Imagine an Atlanta where there’s a pathway for every breakthrough in a Georgia Tech lab to launch into a startup and scale to a billion-dollar “unicorn”. This isn’t a distant fantasy—it’s the vision that Dr. Raghupathy “Siva” Sivakumar, Georgia Tech’s chief commercialization officer, is championing.

“It’s the smell of the future,” says Mya Love Griesbaum, reflecting on her work with fungi. The 21-year-old materials researcher has come to appreciate the earthy odor of decomposing matter, a scent that symbolizes possibility: a future where fungi clean up pollution and transform the fashion industry. As the founder of Mycorrhiza Fashion, she is developing a sustainable approach to textiles by cultivating fungi-derived materials that can help address the pollution problem in the fashion industry.

At Memento in Atlanta, Sam Thurman’s 3D-printed light sculptures transformed architectural principles into luminous art, blending geometry, symmetry, and design to create spaces that resonated with both form and meaning. His debut show, Speculative Futures, invited viewers to experience how architecture and technology intersect with creative expression.

Many people with diabetes in the U.S. struggle to get specialized, continuous care, often navigating complex glucose patterns on their own. GlucoSense aims to change that with its new AI-powered GlucoSense Companion, translating real-time glucose data into personalized insights for better daily management.

Marvel fans might have seen Zeus Q2 and Astro, his loyal puppy, glide across the set of its new series Ironheart on Disney+. No remote, no keyboard, just voices commanding every move. Consumers and audiences were wowed, but how did a modest robotics start-up take its product from the classroom to the Marvel Cinematic Universe?

On a North Georgia poultry farm, thousands of chickens are clucking and chirping under the noisy hum of fans. Amongst the chatter, a small device is quietly eavesdropping. “You can tell how chickens are doing just by how they sound,” says David Anderson, a Georgia Tech professor and TSRB researcher who has made a career of listening closely.

Research shows that people with disabilities stay at a workplace 50% longer than their non-disabled peers. However, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, in 2024, the employment-population ratio for people with disabilities was 22.7%, compared to 65.5% of people without disabilities. That’s why In Good Company is coaching leadership on how to expand their teams to include people of all abilities.

“I vividly recall watching teachers struggle with technology while their students navigated it effortlessly,” says Shi Ding. That early moment as a middle school intern sparked a path dedicated to creating AI-powered, inclusive learning tools that meet students where they are.

Reflex's mission is to save lives lost to slow response times by equipping bystanders with the necessary equipment and instruction to initiate the first response process. The startup is a medical drone delivery platform delivering life-saving supplies to the scene in time-critical emergencies.

Following Georgia Tech's announcement of the new Biltmore Innovation Center initiative, Tech Square is set to welcome another exciting addition to its ecosystem. TSQ ATL is thrilled to introduce "Studio B.," a short-term office and coworking space located on the top floor of the historic Biltmore in the heart of Tech Square.

What happens when fans build better stories than the studios that own them? From viral memes to collaborative tabletop role-playing games, emergent transmedia is rewriting who gets to shape a narrative, and why that power should stay with the people.

Atlanta’s video game industry has quietly built one of the Southeast's most dynamic tech sectors. With over 200 studios operating across Georgia, many clustered in and around Atlanta, the region is gaining national attention as a serious destination for game developers.

Chengzhi Zhang, a PhD student at Georgia Tech, is leading efforts to improve AI literacy by exploring the dangers of overestimating generative AI's capabilities, a phenomenon known as the ‘Eliza Effect.’ Her work and recent paper aim to equip users with the knowledge to use AI tools like ChatGPT responsibly and effectively.

Charles Ramey, a TSRB Georgia Tech researcher, collaborates with the Georgia Aquarium to develop instrumented enrichment tools for sea otters. His research uses innovative, data-driven methods to improve animal welfare by tailoring enrichment to the specific needs of species, with a focus on cognitive engagement and behavioral well-being.

Thad Oviatt, Founder and CEO of Parkent, in Atlanta, Georgia, created a smart bike locking company after witnessing a friend fall victim to bike thieves twice in the same week. One of the thieves even left a mocking “thanks” note in his wake. That pivotal instance sparked a lifelong mission for Oviatt to fix bike theft.