🚀 Voltage Cohort 10 is Here! 🚀

Innovation Depot is proud to kick off the 10th edition of Voltage, welcoming an incredible group of entrepreneurs ready to turn their tech ideas into reality! With a diverse mix of backgrounds and industries, this cohort has 33 founders & 26 ideas—proof that the demand for early-stage startup support keeps growing.  

Since launching in 2021, Voltage has empowered over 165 entrepreneurs to refine and validate their concepts before jumping headfirst into building. The five-week program is designed with flexibility in mind, helping founders move forward without disrupting their 9-to-5. With expert mentorship from AppThink (powered by HVL) and a supportive community of peers, each participant will gain the clarity, confidence, and connections needed to take their next steps.  

Innovation Depot CEO Brooke Gillis highlighted Voltage’s growing impact:  

 “Each year, Voltage attracts more ambitious founders looking to validate their ideas, and we’re seeing real success stories emerge from the program. Birmingham’s startup ecosystem is growing, and programs like Voltage are helping fuel that momentum. We’re excited to support this next wave of innovators.”

VP of Strategy & Startup Growth Ritchie Kruunenberg added:  

“Voltage continues to prove that early-stage founders need a space to test their ideas before making big commitments. With every cohort, we see more participation, stronger ideas, and founders who are ready to put in the work. This group is bringing serious energy, and we can’t wait to see what they accomplish.”

 

Last week, we kicked things off with a high-energy launch event at Monday Night Brewing, where participants got to connect and set the stage for the journey ahead.  

🎉 A huge welcome to our Cohort 10 founders! 🎉

Peggy Pursell

Justin McCleskey

Justin Hill

Aliyah & Shaliyah Johnson

Naila Jackson

Khiry Jennings

Laura Elliott

Faaiz Saad & Omar Hamki

Merrill Flowers

Chakravarthy Petluri

Ahmad Elgazzar

Laura Way

Eugene Rogers

Amitkumar Mehta & Dharmesh Vora

Miles Underwood

Gabrielle Hunter

Nicholas Hershy

Karthik Gaur, Brandon Woodworth & Mason Wolf

Marvin Hamilton & Utkarsh Kumaran

Apurva Chinta

Will McCollum

Akazha Green

Roderick Jordan & Anthony King

Michael Disko

Stay tuned as they take their ideas through the Voltage process—we can’t wait to share their progress!  

#VoltageAtID #StartupJourney #BirminghamTech #FounderLife #InnovationDepot #TechStartups