KY Inno, the entrepreneur- and startup-focused platform from Louisville Business First, is proud to present the 25 honorees in our inaugural Fire Awards.
Many longtime readers are familiar with our annual Startups to Watch feature, which recognized 22 early-stage companies at the start of the year. If that program is a crystal ball, predicting the startups that are poised for success in the coming year, Fire Awards is a greatest-hits album, a showcase of some of the biggest wins across Kentucky and Southern Indiana.
The Fire Awards is different in that it spotlights more than the startups alone — we also take into account key individuals that have been critical in those successes. In its first iteration, we have five categories with five finalists in each. Of those 25 finalists, five "Blazer" winners will be selected.
All honorees will be featured in Louisville Business First in print and online in late November.
Be sure to sign up for KY Inno's weekly newsletter, The Beat, so you don't miss the reveal of the Blazer winners — the companies and people setting the ecosystem alight. You can sign up for free here.
Also, nominations are open for the 2023 Startups to Watch program. Click here to nominate a company you think will take off next year.
Here are our Fire Awards 2022 finalists:
The Job Creators
The companies that have been and plan on continuing to create a lot of jobs in Kentucky or Southern Indiana.
- AppHarvest (Morehead, Kentucky)
- eBlu Solutions (Louisville)
- RxLightning (New Albany, Indiana)
- Sky Systemz (Lexington, Kentucky)
- VividCharts (Lexington)
The Ecosystem Builders
The people working behind the scenes that are moving ecosystems forward and growing momentum for entrepreneurs.
- Monica Bilak, executive director, Sprocket Inc. (Paducah, Kentucky)
- Dave Christopher, executive director of AMPED's Russell Technology Business Incubator (Louisville)
- Geoff Marrietta, founder, Invest 606 (Eastern Kentucky)
- Ian McClure, associate vice president for research, innovation and economic impact, University of Kentucky (Lexington)
- Kayla Meisner, executive director, Kentucky Commercialization Ventures (Lexington)
The Investors
The people and firms that are funding companies in Kentucky and Southern Indiana.
- Garrett French, angel investor and CEO of Citation Labs (Louisville)
- Patrick Henshaw, Render Capital (Louisville)
- Kelby Price, Keyhorse Capital (statewide offices)
- Chris Redd, angel investor and co-founder of Network 'N Chill (Louisville)
- John Willmoth, Poplar Ventures (Louisville)
The CEOs
The leaders that are making a name for Kentucky on a larger scale.
- Rachel DesRochers, founder of Incubator Kitchen Collective and CEO of the Gratitude Collective (Newport, Kentucky)
- Ankur Gopal, founder and CEO, Interapt (Louisville)
- Demetrius Gray, founder and CEO, Captain (Louisville)
- Jane Mosbacher Morris, founder and CEO, To the Market (Lexington)
- Steven Plappert, co-founder and CEO, Forecastr (Louisville)
The Disruptors
The companies that are leading the charge in new and evolving industries and/or technologies.
- Bexion Pharmaceuticals (Covington, Kentucky)
- Climavision (Louisville)
- Dan-O’s Seasoning (Louisville)
- Party Horses (Louisville)
- Talaris Therapeutics (Louisville)
Congratulations to all of our 2022 honorees.
