· Public charity
Tennessee Technology Development Corp
Launch tennessee is a 501c3 that supports the startup ecosystem through capital, connections and commercialization.
What it funded, over time
Every grant placed by its stated purpose and the recipient’s mission, by year, FY2017 to 2025.
Where the money goes
Grants by size, and the largest recipients.
By grant size · FY2025
- Under $10k5 grants · $34k
- $10k–50k4 grants · $101k
- $50k–250k29 grants · $3.6M
- $250k+31 grants · $9.2M
| Recipient | Amount |
|---|---|
| NASHVILLE ENTREPRENEUR CENTER | $421,000 |
| ROBOTIC TECHNOLOGIES OF TENNESSEE LLC | $308,000 |
| FC RENEW LLC | $308,000 |
| PERSEUS MATERIALS | $304,000 |
| YAYA SCIENTIFIC | $304,000 |
| SKYNANO LLC | $304,000 |
| WINTER INNOVATIONS INC | $304,000 |
| ENDEAVOR COMPOSITES INC | $304,000 |
| RELIABLE MICROSYSTEMS | $304,000 |
| ULTRASONIC TECHNOLOGY SOLUTIONS | $304,000 |
| ARENA LABS INC | $302,175 |
| AMALGAMATED VISION LLC | $302,000 |
| NEURODYNE | $300,000 |
| STATHEROS LLC | $300,000 |
| ENEXOR ENERGY LLC | $300,000 |
Does the money reach high-need areas?
Each grant placed by the hardship in its grantee’s ZIP, against the area’s typical level.
Dollar for dollar, its grants (FY17–25) land where the poverty rate runs at 13%, against an area that typically sits at 11%. 90% of its dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Most of its grants land in higher-need ZIPs.
How this is measured
Which US states its grants reach
How this is measured
Who it funds again
Organizations funded in more than one year, against those funded once.
Grantees it renews have grown median revenue +24% since the first grant, against 0% for those funded once.
68 repeat relationships: 48 still active in FY2025, 20 since wound down; 21 grantees were first funded in FY2025 (too recent to call).
How the two cohorts compare
Organizations
Total granted
Median revenue growth · since first grant
Still filing today
New vs renewed · share of each year
In FY2025, 85% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $2.0M went to new ones.
Where new relationships form · theme of each grantee’s first grant
How this is measured
Backed again, and grew
- KEKNOXVILLE ENTREPRENEUR CENTER9× · 2017–2025 · $7.4M · revenue +58% · 41% of their budget
- TNTHE NASHVILLE ENTREPRENEUR CENTER7× · 2019–2025 · $2.6M · revenue +26%
- CCOLAB7× · 2019–2025 · $1.8M · revenue +24% · 34% of their budget
Funded once
- SLSKYNANO LLCone grant, 2023 · $309k
- MPMOBIUS PBCone grant, 2022 · $306k
- IFINTERNATIONAL FEMTOSCIENCE INCone grant, 2023 · $300k
How this is measured
Repeat means funded in two or more distinct years. Growth and survival are read from each grantee’s own subsequent IRS filings.
Closest unfunded matches
The nonprofits that most resemble its grantees but are not funded by it, scored along the direction from the rest of the field toward the portfolio. A resemblance in what they say they do, not a recommendation.
Smtec supports entrepreneurs by providing mentoring, education and training, strategic and technical support, and assistance identifying sources of capital.
The launch place (tlp), a venture development organization located in danville, va and in the research triangle park, nc. the launch place invests in innovative start-ups in virginia and north carolina with a potential to create economic…
The alabama collective seeks to expand and enhance tech, innovation and entrepreneurial programs in alabama. by fostering growth and broadening opportunities within the states tech and entrepreneurial landscape, the alabama collective is…
Launch tennessee is a 501c3 that supports the startup ecosystem through capital, connections and commercialization. as a public-private partnership, we are uniquely positioned to provide direct investment, while also supporting…
To establish , develop, and operate an entrepreneur support program in northern kentucky to attract, educate, and serve start-up and emerging high-technology entrepreneurs for the benefit of the city of covington, in particular, and the…
The nashville area chamber of commerce facilitates community leadership to create economic prosperity.
Ntc mission is to advance the diverse technology ecosystem by connecting and promoting members, attracting, growing and retaining tech talent, and providing opportunities to reinvest in the greater nashville community.
Startup virginia is a non-profit, high-growth-business incubator, dedicated to building a long-term, sustainable economy for virginia. we connect our startup community to exceptional mentors and extensive programs in a dynamic workspace.
Jumpstart inc. drives economic vitality by connecting entrepreneurs to the opportunities and resources they need to succeed. jumpstart inc. is focused on enabling companies and founders in targeted areas succeed so that their success can…
Development and educational opportunities to promote industrial and economic development in kentucky.
How this is measured
34 grantees tracked through their own filings, 2017–2025.
Each grant beside the grantee’s revenue from every source, year by year.
How this is measured
Counted here: distinct organizations funded across 2017 to 2025, not grant rows in a single year, so this will not match the grant count on the cover. 34 of the 175 grantees resolved in that span have returns of their own we could reconcile.
Each grantee is resolved to its own IRS returns. Association, dated; never a causal claim.
Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee
Each grantee by its size and the funder’s share of it; top left is load-bearing
Grantee by grantee: a decade per organization, before and after funding
A decade per grantee: revenue shaded, grants as bars, all rows on one timeline.
- Who funds KNOXVILLE ENTREPRENEUR CENTER ↗
- Who funds THE NASHVILLE ENTREPRENEUR CENTER ↗
- Who funds Entrepreneur Development Center - Southwest Tennessee ↗
- Who funds COLAB ↗
- Who funds VIBRANT MEMPHIS INC ↗
- Who funds UPPER CUMBERLAND ENTREPRENURIAL FOUNDATION ↗
- Who funds SYNC SPACE ENTREPRENEUR CENTER ↗
- Who funds TENNESSEE ADVANCED ENERGY BUSINESS COUNCIL ↗
- Who funds BIOTN FOUNDATION INC DBA LIFE SCIENCE TENNESSEE FOUNDATION ↗
- Who funds TENNSMART CONSORTIUM INC ↗
- Who funds AGLAUNCH INITIATIVE ↗
- Who funds PROOF PROGRAMS ↗
Co-funders
Grantmakers whose grantees overlap with this funder’s far more than size alone predicts. Closer means stronger alignment; arcs show where they also fund each other. Here they form a tightly interlocked group: most of these funders back each other's grantees too.
Open a dossier: Vanderbilt University · Memphis Bioworks Foundation · Truist Foundation Inc · The Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee Inc · The Blackbaud Giving Fund · The Bank of America Charitable Foundation Inc · National Philanthropic Trust · Fidelity Investments Charitable Gift Fund · Amazonsmile Foundation
How this is measured
How much its grantees rely on government
Each dot is one organization Tennessee Technology Development Corp funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from Tennessee Technology Development Corp. Bigger dots raise more.
How this is measured
Play a game based on Tennessee Technology Development’s filings →