Tampa energy tech startup BiaTech Corp. — which wants to use artificial intelligence to modernize traditional energy operations — was accepted into Nvidia's free global accelerator program, Inception.
The accelerator program allows startups access to educational programs, a discount on Nvidia's products, events and potential meetings with investors, according to its website. The program will help develop BiaTech and add a reputation to the venture, CEO and founder Nathaniel Hartwig said.
"Everyone, right now, in the world knows about Nvidia," Hartwig said. "All of those technical [resources] are really, really helpful. Beyond that, though, when you go around, and you're talking to people about working with you, and you say that you're a member of Nvidia's Inception program, it adds just another little bit of credibility to your discussion."
For an early-stage company seeking pre-seed friends and family investment, that's very helpful, Hartwig said. There have been 17,000 companies across 125 countries to utilize the program since its founding in 2016, according to Nvidia's website. The program is part of Nvidia's initiatives to fuel the AI revolution.
The application process is open to companies at any stage but requires startups to employ a software developer, maintain a website and be officially incorporated, according to its website. Nvidia did not accept BiaTech's initial application to the program, Hartwig said. Nvidia was not immediately available for comment.
A founder energized by Tampa
Hartwig founded BiaTech in 2023 after a more than 20-year career with some of the largest energy companies in the world, including leadership positions at Exxon Mobile, McKinsey Consulting and Houston-based multinational energy firm Schlumberger.
In 2023, Hartwig wasn't satisfied, and the industry was moving slowly, he said.
"In these 25 years, it's interesting to me that I can look back on it and say I made a difference, but you can't really see your footprints at big companies," Hartwig said.
So he decided to leverage this domain expertise in the energy field to help more people access affordable energy products, he said.
"That was where I was at, and to walk away from that, to have zero income, and to risk it all to do something different because you feel like it's important and meaningful just shows that I'm all in. I sold the house in Houston, sold all the Porsches and basically went straight to a cash model and moved into an apartment in Tampa," Hartwig said.
He moved to Tampa from Houston because he was interested in its growing notoriety as a tech hub, he said. It has a cross-section of communities and industries in the defense and energy landscape. It's not as tourist filled as Miami. It also has a welcoming population, Hartwig's family and the landscape to build a viable, long-term company, he said.
"San Francisco has been Silicon Valley for the last 50 years, and to go and start something there is one of 100 and none of them are really focused on energy," Hartwig said.
This pursuit of a legacy has become 7-month-old BiaTech. Hartwig wants to build an AI-enabled platform to alert energy utility providers to infrastructure problems, like wildfires, across industries.
BiaTech has nine remote employees, with less than half of them part-time. It has received a $199,618 grant from the Department of Energy to research geothermal technologies, Hartwig said. He also has connected with the University of South Florida for a presentation and sought interns from the school.
The startup is now working on completing a minimum viable product, finding partnerships in the community and seeking to raise $2 million in pre-seed investments, he said.
