Startup World Cup Regional Competition Spotlights Virginia’s Growing Innovation Economy
The Speakers:
Tim Ryan is the executive director of Innovate Hampton Roads, an organization focused on celebrating regional entrepreneurial and innovation through storytelling.
Under the Innovate Hampton Roads umbrella, Ryan serves as the director for REaKTOR, the City of Hampton’s Technology Innovation Center, and the program director of Start Peninsula, the region’s longest-running business validation platform. He also is the co-host of the Fervent Four Show, a podcast dedicated to startups and innovation around Virginia.
Ryan has extensive experience in entrepreneurship, early-stage startups, and angel investing. He also is an active angel investor, investing in more than 30 startups from the pre-seed to pre-IPO stages.
He has an MBA from William & Mary.
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Zack Miller started his first business at age 10. Since then, he’s spent decades helping other people successfully start, grow and dominate their businesses through his company, Hatch.
Miller has used the skills detailed in his book Anomaly: How to Finally Stand Out From the Crowd to land an interview with Daymond John, be chosen as the host of a business TV show on ABC, talk business at the White House, get featured in Entrepreneur Magazine, wow the audience at TEDx, and raise money from the team that started the Weather Channel.
Join us for a webinar on November 5 at noon to learn about how the Startup World Cup regional competition took place in Virginia.
When you think of Startup World Cup regional competitions, you might picture tech capitals like Silicon Valley, Seattle, London, or Singapore. But this past summer, Virginia took the global stage with the regional competition held in the state for the second year in a row.
In August, Virginia Beach served as the host site for the Startup World Cup’s Virginia regional event — part of the world’s largest startup pitch competition.
Startups from across Virginia took the stage to pitch their businesses, with the regional winner going on to represent the state at the Grand Finale in San Francisco — competing for the $1 million investment prize.
Hosting a regional event in Virginia Beach was a major win for Hampton Roads and Virginia — a testament to the region’s and state’s growing entrepreneurial ecosystem and its ability to compete on a global scale.
How did Hampton Roads land a spot on a global stage known for innovation and entrepreneurship?
Find out during our Virtual Innovation Spotlight Webinar on Wednesday, November 5 at noon.
You’ll hear the story behind the successful bid, how local partnerships made it possible, and what it means for the startup ecosystem across the I-64 Innovation Corridor and beyond.
The Startup World Cup brings together entrepreneurs, investors, and corporate leaders from across the globe. Regional winners from dozens of cities — including Milan, Paris, Singapore, and now Virginia Beach — compete for the chance to advance to the Grand Finale in San Francisco, which took place in October.
The event in Virginia Beach drew innovators from across Virginia to pitch bold ideas, build connections, and showcase the talent driving the next wave of growth in the state.