i2E, Inc. had a record-breaking number of investments in FY2020 with $12.89M in closed investments across its 4 venture funds and concept fund. In total, 19 Oklahoma companies received financing and attracted an additional $16.34M from private investors, for a total of $29.3M invested in Oklahoma-based companies. i2E Management Company Inc. (iMCI ), i2E’s investmentRead more
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By Scott Meacham This past week, we reopened our offices. For a few weeks, for the safety or our staff and the community, we shuttered our space and worked remotely, although we never really “closed.” Working remotely, we negotiated term sheets, concluded a major funding round for an exciting new Oklahoma startup, and held theRead more
By Scott Meacham It is hard to start a business — very, very hard. This is true on Main Street, for information technology businesses and in biotech. For all entrepreneurs, building a company is a race against time, a race in which every milestone of success increases the pressure on the business plan. The biggestRead more
By Jim Stafford STILLWATER – Don’t look for a sign in downtown Stillwater advertising the presence of HostBridge Technology, which has maintained its headquarters just off Main Street for two decades. There isn’t one. Founded by Russell Teubner in 2000, HostBridge Technology occupies a historic building along E. 7th Street, just off Main Street. TheRead more
By Scott Meacham This time of year, Christmas music is everywhere. Some people get a little tired of it, but for me it’s all part of the season, and I like it. Christmas music reminds me of family, friends, and memories of Christmas mornings and meals. The other day, I was on an errand, andRead more
By Jim Stafford Once a year, the Oklahoma Center for the Advancement of Science and Technology (OCAST) gathers scientists from across the state who are currently receiving funding from its health research program in a sort of show-and-tell educational event. Recently, about 100 OCAST-funded life science researchers assembled at the Samis Family Education Center onRead more
By Scott Meacham Copyright © 2019, The Oklahoman Of the more than 120 types of brain and central nervous system tumors, Glioblastoma (also called GBM) is the most aggressive — a deadly brain cancer with no cure. Glioblastomas often appear with no warning or prior symptoms. These Type IV tumors tend to produce their ownRead more
By Scott Meacham Copyright © 2019, The Oklahoman In today’s world, a state’s economic growth demands investment in innovation and high-tech industries — especially for a natural resource-rich state like ours that must leverage our existing resource base to diversify our economy for the future. It’s a straightforward proposition. If we believe that more andRead more
By Scott Meacham Copyright © 2019, The Oklahoman Oklahoma is a great place to live. Oklahoma is a great place to work. We are a state that seems ready to seize the moment and leverage the quality of life and business-friendly advantages here to add innovation and technology-based economic development to Oklahoma’s list of “greats.”Read more
By Jim Stafford Copyright © 2019, The Oklahoman Five patients are waiting to see their doctor, each displaying different symptoms. One has a bright rash on her face. Another is suffering from arthritis. Still another has kidney failure, while the fourth patient suffers from heart problems and the fifth is fatigued all the time. TurnsRead more
By Scott Meacham Copyright © 2019, The Oklahoman When Gov. Kevin Stitt announced his vision for making Oklahoma a Top 10 State, those of us representing the Oklahoma Innovation Model — comprising OCAST (Oklahoma Center for the Advancement of Science & Technology), the Oklahoma Manufacturing Alliance (OMA), Oklahoma State University New Product Development Center (NPDC)Read more
By Scott Meacham Copyright © 2019, The Oklahoman Innovate. Innovate. Innovate. That’s the common theme in today’s economy. Innovation stimulates entrepreneurship. Successful entrepreneurship creates net new jobs. Driving innovation through collaboration to create jobs is the entire reason for being of the public-private consortium of the Oklahoma Center for the Advancement of Science and TechnologyRead more
By Scott Meacham Copyright © 2019, The Oklahoman I always tell every new company that I talk to: You have to crawl before you walk and walk before you run. The same thing applies to the capital path. The great thing for startups in this state is that The Oklahoma Innovation Model, which is uniqueRead more
By Scott Meacham Copyright © 2019, The Oklahoman In the business of creating new high-growth companies, “trade-off” is the name of the game. From idea to IPO, from survival mode to success, entrepreneurship calls for constant prioritizing and re-prioritizing. With limited capital — financial and human — for the first few years of a startup’sRead more
By Jim Stafford Copyright © 2018, The Oklahoman As keynote speaker at last week’s Oklahoma Center for Science and Technology (OCAST) Health Research Conference, James A. Rogers III, with Mayo Clinic, delivered a sobering forecast for scientists seeking to commercialize discoveries made in their laboratories. “It’s a bit of a roller coaster to be involvedRead more
By Scott Meacham Copyright © 2018, The Oklahoman I’m a numbers guy; lately, the number 22,000 has been stuck in my mind. That’s how many Oklahoma jobs have been created so far through the public/private partnerships of the Oklahoma Center for the Advancement of Science and Technology (OCAST). When you think about it, 22,000Read more
By Scott Meacham Copyright © 2018, The Oklahoman It seems like the conversation everywhere today is about how much or how little government should or should not do. No matter which side you take in that particular debate, I believe that it makes economic and business sense for government — both federal and state —Read more
By Scott Meacham Copyright © 2018, The Oklahoma Publishing Co. It seems like the conversation everywhere today is about how much or how little government should or should not do. No matter which side you take in that particular debate, I believe that it makes economic and business sense for government — both federal andRead more
By Jim Stafford Copyright © 2018, The Oklahoma Publishing Co. In a room filled with blood donors at the Oklahoma Blood Institute’s (OBI) donation center, Jennifer Chain, Ph.D., pronounces some words that don’t easily roll off the tongue. Allogeneic. Autologous. Apheresis. Chain’s audience includes me and a pair of colleagues from the Oklahoma Center forRead more
By Greater OKC Chamber staff i2E, a nonprofit that focuses on growing innovative small businesses in Oklahoma and making a positive impact on the state’s economy, is celebrating its 20th year of investing in entrepreneurs to build successful high growth companies in the state. While i2E officially started in 1998, the need for its servicesRead more
