Executive Officer, Director)Peter BassaSasha Kucharczyk
BoardMark Licht(Director)Jan Bouten(Director)in
Co-investors500 GlobalElev8.vcInnova Memphis, Inc.Las Olas Venture CapitalXG Ventures27V (Twenty Seven Ventures)+2 more
Quire provides custom AI, data science, and software development services, including automated clinical note summarization and predictive models for patient readmissions.
AI & Machine LearningData & InfrastructureHealthtech
Co-investorsInnova Memphis, Inc.
Rebel Audio is an AI-native podcasting platform that lets creators plan, record, edit, clip, transcribe, translate and publish podcasts through a chat-based workflow.
AI & Machine LearningCreator EconomyMedia & Entertainment
Co-investorsMarket Square Ventures
Rootine delivers personalized health and nutrition solutions using science-based approaches to support individual wellness goals.
ConsumerHealthtechWellness & FitnessNashville, US
Co-investorsCleo CapitalRelevance VenturesTechstars
RootNote provides data analytics and insights for content creators and businesses, helping them understand and optimize their content performance.
Creator EconomyData & InfrastructureGamingMarketing TechSaaSNashville, US
Jason Burchard(Chief Executive Officer)inJeremy Burchard(Chief Creative Officer)Chandler Barnes(Chief Technical Officer)
BoardMyles Grote(Director)in
Co-investorsElevate VenturesJohnson Venture PartnersLong Way VenturesTechstarsCascade Seed Fund
Co-investorsInnova Memphis, Inc.
Chattanooga, US
Jay Jumper(Executive Officer, Director, Promoter)J Pemberton Guerry(Executive Officer, Director, Promoter)Kent Cooper(Executive Officer)
BoardDan Marcum(Director)Cameron Newton(Director)Tory Johnston(Director)
Co-investorsRelevance Capital
SOMAVAC makes a smart surgical drain pump that delivers continuous sensor-controlled negative pressure therapy to the deep wound space, replacing traditional JP bulb drains and enabling earlier drain removal after surgery.
HardwareHealthtechMedical DevicesMemphis, US
Elizabeth Hoff(CEO)
Co-investorsInnova Memphis, Inc.
Sparkz manufactures Cathode Active Material (CAM) for cobalt-free and nickel-free lithium iron phosphate (LFP) batteries in the United States, building a vertically integrated domestic supply chain for lithium-ion batteries.
Advanced ManufacturingCleantechEnergyCalifornia, US
Sanjiv Malhotra(Founder and CEO)Dr. Sanjiv Malhotra(Founder & CEO)
Co-investorsUlu Ventures
StudioNow provides tools and resources for creative teams to optimize paid content production across multiple channels and formats.
Creator EconomyMarketing Tech
Co-investorsBand of AngelsClaritas Capital
HealthtechMemphis, US
Isaac Rodriguez(Executive Officer, Director)Kayla Rodriguez(Executive Officer, Director)Marsalas Whitaker(Executive Officer, Director)Kevin Graff(Executive Officer)
Co-investorsInnova Memphis, Inc.VamosVentures
Terra Watts is developing a technology to wirelessly transmit power through earthen material, aiming to provide energy access without traditional above-ground grid infrastructure.
CleantechDeep TechEnergyHardware
US BIOLOGIC develops orally delivered vaccines for disease prevention, applying partner technologies to its oral-delivery platform for wildlife, companion animals, food animals, and humans.
AgTechBiotechHealthtechMemphis, US
Mason Kauffman(Executive Officer, Director)inMichael Shmerling(Director)Thomas Monath(Director)Tommy Thompson(Director)David Williams(Director)Chris Przybyszewski(Executive Officer, Director)in
Variable offers white-labeled hardware, software, and custom integrations for companies, including Variable Cloud, a web-based platform for building and managing color libraries.
Cloud ComputingHardwareSaaS
Co-investorsChattanooga Renaissance Fund
Whisper Aero develops electric propulsion technology for aircraft, emphasizing quiet, efficient thrust for urban air mobility and logistics.
Deep TechDefense TechEnergyHardwareMobility & TransportationTennessee, US
Mark Moore(Co-Founder, CEO)Ian Villa(Co-Founder, COO, CPO)Devon Jedamski(Chief Engineer)
BoardShawn Carolan(Director)inThiago Olson(Director)
Co-investorsAbstract VenturesLux CapitalMenlo VenturesAero X VenturesSequoia Capital
Winter Innovations develops a patented two-part surgical needle and stitching technology for orthopedic surgery.
HardwareHealthtechMedical Devices
Co-investorsBoston Harbor Angels
Nashville, US
Martine Mahoney(Executive Officer)Thomas Cunningham(Executive Officer)John Philip Hardin(Chief Executive Officer)John Phillip Hardin(Chief Executive Officer)Mary Elizabeth Willis(Director)
BoardJohn Ingram(Director)
Co-investorsECMC Group
Portfolio news
latest coverage across their companiesWhisper Aero · benzinga.com · Jul 18, 2026
Preteckt · startupfundraising.com · Jun 16, 2026
Rebel Audio · inforcapital.com · Mar 18, 2026
Frequently asked questions
- How many investments has Launch Tennessee made?
- Launch Tennessee has 46 tracked investments.
- What stage does Launch Tennessee invest at?
- Launch Tennessee invests at the Pre-Seed, Seed, Series A, Series B stages.
- What sectors does Launch Tennessee focus on?
- Launch Tennessee focuses on Advanced Manufacturing, Biotech, Data & Infrastructure, E-commerce, EdTech, Energy, Enterprise Software, Fintech, Hardware, Medical Devices, Mobility & Transportation, New Materials, SaaS, Sector Agnostic.
- Where is Launch Tennessee located?
- Launch Tennessee is headquartered in Nashville, US.
- Who does Launch Tennessee co-invest with?
- Launch Tennessee most often shares deals with Innova Memphis, Inc., Techstars, Claritas Capital, among 31 tracked co-investors.
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