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AGT in the Media

"Venture Forum to Feature Seven Area Technology Companies"

Nashville Business Journal

The Nashville Business Journal
October 26, 2001

The Tennessee Venture Forum, scheduled Nov. 12-13 at Loews Vanderbilt Plaza, will have one more presenter than originally anticipated.

Instead of featuring 20 of the most promising emerging technology companies from Tennessee and surrounding states, the forum selected 21 to be presenters. Seven of them are from the Middle Tennessee area (see box). "We got a tremendous amount of response," says Drew Kim, assistant director of the Tennessee Technology Development Corp., one of the hosts of the forum. "We feel like this is an incredible cut."

Also hosting the forum are Technology 2020, an Oak Ridge technology development organization, and the Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development.

From submitted business proposals, three selection committees organized in West, Middle and East Tennessee chose the finalists to be presenters at the forum, with input from the state's technology councils, including the Nashville Technology Council.

The audience of 250 investors, made up of venture capitalists, private investors, bankers, technology transfer experts, and corporate and professional. executives from Tennessee, the Southeast and elsewhere in the country, will be able to examine a diverse menu of companies seeking investments from $1.5 million to more than $12 million, says Kim.

He says law firms are also interested in attending the forum because of the opportunities to form relationships with emerging companies.

Over the two days of the forum each company will give a 15-minute presentation of their business plans to the audience members. The companies will also have an opportunity to showcase themselves more extensively at exhibit booths.

Capital Confirmation, a service provider that automates back-end services for banks and financial services companies, decided to take part in the forum for the exposure it brings. "We thought it was a great opportunity to get in front of a large number of potential investors," says Brian Fox, vice president of business development.

Cliff Duffey, chairman and CEO of Cybera, says his company, an Internet and security services provider established in February, seeks to raise $1.5 million to $2.5 million.

"It looks like a good opportunity to meet a lot of the Southeast regional venture firms," says Duffey.

There will be more audience members this year than last, since the Tennessee Venture Forum for the first time has a statewide emphasis and has relocated to Nashville. It was held four times previously in Knoxville as a combined regional venture capital conference and technology conference.

"Because we're going statewide, we got a tremendous response and participation from Tennessee-based venture capital industry representatives and investors," says Kim.

Providing backing for the venture forum are sponsors that have a presence in Middle Tennessee, including gold sponsors AmSouth Bank and Union Planters Bank.

Union Planters' participation in the forum originates with the bank's operations in East Tennessee, says Ron Samuels, Union Planters president and CEO of the greater Nashville region.

Many of the sponsors provided recommendations and feedback for the forum early on, says Kim, and they also suggested companies as potential presenters.

Presenters from Middle Tennessee area:

Presenters from outside Middle Tennessee:

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