Dynamo announced Thursday it will host a Founders Camp for early-stage startups transforming global trade and commerce from Oct. 8 to 12 in Chattanooga, Tenn.
According to its website, Dynamo is a venture capital fund that invests in “extraordinary founders building startups that can transform global trade and commerce.” Its previous investments include standout logistics and transportation startups Stord and Starsky Robotics. Dynamo’s camp is a four-day program focused on helping founders build their businesses through operator-led workshops and drive meaningful traction through introductions to a variety of corporations.
There is no cost to a startup to participate in Founders Camp. The deadline for applications is Aug. 1. Invitations will be extended by Aug. 30.
The announcement was made Thursday during a Rise of the Rest stop in Chattanooga. The seed fund road show, led by America Online co-founder Steve Case and his Revolution investment firm, is a five-day, four-state event designed to garner support for startups in the nation’s heartland — thousands of miles from Silicon Valley. Other stops on this year’s bus tour include Dallas, Birmingham, Ala., and Louisville, Ky.
Santosh Sankar, co-founder and director of Dynamo, said the camp itinerary was “informed by our seed-investing efforts as well as our previous experiences as accelerator, incubator and co-working operators. We iterated and evolved programming based on feedback from founders we’ve had the opportunity to engage with.”
According to Dynamo, Founders Camp is best suited to those “building revolutionary businesses across the supply chain and transportation.” The October camp will focus on five thematic areas: trucking technology; industry-specific applications of blockchain and distributed ledger technology; industry-relevant applications of machine learning; products and solutions related to agriculture and the food chain; and warehouse automation.
Sankar said participants will gain operational insights from proven operators and managers who have scaled startups and enterprises.
“We will have workshops and discussions with leading minds regarding customer success, enterprise sales, product management, scaling teams and more,” he said.
During the camp, attendees will be introduced to leaders of Fortune 500 companies.
“Founders will spend face-to-face time with both midsize and large businesses to gain feedback on their products and discuss opportunities to work together,” Sankar said. “Founders will leave with a great pipeline of potential customers and partners who are looking to solve problems and capture opportunities with technology.”
Sankar said F6S, described by TechCrunch as “a global clearinghouse for startup freebies,” has provided more than $1 million in benefits for the camp.
“We know that startups must do a lot with a little, so our friends at F6S have extended their Alpha Card program to participating companies. This includes a free roundtrip flight, discounted lodging and infrastructure credits,” Sankar said.
A sponsor of the camp is Covenant Transportation, one of the largest full truckload carriers in the country and an anchor of Chattanooga’s claim as an epicenter for logistics technology.
“We are excited to support Founders Camp and rally forward-thinking corporates to engage and support the up-and-coming stars in supply chain and transportation technologies. We feel strongly that this effort will augment our internal innovation and provide opportunities to offer differentiated services to our customers over time,” said Ryan Rogers, chief transformation officer for the Covenant Transportation Group.
Sankar said Founders Camp is supported by Omnitracs, “a pioneer in transportation software,” as well as EPB and Market Street Partners.
Startup operators supporting the camp include Jeff McCandless, CEO and co-founder project44; Lauren Denault, vice president of customer success at SKUPOS; and Sagu Dinakaran, head of product at Bellhops.
“Founders Camp connects early-stage entrepreneurs with the specific advice they need to build meaningful businesses. I know from experience that those perspectives are often very hard to find, and I’m honored to join a roster of operators ready to share their deep knowledge in areas such as product, customer success and sales,” said McCandless.
More information about Dynamo and Founders Camp may be obtained by emailing hello@dynamo.vc.
According to its website, Dynamo is a venture capital fund that invests in “extraordinary founders building startups that can transform global trade and commerce.” Its previous investments include standout logistics and transportation startups Stord and Starsky Robotics. Dynamo’s camp is a four-day program focused on helping founders build their businesses through operator-led workshops and drive meaningful traction through introductions to a variety of corporations.
There is no cost to a startup to participate in Founders Camp. The deadline for applications is Aug. 1. Invitations will be extended by Aug. 30.
The announcement was made Thursday during a Rise of the Rest stop in Chattanooga. The seed fund road show, led by America Online co-founder Steve Case and his Revolution investment firm, is a five-day, four-state event designed to garner support for startups in the nation’s heartland — thousands of miles from Silicon Valley. Other stops on this year’s bus tour include Dallas, Birmingham, Ala., and Louisville, Ky.
Santosh Sankar, co-founder and director of Dynamo, said the camp itinerary was “informed by our seed-investing efforts as well as our previous experiences as accelerator, incubator and co-working operators. We iterated and evolved programming based on feedback from founders we’ve had the opportunity to engage with.”
According to Dynamo, Founders Camp is best suited to those “building revolutionary businesses across the supply chain and transportation.” The October camp will focus on five thematic areas: trucking technology; industry-specific applications of blockchain and distributed ledger technology; industry-relevant applications of machine learning; products and solutions related to agriculture and the food chain; and warehouse automation.
Sankar said participants will gain operational insights from proven operators and managers who have scaled startups and enterprises.
“We will have workshops and discussions with leading minds regarding customer success, enterprise sales, product management, scaling teams and more,” he said.
During the camp, attendees will be introduced to leaders of Fortune 500 companies.
“Founders will spend face-to-face time with both midsize and large businesses to gain feedback on their products and discuss opportunities to work together,” Sankar said. “Founders will leave with a great pipeline of potential customers and partners who are looking to solve problems and capture opportunities with technology.”
Sankar said F6S, described by TechCrunch as “a global clearinghouse for startup freebies,” has provided more than $1 million in benefits for the camp.
“We know that startups must do a lot with a little, so our friends at F6S have extended their Alpha Card program to participating companies. This includes a free roundtrip flight, discounted lodging and infrastructure credits,” Sankar said.
A sponsor of the camp is Covenant Transportation, one of the largest full truckload carriers in the country and an anchor of Chattanooga’s claim as an epicenter for logistics technology.
“We are excited to support Founders Camp and rally forward-thinking corporates to engage and support the up-and-coming stars in supply chain and transportation technologies. We feel strongly that this effort will augment our internal innovation and provide opportunities to offer differentiated services to our customers over time,” said Ryan Rogers, chief transformation officer for the Covenant Transportation Group.
Sankar said Founders Camp is supported by Omnitracs, “a pioneer in transportation software,” as well as EPB and Market Street Partners.
Startup operators supporting the camp include Jeff McCandless, CEO and co-founder project44; Lauren Denault, vice president of customer success at SKUPOS; and Sagu Dinakaran, head of product at Bellhops.
“Founders Camp connects early-stage entrepreneurs with the specific advice they need to build meaningful businesses. I know from experience that those perspectives are often very hard to find, and I’m honored to join a roster of operators ready to share their deep knowledge in areas such as product, customer success and sales,” said McCandless.
More information about Dynamo and Founders Camp may be obtained by emailing hello@dynamo.vc.