The entrepreneurial community on the First Coast is home to a number of intriguing startups, with 2021 seeing an expansion of their ranks. ¶ Whether the companies were founded by seasoned veterans collecting money from venture capitalists or teenagers looking to grow a new social media platform, several startups are a must-watch for 2022. As First Coast Inno expands its coverage of the area’s innovation economy, here’s some of the companies we’re keeping an eye on.
IQ Fiber, launched in September 2021 with the closing of its initial private equity funding, is a new residential fiber-optic internet provider with a target of serving more than 60,000 homes across Northeast Florida in the first phase of its infrastructure deployment. The company ended 2021 with a milestone: IQ Fiber selected its headquarters and leased space at the former iMethods building at 8787 Perimeter Park Blvd. The company is poised to scale as it begins laying the foundation of its future in 2022.
What was your biggest accomplishment in 2021?
Our biggest accomplishment was taking an idea and making it reality. Building everything we need to bring local fiber optic to Northeast Florida. The idea to build a local fiber optic internet company had been percolating, but we made it official in March 2021 when we created the business plan for IQ Fiber. By September we had secured our initial funding, just 6 months later. By the end of 2021, we had the foundation in place – establishing business partnerships for network design and construction and selecting our key technology and operating systems. We also built out our management team and began the detailed design process for our initial network deployments.
What are your goals for 2022?
Our goal is to launch the service in the first half of 2022. We’re hard at work finalizing network architecture, securing construction teams and materials, implementing a seamless customer experience, and hiring our local experts to provide exceptional service.
Are you seeking another round of investment? If so, what are you looking for/any details that you can share?
We are fully funded for our initial deployment of over 60,0000 homes. We will likely secure additional funding as we expand across the larger opportunity of over 300,000 homes across Northeast Florida.
What, if any, hurdles do you foresee having to overcome to accomplish your goals?
Like many businesses, supply chain issues present a challenge right now, but we believe we have established strong, resourceful partnerships to overcome those challenges.
What makes your company unique in the industry, and/or locally?
IQ Fiber is Northeast Florida’s only locally based residential fiber-optic network provider, deploying the very latest 10 gigabyte capable network technology. Not only are we bringing superior technology, but we are doing it with a team that lives and works right here in Jacksonville. Not many cities boast this kind of choice in fiber internet service.
Anything else in closing you want to add about your company or the near future?
Stay tuned! We’ll be announcing our first service areas very soon and we can’t wait to bring a smarter internet choice to Northeast Florida. The neighborhoods we’ll serve first don’t currently have any access to service like ours. And we are excited about bringing them superior fiber service.
