TEDCO Launches Next Generation Funding Program to Enhance Entrepreneurial Support

TEDCO ’s pre-seed Builder Fund was created to financially and operationally support the development of start-up companies run by entrepreneurs with a socially or economically disadvantaged background that hinders access to traditional forms of capital and executive networks.

The program takes an unprecedented initiative of formally pairing seasoned executives with company founders to facilitate the transfer of knowledge, and to introduce executive experience to the best ideas at an early stage of development. The program includes education, team building and a pre-seed investment that seeks to institutionalize the conventional friends and family round to fill a gap in access to capital commonly experienced by entrepreneurs from socially or economically disadvantaged backgrounds. The program will also serve to expand Maryland’s pool of high-quality, fundable companies.

Companies receiving up to a $50,000 investment must participate in a formal program, which consists of an investment, a 12-week educational intensive, a second 12-week operational intensive and progress checks at specific intervals post investment.

Eligible recipients must have founders who can demonstrate a socially or economically disadvantaged status and must have a principal place of business in Maryland. Companies should welcome active involvement from TEDCO’s network of outsourced executives and are required to have at least one founding manager working in the company on a full-time basis.

Deadline for applications is July 15th.

http://tedco.md/program/builder-fund.

Learn more here.

“The Stem Cell Fund mission is to make Maryland a leader in regenerative medicine, cell therapy and stem cell research and to deliver cures to devastating diseases,” said Dr. Dan Gincel, Executive Director of the Fund. “We accomplish that by unifying the community of entrepreneurs and researchers. From this mission came the partnership between us and local biotechnology training company, Bio-Trac.”

“iPS cell-derived hepatocytes serve as a great tool for disease-modeling as well as for drug metabolism and toxicity studies,” said Amritha Jaishankar, Ph.D., TEDCO MSCRF Manager. This Bio-Trac workshop offers a unique opportunity for researchers to get hands-on training from handling iPS cells to conduct functional assays on hepatocytes.”

After the success of the Hepatocytes Training Workshop in March, MSCRF and Bio-Trac will be teaming up for their three remaining 2018 stem cell workshops.

Learn More About BioTrac's workshops

Solomons Inventor and Entrepreneur Takes First Place at Crab Pot Pitch Contest

The  Southern Maryland Innovation and Technology (SMIT)  meetup and  PaxSpace  announced Lowell Cade, Founder of RYG Light LLC, as the first place winner of the Crab Pot Pitch Contest. Cade received a $5,000 cash prize to further his concept, a bushel of crabs, and a one-year membership to PaxSpace, a member-operated makerspace where entrepreneurs can work on their projects.

Lowell Cade’s invention of the RYG Light, a portable, handheld device is used to control pedestrian and auto traffic. Last week, his patented device won first place in the Southern Maryland Innovation and Tech (SMIT) Initiative finals of the 4th annual Crab Pot Pitch Contest. Five products were pitched in the finals which ranged from an electric vertical take-off flying car and a convertible rescue boat/bookcase to a river filtration product and a constant-motion knee brace which aids in physical therapy exercises invented by a team of high school students from St. Mary’s County.

 

“From the beginning stages of business, marketing and cash flow planning, technology commercialization to future production and manufacturing, the SBDC and the Maryland Technology Development Corp. (TEDCO) has assisted RYG Light since last summer,” stated Wynne Briscoe, Small Business Development Center consultant. “Along with pitch deck development and rehearsals, mentoring, confidence building and attending vital business meetings with vendor and stakeholders, we have been with Lowell every step of the way.”

Crab Pot is a uniquely Southern Maryland pitch contest for inventors and entrepreneurs. Made popular by television shows like ABC’s “Shark Tank,” pitch contests provide an opportunity for entrepreneurs to present their ideas to a panel of judges or investors in front of an audience. Crab Pot also provides a venue for the community to celebrate the efforts of local entrepreneurs and innovators. 

Learn more about RYG Light here

TEDCO’s Rural Business Innovation Initiative Announces Second Pre-Seed Investment

TEDCO ’s Rural Business Innovation Initiative (RBI ² ) announced its latest pre-seed investment in PaverGuide, Inc.—a structural base for paving systems designed to advance permeable pavements. PaverGuide is the second rural-based company to receive a $25,000 investment from TEDCO’s program. As a recipient, the company will be provided with ongoing mentoring and funding to continue developing a clean rainwater reservoir and expansive infiltration system.

PaverGuide, Inc.  develops and sells a storm water infiltration chamber that replaces stone as a road base and reservoir below permeable pavements. The product is a structural base for paving systems, manufactured from recycled plastic. It can be installed faster and cheaper than the stone it replaces—and at 90% void, it provides a massive rainwater reservoir and expansive infiltration surface. PaverGuide allows for increased productivity and profitability, and expansion of clean, green and professional materials. The company is also developing a stormwater filtration media at the University of Maryland. The research is funded by Maryland DNR and the Maryland Industrial Partnership.

Learn more here

Early Bird Registration open until July 20th!

Register Here

Keynote Speaker:

Steve Case

As Chairman and CEO of  Revolution  LLC, a Washington, D.C.- based investment firm he co-founded in 2005, Steve partners with visionary entrepreneurs to build significant ‘built to last’ businesses.  

Stem Cell Keynote Speaker:

Sally Temple, Ph.D.

Sally is the Co-Founder and Scientific Director of the Neural Stem Cell Institute located in Rensselaer NY, USA. Dr. Temple’s group is focused on studies of neural stem cells, and using this knowledge to develop therapies for central nervous system disorders.

For sponsorship or exhibit information , contact   [email protected]

or read our prospectus here.

Sonavex, Inc., a privately held medical device company focused on improving surgical patient outcomes with point-of-care imaging technologies, announced today that it received 510(k) clearance from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to market its EchoMark and EchoMark LP soft tissue markers. 

Learn more here

New Director of TEDCO’s University Commercialization Fund Shares Vision for the Future

This local health IT startup, Insightin Health, just raised $2M in seed funding from some big names, includes TEDCO

Insightin Health, a Gaithersburg data startup that connects health insurers with consumers, has raised $2 million in seed financing. New York-based venture capital firm Health Catalyst Capital Management led the round, announced Tuesday, with participation from several local investors including Revolution’s Rise of the Rest Seed Fund, Maryland Technology Development Corp., SaaS Ventures, TCP Ventures and an angel group led by Blu Venture Investors Founding Principal Paul Silber.

Learn more here

Baltimore medical device startup joins TEDCO program

The mdPACE program helps medical device startups navigate the federal regulatory approval process, with a particular focus on the Food and Drug Administration’s 510(k) approval.

BondTrue became the 18th Maryland startup to partner with the mdPACE program, which began three years ago.

Learn more here

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