A Glimpse into Atlanta’s Startup Industry
Atlanta, known for its blossoming movie industry, history in birthing hip hop and pop culture, and as a former Olympic host city, is a fast-growing Southern city, presenting itself as a unique home for start-ups and new business ventures.
Some argue, rather than trying to emulate the famous Silicon Valley start-up culture, Atlanta presents its own unique charms. For Atlanta’s vibrant music scene, the hip-hop focused A3C Conference organizes a pitch day for those involved in music tech startups, connecting various passionate content creators and investors together.
Atlanta also boasts a wide array of accelerators for rising start-ups. The Farm is an accelerator by Comcast NBCUniversal, hosting an annual Demo Day. Techstars Atlanta accelerator, Atlanta Switch Yards, helps support numerous entrepreneurs.
Another opportunity is Women’s Entrepreneurship Initiative, empowering women by leveraging access to financial and human capital. Launchpad2X also empowers female entrepreneurs in Atlanta through a three-day boot camp as well as mentorship. In fact, Atlanta has been listed multiple times as a top city for Women and Black-owned businesses, proving Atlanta to embrace diversity in business.
Multiple universities also reside in Atlanta, presenting opportunities for students and residents alike. Georgia Tech’s Advanced Technology Development Center has been running its start-up accelerator for years, and Morehouse College recently partnered with Techsquare Labs and JPMorgan Chase & Co. to launch Ascend2020 Atlanta to support minority-led tech startups in the metro area. Emory University also hosts their own Startup Launch accelerator program.
Venture Beat notes that Atlanta still faces hurdles though the venture capital market. The site notes that funding typically trickles into established tech verticals instead. However, it is improving, Georgia had its highest amount of venture capital funding in the past 17 years and continues to grow, reported by the Atlanta Business Chronicle in 2017.
Atlanta proves itself to be a vibrant community that continues to grow and flourish, and the future is limitless for this blooming city.
Written By: Amanda Chu | IQ Associate
