What's The Big Idea Pitch Competition - Finale

The What’s the Big Idea? Finale brings together seven of East Tennessee’s most promising early-stage startups as they pitch their ideas live for a chance to win the grand prize. After a weekend of mentorship and preparation with the Knoxville Entrepreneur Center, these founders will take the stage to share bold solutions across industries—from accessible kitchen design to wearable tech. Join us to hear the pitches, support emerging entrepreneurs, and help celebrate the next generation of innovators in our region.

Join us for the 2026 What's The Big Idea Pitch Competition on Sunday, March 22nd at The Relix Venue on N. Central Street! 

Finale Schedule: 

5:30 PM - Doors Open

6:00 PM - Event Kickoff 

6:15 PM - Pitches Start

Participating Companies: 

• • PrepSolo
    
    
  • VeriQual Inc.
    
    
  • VACScore
    
    
  • WearReady Tech
    
    
  • Aquafer Technologies
    
    
  • SUBI LLC
    
    
  • ZestyCoach
    

8:00 PM - Winner Announced

Meet the Judges:

After 57.5 years in the workforce, Tom Ballard retired for the third and final time at the end of 2025 after 14 years at PYA, the last 10 as the firm's Chief Alliance Officer and inaugural Editor of teknovation.biz. His earlier retirements were after 35 years at the University of Tennessee System, the last five as Vice President for Public and Governmental Relations, and from Oak Ridge National Laboratory, including more than four years as the inaugural Director of Partnerships.

Erika Biddix is an entrepreneurial strategist, speaker, and creator of the Anything At All Model of Success. She helps women build values-aligned businesses that support the reality of their lives. Through strategy, coaching, and speaking, she works with founders and leaders who want meaningful growth without sacrificing their health, their families, or themselves.

Her message is simple: You deserve business strategy that prioritizes the reality of your life.

Erika spent more than two decades leading operations before stepping fully into entrepreneurship a decade ago. Since then, she’s scaled businesses, pivoted directions, closed chapters, and rebuilt from scratch. That layered experience shapes her work — strategy that’s grounded, practical, and deeply human. She lives in Knoxville, Tennessee with her three overly confident children and her professor husband. If she’s awake, she’s probably cheering another woman toward the thing she really wants.

Marc Nabhan earned his PhD in Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering from Vanderbilt University, where he co-founded Optomar Technologies, a medical device company focused on wearable solutions for addressing malnourishment in critical care settings. He currently serves as Director of Entrepreneurship and New Ventures at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, where he works with students, faculty, and community innovators to de-risk and validate emerging technologies and accelerate their path to commercialization. Marc equips early-stage founders with practical frameworks for customer discovery, business model development, and product–market fit. His work sits at the intersection of research, commercialization, and venture development, and he is passionate about helping entrepreneurs turn strong ideas into scalable, market-driven companies.