SSR - January 30, 2026
The Southern Startup Report is a bi-weekly publication with curated news and information to support the southern startup ecosystem.
Louisiana
This week marked the VILLAGEx 2026 Kickoff, launching a four-month program focused on fundraising, leadership, hiring, KPI setting, and long-term planning for this year’s cohort. Founders met their mentors and began the work of scaling companies across logistics, AI, biotech, consumer, and public-sector tech, including Marine OT / Harbor Lynx, Vetavize, Dreamland Koffucha, Gophr, CultureBot, WhosLive, Informuta, and !nService.
And quick reminder: Applications for the Builder 1.0 Spring Cohort close January 30 (today) for early-stage tech and tech-enabled founders!
Alabama
The FuelAL HBCU Innovation Internship Program launched its Spring 2026 cohort, placing 20 students from five Alabama HBCUs into paid, 12-week internships with 12 innovation-driven employers statewide. Students from Alabama A&M, Alabama State, Lawson State, Talladega College, and Tuskegee University are working with organizations including HudsonAlpha, Techstars, Innovation Portal, and Tech Birmingham, strengthening Alabama’s tech talent pipeline while creating clearer in-state career pathways for emerging talent.
Arkansas
The 75Strong Business-Building Program continues to remove barriers to business growth by providing cost-free, virtual access to high-level growth support for Arkansas companies statewide. Funded by the Arkansas Economic Development Commission, the program is designed for businesses with traction and a desire to scale. Applications are open now through April 10.
Florida
Miami-based Indigo raised a $50M Series B to modernize medical malpractice insurance using data-driven underwriting and risk modeling. In health tech, BioBeat also closed a $50M Series B to accelerate U.S. commercialization of its remote patient monitoring technology, expanding its footprint with hospitals and health systems nationwide. Earlier-stage activity remains active as well, with Winter Park-based Statusphere raising an $18M Series A to scale its AI-powered micro-influencer commerce platform.
The deadline is approaching for military-connected founders to apply for a fast-track into the eMerge Global Startup Accelerator + Showcase, which will select ten startups in national security, AI or quantum, energy, health, or finance for fundraising training, pitch exposure, and access to $125K in prizes.
Georgia
Atlanta-based Greptile, an AI tool for engineering teams, reached a reported ~$180 M valuation following backing from Y Combinator and Benchmark, underscoring continued investor interest in Georgia-rooted AI companies. And, Atlanta-based Pull Logic raised a $3.3M seed round to expand its AI-powered availability intelligence platform, highlighting continued investor interest in enterprise and supply-chain tech emerging from Georgia. In clean energy, Cherry Street Energy acquired 16 solar sites from Inman Solar, adding 12.7 megawatts of distributed capacity and reinforcing Atlanta’s growing role in scalable renewable infrastructure and climate-focused development.
Mississippi
Innovate Mississippi will pause its February CONNECT networking event and instead encourage founders to attend the Mississippi Economic Development Council Legislative Reception at Fertile Ground Beer Co., aligning the ecosystem around a broader statewide convening of business leaders, policymakers, and economic developers. The shift reflects an intentional focus on relationship-building and policy engagement as Mississippi’s innovation community looks toward the 2026 legislative and economic development cycle.
North Carolina
North Carolina’s ecosystem continues to cultivate founder development and hands-on programming with the return of HatchThis Startup Weekend in Asheville (March 27-29, 2026), offering intensive mentorship and a $20 K prize to early teams — a signal of sustained grassroots activity fueling deal flow and community engagement. Alongside this, statewide accelerators and contests preparing to open later this spring promise supplemental pipeline support for founders seeking early validation and investor exposure.
South Carolina
South Carolina announced more than $750,000 in Relentless Challenge and StimulateSC grants awarded to projects supporting entrepreneurship, commercialization, and workforce development across the state. The funding targets early catalytic support for founders and ecosystem builders working to scale high-growth companies and strengthen regional innovation capacity.
Tennessee
Tennessee’s startup ecosystem saw new capacity-building efforts this week with Co.Lab and Epicenter Memphis launching a partnership to strengthen the state’s startup pipeline through coordinated programming and founder support. In West Tennessee, entrepreneur Al Da Silva announced the launch of a new business accelerator aimed at expanding access to structured startup resources beyond the state’s largest metro areas.