Category: Austin
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ESW Capital: The Secret Sauce to Running Better Tech Companies with Alex Western
While everyone else is shopping for talent and tech, ESW Capital is shopping for companies. Alex Western, Managing Director of ESW Capital, has the secret sauce to running tech companies better on this special episode of SOUTH POD. Catch a new episode of SOUTH POD every Tuesday night at 8PM EST, streaming live. To download this…
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Charleston’s Galloping Gazelles
The Economist recently reported that while overall business formation is down nationwide, fast-growing startups are in high gear. These fast-growth new businesses or “gazelles” have disproportionately positive impact on employment & economic growth, and are no longer limited to Silicon Valley, Boston, and New York. In fact, the Charleston metro scores as one of the highest-growth entrepreneurial…
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Call for Startups Announced by DIG SOUTH Tech Conference
Early- to Growth-Stage Companies Invited to Present to the South’s Top Investors April 27 at Charleston Gaillard Center DIG SOUTH Tech Conference has announced its call for startups to join DIG SOUTH Wild Pitch 2018, sponsored by SCRA, on Friday, April 27 at the Charleston Gaillard Center. Held on the third day of the DIG…
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From Gaming to Saving Lives: ZIAN CEO Mark Semler on Moving Medical Products to Market
A creator at heart, Mark Semler, CEO of ZIAN at Medical University of South Carolina, thrives on creating what’s missing. His team moves ideas “out of surgeons’ heads into product creation,” including an “uncheatable” concussion diagnostic device that’s already saved many lives and helped others recover from strokes. In this episode of South Pod, Mark…
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Hey, Alexa: Will Amazon’s New HQ2 Roost in the South?
Nine southern metros sailed through the first round of Amazon’s selection process in a highly public and fiercely competitive bid for their second headquarters. Dubbed “HQ2”, the move by Amazon will bring enormous changes to the winning metro, with an estimated 50,000 highly paid technology and executive jobs, $5 billion in local investment and momentous…
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Power Up with These 8 Southern Solar Innovators
This week’s Total Eclipse has us nerding out on all things solar. The solar power industry is ripe for disruption; pair the big utilities landscape with a need to improve efficiency, access, and affordability, and you have an innovative entrepreneur’s dream landscape. Plus, as solar energy becomes cheaper, new startup opportunities increase. According to the…
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Learn to Code at These 10 Southern Bootcamps
Last week, Greenville, SC-based programming school The Iron Yard announced plans to shutter operations after its summer courses wrap up. The news came as a bit of a surprise to folks who have followed their success. Since launching in 2013, the Iron Yard became one of the nation’s largest coding bootcamps, counting 15 campuses (including…
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How StartOut Austin Empowers LGBTQ Entrepreneurs
LGBTQ entrepreneurs in Austin, Texas can tap into a growing support system thanks to StartOut, a non-profit that provides access to capital, mentorship and education to empower LGBTQ business leaders. The organization has six chapters across the country and counts 15,000 members in its national network. Last year, its Austin chapter became the birthplace of…
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DIG the Innovators: March 14, 2017
DIG the Innovators is a bi-weekly brief on the latest and greatest from leading brands and fiercely ambitious entrepreneurs across the South. These are the people and companies who make our #SucceedInTheSouth motto ring true. Casper brings rest to the weary at SXSW DIG ICON presenting company Casper has been snoozing in Austin since last…
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How Southern Entrepreneurial Ecosystems are Addressing the Diversity Gap
The Kauffman Foundation just released their annual State of Entrepreneurship report, outlining three “mega trends” that will shape the future of entrepreneurship. Along with shifting trends in geography and the nature and frequency of job creation, demographics will play an increasingly important role in the health and speed of our nation’s innovation. According to their…
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9 Southern Companies That Will Make You More Productive
Whether you have a corporate job, a creative side hustle, or a growing startup (or heck, all three), you’re probably always on the hunt for ways to get sh*t done. It’s a good thing, then, that the productivity software industry is growing. Australian workplace software maker Atlassian just acquired Trello for $425 million, Asana raised…
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10 Southern Companies Growing the Sharing Economy in 2017
The sharing economy has exploded over the past few years, providing consumers with convenient access to goods and services and opening new income opportunities for anyone with a car, home, or household toolbox. Most anyone with a smart phone has used Airbnb or Uber; in September, the ride-sharing service reported 8 million users, 160,000…
