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UNCW Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship

@uncw_cie

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We nurture emerging high-growth startups and create a vibrant hub of innovation in southeastern NC.
⬇️ Click to Browse Our Programs and Learn More!

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What's so special about the #WilmingtonNC entrepreneurial ecosystem? Well, THIS! 👀🌊

Join us November 12–13 in #WrightsvilleBeach for NC IDEA’s 8th Annual Ecosystem Summit, where hundreds of entrepreneurial leaders and ecosystem champions will come together to connect, collaborate, and explore the homegrown innovation shaping #NorthCarolina’s future.

A HUGE thank you to our coastal friends for being such good sports and entertaining our very serious investigative journalism: Heather McWhorter, Jack Fleming ✴️📢, Jim Roberts, Lydia Thomas, Scott Davis, and the entire teams at 1 Million Cups Wilmington and UNCW CIE!

🎟️ Register: [LINK IN BIO]
And yes... the rumors are true. We’re expecting a SELL OUT.

#EcosystemSummit #NCecosystem #Entrepreneurship #Entrepreneurs #Startups #StartupEcosystem #Innovation #EconomicDevelopment #NorthCarolina #WrightsvilleBeach #FounderCommunity #EconomicGrowth #CommunityBuilding #FounderCommunity

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There’s been A LOT of talk about #NorthCarolina’s coastal entrepreneurial ecosystem... so we hit the coast to investigate and ask the hard-hitting questions. 👀🎤🌊

Want to see what all the buzz is about?

Join us November 12–13 in #WrightsvilleBeach for NC IDEA’s 8th Annual Ecosystem Summit, where hundreds of entrepreneurial leaders and ecosystem champions will come together to connect, collaborate, and explore the homegrown innovation shaping #NorthCarolina’s future.

A HUGE thank you to our coastal friends for being such good sports and entertaining our very serious investigative journalism: Heather McWhorter, Jack Fleming ✴️📢, Jim Roberts, Lydia Thomas, Scott Davis, and the entire teams at 1 Million Cups Wilmington and UNCW CIE!

🎟️ Register: [LINK IN BIO]
And yes... the rumors are true. We’re expecting a SELL OUT.

#EcosystemSummit #NCecosystem #Entrepreneurship #Entrepreneurs #Startups #StartupEcosystem #Innovation #EconomicDevelopment #NorthCarolina #WrightsvilleBeach #FounderCommunity #EconomicGrowth #CommunityBuilding #FounderCommunity #EconomicGrowth #CommunityBuilding

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Yesterday, NC Smart Edge AI had the amazing opportunity to attend the SBTDC Wilmington outreach event to assist in government contracting at the UNCW Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship! Thank you to all the presenters for the valuable information about opportunities in NC Military government contracts. #SBTDC #marsoc #USACE #NAVFAC #sba

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🧡☕️ The question we ask all of our presenters:
“How can we, the community, help you?”
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Whether you’re an entrepreneur needing marketing help, commercial space, a mentor, connections, or something else, our community is ready to help!
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#1millioncups #startup #entrepreneur #wilmingtonnc #smallbusiness

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Congratulations to our #ECOSYSTEM partner, @uncw_cie, and the entire #WilmingtonNC ecosystem on another successful Ocean Innovations Conference! 🌊

The conference brought together the research expertise of University of North Carolina Wilmington, southeastern #NorthCarolina’s entrepreneurial ecosystem, and people passionate about the future of our oceans and coastal communities.

Another great event reminding us of just how much innovation is happening along #NorthCarolina’s coast. 🙌

#BlueEconomy #Entrepreneurship #Innovation #WilmingtonNC #NCecosystem #ENGAGE #ECOSYSTEM

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NCInnovation was proud to return as a Swell Sponsor of the Ocean Innovation Conference, hosted by the UNCW Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship (CIE).
UNCW CIE brought together an impressive group of entrepreneurs, researchers, investors, industry leaders, and partners working across North Carolina’s growing blue economy. The blue economy encompasses a broad range of industries and technologies tied to our oceans, coasts, and waterways—from maritime shipping and coastal infrastructure to cybersecurity, aquaculture, conservation, and emerging technologies.

NCInnovation’s Scott Davis moderated the opening panel, Pilot to Scale: Commercializing the Blue Economy, featuring Christy Swann of RCOAST, Joe Cardenas of AQUACO Advisors, and Wallace Hogsett of HurriLab. The conversation explored what it takes to move promising technologies and ideas beyond the pilot stage and toward commercialization and broader market adoption.

