Patent Attorney and Founder
Hey everyone, JD Houvener here. I’m the founder and patent attorney at Bold Patents, and today I want to talk about something close to home, Louisville, Kentucky.
Louisville’s not just bourbon and horse racing. It’s also a city full of ideas, startups, and inventors trying to make their mark. If you’re an entrepreneur here, or thinking about starting something, there are some amazing resources you should know about. I’ll walk you through my top five spots in Louisville that every inventor or startup founder should check out.
1. Accelerate Health
This is the city’s healthcare and biotech accelerator. They run a 12-week boot camp that’s been ranked in the top 50 nationwide. One standout that came out of here is Apellis, a biopharma company tackling retinal diseases. If you’re in health tech, this is where you want to be.
2. Vogt Awards
This is more of a mentoring program than a traditional accelerator. They give founders $25,000 with no equity taken, which is rare. Complete 3D, a startup in additive manufacturing, launched out of this program recently, and they’re making waves.
3. Tech Louisville
A fast-paced, 90-day accelerator focused on IT and tech startups. Think software, computer science, and engineering projects. Forecastr (yes, spelled without the “e”) came out of here with financial forecasting software that’s helping other startups grow.
4. Power to Prosper
This one really impressed me. It’s a business accelerator for minority founders, designed to help level the playing field. A company called Melanated Healthcare came through this program and is already becoming one of Louisville’s strongest healthcare tech startups.
5. Chef Space
Not all innovation happens in labs; some of it happens in kitchens. Chef Space is a commercial kitchen incubator that gives food entrepreneurs a safe place to test, create, and grow. Local brands like Kitchen Collaboratives and food tech initiatives like Virtual Peaker started here.
So that’s my list. If you’re in Louisville or anywhere in Kentucky, these resources can give you a real boost. And one quick reminder: before you dive into an accelerator or incubator, make sure your intellectual property is protected. The last thing you want is to lose control of your idea before it takes off.
If you’ve got questions about patents, trademarks, or protecting your startup, schedule a free discovery call at boldpatents.com. I’d love to help.
Go big. Go bold.