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11 Can’t miss Demo Days Coming up Around the South
The South is home to an array of startup accelerators and coding bootcamps — competitive programs that provide growth-stage companies and emerging software developers with the mentorship, connections, and resources they need to succeed. As the year comes to an end, many of these accelerators and code schools will host Demo Days, often complete…
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11 Southern Companies Giving Back on #GivingTuesday (and beyond)
While the Black Friday, Small Business Saturday, and Cyber Monday bargains are definitely worth celebrating, we’re particularly excited that today is #GivingTuesday, a “global day of giving fueled by the power of social media and collaboration.” The charitable movement is now entering its fifth year — last year alone, over 700,000 people across the globe…
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Six Southern startups bringing you gratitude and positivity this Thanksgiving
The “thanks – giving” part of Thanksgiving often gets overshadowed by stress. Do you really have to make Paleo-approved sides for your cousin? How do you make sure no one brings up the election? Will Waze actually save you from getting a speeding ticket? Exactly how early can you duck out of the office on…
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These Southern companies are making Election Day an unofficial holiday
Hundreds of tech companies are turning Election Day into an unofficial holiday so employees have time to get to the polls. And while a big number of the organizations that we’ve seen are New York or California-based (including major brands like Spotify, Thrillist, and Evernote), many Southern CEOs are actively encouraging their workforce to…
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Get a dose of innovation with these 11 Southern healthcare companies
Are you a healthcare provider interested in using technology to improve the patient experience? Perhaps you’re an investor with eyes on the growing healthcare startup market? Or maybe you’re just a health-conscious person wanting new strategies to build immunity against Zika virus or the impending winter flu season? Whatever the reason, healthcare (and the business…
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12 venture capital firms investing in the South
According to the National Venture Capital Association, 2016 has seen $32.4 billion raised so far, putting this year on pace to be a record-breaking year for investment. And yes, when you think of venture capital, major markets like San Francisco, Boston, and New York dominate the game. But research firm PitchBook points out that DC,…
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How 12 Southern startups can offer Hurricane Matthew relief
Hurricane Matthew is finally behind us, but residents of Haiti, parts of the Caribbean, and much of the Southeastern US are still dealing with its disastrous effects. Severe weather events like Matthew have a tendency to bring people together — government officials pulling long hours, emergency response crews bravely rescuing those in need, and neighbors…
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11 Southern tech companies brewing up beer innovations
Oktoberfest may be officially coming to an end, but that doesn’t mean your celebrations have to. Brewers, developers, and entrepreneurs are using technology to disrupt the massive and traditional $300 billion beer industry…and it’s working. According to Brewers Association, craft breweries have doubled their market share since 2010, and in 2014, startups in the…
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Cast your vote for these 10 political startups in the South
With the first presidential debate behind us and less than six weeks to go until we cast our ballots in the election, it’s hard not to have politics on the brain. Even for the most politically active citizens, government affairs can feel especially confusing and overwhelming around election time (how exactly does the Electoral College…
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10 Southern Innovation Stories You May Have Missed This Summer
Maybe you’ve been on a mission to make headlines of your own and haven’t had the time (or energy) to check Twitter for summer’s newsworthy happenings. Or maybe you’ve been off the grid fishing, swimming, or sipping margaritas since May. Whatever your reason, we know it can be hard to keep up with who’s who…
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Raise a glass for these 16 Southern booze businesses
Last week’s DIG 500 gave you Southern-made cold brew, juices, and craft soda, and this week we’re back, barware in hand, with a roundup of Southerners in the business of booze. This is the land of mint juleps and moonshine, after all. And just like a good mullet, alcohol startups know how to mix business…
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2017 SXSW Accelerator Startup Season Now Open – Are You In?
SXSW Accelerator returns for its 9th edition on March 11-12, 2017 to showcase some of the world’s most exciting innovations. This event provides an opportunity for startups to present to a panel of industry experts, VC and Angel investors. Categories are: Augmented & Virtual Reality, Enterprise & Smart Data, Entertainment & Content, Health & Wearables, Innovative…
