Augusta has been selected to host a summit conference this fall to talk entrepreneurship, accelerators, and incubators. The Startup Champions Network is bringing the Fall 2025 Ecosystem Builder Summit to the Garden City, Nov. 5-7.
“Startup Champions Network is one of the largest organizations made up of entrepreneur support organizations in our country,” explained Eric Parker, co-founder with Grace Belangia of theClubhou.se and Make Startups, Inc. based in the Georgia Cyber Innovation and Training Center “We will have 150 to 200 people convening in Augusta, Ga. to learn about our startup ecosystem and take lessons back to their communities.”
Parker said this is a byproduct of last year’s cross-country trip he and Belangia made to visit a dozen communities around the country. It was an opportunity to learn about their startup ecosystems while sharing lessons learned in Augusta.
Champion Startups Networks holds two summits each year. This will be the first time Augusta has been chosen as the host city.
“Putting it in perspective, the last couple have been in San Francisco, in Las Vegas, in Dallas, Fort Worth. We’re up there with the big boys,” Parker told ABD. “Most people in our community don’t understand that we have one of the most nationally recognized entrepreneur support organizations in America, and we lead a lot of significant policy work around the country in the types of things that we do.”
The Startups Champion Network website lists five primary topics to be examined.
- Cross-border collaboration in regional ecosystem building
- Applied research in founder support and community-centered investment
- Workforce development as a catalyst for economic mobility
- Creating a shared, nonpartisan language for policy change
- Sustaining ecosystem organizations while growing the next generation of leaders
There will be a pre-summit golf outing on Nov. 4. The first day of the summit will explain the startup ecosystem in Augusta and how it nurtures entrepreneurship. Day two will feature presentations.
Parker said they want to show the full picture of what is happening in Augusta. To tell the story, they are calling for individuals to register as a speaker.
“You can either apply for a long-form talk, doing a 30-minute to an hour conversation or workshop, or panel discussion, or submit for one of the ideas worth championing, which would be a five to 10-minute talk,” he said. “If you sign up for an idea worth championing and are selected, then we’ll also require three rehearsals, because we want to help you give a polished presentation that’ll be recorded and uploaded onto the internet for posterity.”
Confirmed speakers so far include John Dearie, founder and President of the Center for American Entrepreneurship. He will be joined by Congress Rick Allen (R-Ga12) and a representative from Carta, which is the largest software platform for raising venture capital.
Parker said one of the goals is to propel Augusta to the next stage for startups and entrepreneurship.
“How do we how do we break down the barriers that have existed within our communities so that we’re seen as a leading startup ecosystem in the country,” he said. “One that doesn’t think of itself as territorially as it has. That becomes a magnet for people around the country, where we’re a community that’s leading a lot of really unique and beautiful efforts.”
A form to sign up as a speaker is available on the Augusta summit’s page on the Startup Championships website. There is also a link to purchase tickets for the event.
https://www.startupchampions.co/augustasummit