The conference also featured a captivating keynote from Hanli Prinsloo, who traveled from South Africa and shared experiences from her work around the world as a freediver, conservationist, and entrepreneur. Her remarks offered a powerful perspective on our relationship with the ocean and the opportunity—and responsibility—to develop innovative solutions that support its future.

The blue economy is critically important to North Carolina and to the United States more broadly, and events like the Ocean Innovation Conference demonstrate the depth of expertise, entrepreneurship, and opportunity already taking shape in this space.

A special shoutout to Heather McWhorter, Lydia Thomas, and the entire CIE team for the tremendous amount of work that went into bringing the conference together. It’s also clear that Chancellor Aswani Volety, Provost Rob Burrus, and CRO Stuart Borrett have invested significant time, energy, and support into building this ecosystem and strengthening Wilmington’s role in the blue economy.

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Join UNCW CIE and The Coastal Society (TCS) at the annual Ocean Innovation Conference on Tuesday, September 29th ⚙️🧪 This conference highlights the amazing innovations being made by professionals in ocean science and will celebrate how the blue economy supports our state 🌊 🦀 ☀️

Students can register for free by reaching out to cie@uncw.edu. Sea you there!

#researchconferences #coastalinnovation #graduateprograms #studentopportunity

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From marine biotech to living shorelines, ocean data science to emerging tech we haven’t even imagined yet — this is where the next wave of innovation starts.

Explore the Innovation Fair, connect with startups and change-makers shaping a sustainable ocean future, and be part of the conversation driving southeastern NC’s blue economy forward.

📅 Tuesday, September 29, 2026 | 8:00 AM – 4:30 PM
📍 UNCW Burney Center
🎟️ Walk-ins welcome — space is limited, so register today!

*Register by Sept 25 to guarantee a printed name badge.

Presented by UNCW’s Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship & the Alliance for the Blue Economy.

Our ocean can’t wait — and neither should you. See you there. 🐚

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From what was, to what we imagined, to what we Found. 🧭🌴

A lot happened between these three frames. To every person who designed, built, painted, hauled, sourced, polished, problem-solved, encouraged, and helped bring Lost + Found to life — thank you.

And to everyone who’s been following along, cheering us on, and patiently waiting to see what we’ve been hiding…

The wait is over. We can’t wait to see you. 🍹

📍109 Market St, Wilmington
🕔 Tues–Thurs 5–10 | Fri–Sat 5–12

@sherryblackdesigns @jessbolton82 @1mcwilmingtonnc @uncw_cie
@shoggrim1155 @jonbe1983 @tableset_go

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✨ PART 1 ✨
Super cool to reflect back on the last decade… it really blows my mind to think about how hard I worked and how literally everything I ever wanted as a child is finally coming true today! If you liked this, then stay tuned for Part 2… 😉

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What better day than 9/10—recognizing Wilmington’s 910 area code—to bring North Carolina’s investors, entrepreneurs and innovation leaders together on the coast?

NCInnovation was proud to support NEW Investor Buzz In 2026, the Network for Entrepreneurs in Wilmington’s annual gathering focused on strengthening connections among promising startups, investors and organizations supporting innovation across the state.

NCInnovation team members contributed throughout the program, with Carson Jackson moderating the Life Sciences panel and Scott Davis, our UNCW Hub Director, participating in Startup Speed Networking. Paula Pingel, NCInnovation’s Charlotte Regional Entrepreneur-in-Residence, introduced the regional investors participating in the reverse pitches.

Attendees also heard a local startup pitch from Wilmington-based Nuream, an industry partner collaborating with UNC Wilmington researchers on the NCInnovation-supported NeuroWeaveAI NeuroHealth Platform, which is developing fabric-based technology for more accessible sleep and neurological monitoring.

Derrick Welch, NCInnovation’s Statewide Director of University Innovation, and Blake Belch, Hub Director supporting Fayetteville State University and UNC Pembroke, were also on hand to connect with entrepreneurs, investors and partners from across the state.

Investor Buzz In demonstrates the value of strong regional ecosystems connected through statewide collaboration. Thank you to Jim Roberts and NEW for bringing the community together—and to everyone working to help North Carolina innovations move from promising ideas to real-world impact.

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