TTDC seeks State funding commitment

Tennessee Technology Development Corp. President-CEO Eric Cromwell said last week that TTDC, which was revived by the State's $5 million infusion in 2008, will ask that the $5 million investment in tech-driven economic development be made a recurring annual item, rather than a one-time grant. TTDC was formed in 1998. Cromwell told VNC Thursday that he believes TTDC has "passed the tipping point" in its work to strengthen the state's capital formation, strategic research commercialization and public-engagement objectives, and needs sustained funding to move beyond "demonstration project" status. He said he believes his recent annual report to the legislature and forthcoming budget hearings will make clear that TTDC and its stakeholders are on the right "trajectory," but need a few more years to start contributing to creation of knowledge-driven jobs, although TTDC, he said, contributed to the crafting of the TNInvestco program and to the mobilizing of TNInvestco applicants and entrepreneurs. He said a remaining key agenda item is the acceleration of an enterprise and entrepreneurship network, which TTDC has proposed. To help get its message across, TTDC will conduct TTDC Innovation Day, March 2, in Legislative Plaza. TTDC's annual report is here.

TNInvestco redux

Administration officials, lobbyists and members of the General Assembly are slowly swinging into action to expand and otherwise tweak the State's new capital-formation program. The story's here.

Chattanooga Tech Transfer event

Enterprise Center Inc. in Chattanooga will hold its third annual tech-transfer conference, April 23. Chattanoogan.com reports.

Atlanta worries about Tech leadership

Writing for TechJournalSouth, lawyer John Yates of Morris, Manning & Martin LLP, says Atlanta must preserve its regional technology leadership by placing renewed emphasis on infrastructure, entrepreneurship, incentives, leveraging current tech strengths and more intense focus on industry clusters.