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STARTVIRGINIA: HEARD AROUND VIRGINIA December 2023
A consortium of Hampton Roads startup business programs, 757 ScaleUp Alliance, received a $1.2 million federal grant to promote job growth in emerging industries. The U.S. Department of Commerce awarded the grant as part of $53 million in funding through its Build to Scale program, which aims to provide financial resources to entrepreneurs and startups. […]
Pulaski startup aims to turn pollutants into profit
Where some people see pollutants, Steve Critchfield sees the potential for profit and to improve the environment. As founder and president of Pulaski-based MOVA Technologies, Critchfield developed and patented a filter about the size of a refrigerator that captures selected air pollutants and breaks them into byproducts that can[...]
Electra’s hybrid prototype aircraft takes first flight
This story was updated Dec. 1. A Manassas aircraft manufacturer that’s developing an electric short takeoff and landing (eSTOL) aircraft logged a significant milestone Nov. 19 when it completed its first hybrid-electric flight. Electra’s EL-2 Goldfinch took off from Manassas Regional Airport and flew 23 minutes, reac[...]
Scout Space founder has out-of-this-world goals
Eric Ingram wanted two things as a kid: blue hair and to travel to space. As CEO of Alexandria-based aerospace startup Scout Space, Ingram found the freedom to establish his now-trademark electric-blue hair. And it might provide the boost to reach that other goal. Ingram co-founded Scout Space in 2019 while he was furloughed fro[...]
HEARD AROUND VIRGINIA November 2023
Richmond-based Absurd Snacks is now selling its products in 14 Whole Foods Market stores throughout Washington, D.C., Maryland and Virginia, as well as via Amazon.com. Co-founders Grace Mittl and Eli Bank, who serve as CEO and chief operating officer respectively, began fostering a relationship with Whole Foods in 2021 while taking an entrepreneurial pilot course at the University […]
Innovation center could be boost for life sciences
Kipton Currier envisions Virginia joining other mid-Atlantic states to form a super region for the life sciences industry. Before that happens, the state must secure some key ingredients missing from the ecosystem, namely sufficient lab space for biotech startups. Activation Capital, the brand name of the Virginia Biotechnology [...]
Son’s cancer fight inspires startup
The sight of Neal Piper’s then-3-year-old son, Noah, stuck on the couch all day, tethered to an IV pole with a feeding tube after the boy’s cancer diagnosis in 2019 put his father on a new mission. Piper, who had 15 years of experience in commercializing health care products, including 10 years in sales, marketing […]
Virginia accelerators vie for SBA award
During a virtual meeting of Virginia energy stakeholders in late June, Dominion Energy Innovation Center Executive Director Adam Sledd posed a question: How can Virginia become a leader in climate technology innovation? That’s the kind of ambitious vision that Sledd hopes will carry DEIC to victory in the second and final stag[...]
StartVirginia: August 2023 Heard Around Virginia
Two Virginia business owners were among 20 women entrepreneurs chosen in June out of 6,500 applicants to participate in a 10-week accelerator sponsored by Allergan Aesthetics, the maker of Botox. Monika Jefferson, CEO and founder of the Hampton Roads-based Association of Military Spouse Entrepreneurs, which provides networking and resources to military spouse business owners, and […]
FOR THE RECORD JULY 2023
CENTRAL VIRGINIA Henrico County-based Altria Group Inc. completed its acquisition of e-vapor maker NJOY Holdings Inc. for approximately $2.75 billion, the tobacco giant announced June 1. NJOY is now a fully owned subsidiary; its new president and CEO is Shannon Leistra, who previously served as senior vice president and consumer experience officer at Altria Client […]
StartVirginia: Heard around Virginia
Activation Capital, a Richmond-based innovation incubator, will redevelop a 102,000-square-foot innovation center in the Bio+Tech Park in downtown Richmond. The 34-acre Bio+Tech Park is a commercial life sciences hub adjacent to VCU Medical Center and has more than 70 companies, research institutes and state/federal laboratories on its campus. Announced June 2, the $53 million center […]
Activation Capital plans $53M innovation center in Richmond
Activation Capital, a Richmond-based innovation incubator, will redevelop a 102,000-square-foot innovation center in the Bio+Tech Park in downtown Richmond, Cushman & Wakefield | Thalhimer and Activation Capital announced Friday. The 34-acre park, at Eighth and E. Leigh streets, is a commercial life sciences hub adjacent to [...]
