Startups + VC
Hilliard-based Caddis is scaling the MANTA, an autonomous aquatic drone that uses UV-C light to neutralize harmful algal blooms without chemicals. Developed at Ohio State, the system acts as a "Roomba for water," providing real-time data and sustainable management for Ohio’s reservoirs.
Artificial Intelligence
The startup is targeting the "skipped" generation of mid-market industrial firms, deploying AI agents that run inside legacy systems to handle actual work. By pricing for throughput rather than licenses, the team aims to solve labor gaps across the Midwest’s physical economy.
Advanced Manufacturing
The Columbus-based robotics startup is taking its "physical AI" off the factory floor. By pairing its Obsidian model with a quadruped robot, Path is bringing autonomous welding to the massive, immovable structures of the shipbuilding and heavy construction industries.
Ratmir Timashev is funding dedicated sales teams for 100 of the world’s best B2B software startups — built and paid for in Columbus — with a target of 2,000 new tech workers in the city within five years.
One year after Palmer Luckey promised to bring "hyperscale" defense manufacturing to central Ohio, the vision is becoming concrete reality. Arsenal-1's first autonomous jets will roll off the line by Q2—a timeline that would've been impossible just a decade ago.
The new $60M fund is backed by nearly 1,000 Midwest industrial owners and aims to modernize America’s legacy sectors. Heartland flips the VC script by using factory bosses as investors, giving startups built-in customers to solve the region's labor gap.
Ohio’s future isn’t just a concept—it has names. We narrowed triple-digit submissions to the top 25 innovators 35 and under. From AI to medtech and beyond, these leaders are bridging the gap between legacy strength and the digital frontier. Meet the 2025 class defining Ohio’s next chapter.
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Nationwide’s Chetan Kandhari leads a $1.5 billion AI commitment, shifting the Fortune 100 from experiments to business-led transformation. By pairing innovation with rigorous governance, he’s embedding AI agents as "thought partners" to augment associates and scale responsibly.
Research indicates that reliance on AI can lead to "cognitive atrophy," with professionals in medicine and tech seeing skills degrade when machines do the thinking. To counter this "Cognitive Rust Belt," organizations must build anti-stagnation infrastructure that keeps humans in the loop.
Columbus-based Aplos Data is moving AI from "science experiment" to core business operations. By building a unified layer on Palantir, they help organizations bridge the gap between fragmented data and real-time action, proving that in Ohio, technology must deliver value to last.
Columbus-based Flashpass raised $4.25M to scale its govtech platform, which connects displaced workers to high-demand fields like AI and cybersecurity. By partnering with state governments to bridge the skills gap, the startup is transforming unemployment services into digital career pipelines.
Ohio tech leaders are shifting focus from AI hype to strategic implementation. Key trends for the next 18 months include the rise of agentic AI, the expansion of quantum computing, and the critical need for fiber and energy infrastructure to support growing data center demands.
Beam Benefits founder Alex Frommeyer is back with Stack Health, a Columbus-based startup aiming to upend the U.S. insurance market. By shifting coverage from employers to individuals, Stack uses AI to help Ohio workers build personalized, cost-effective health bundles.
New 30,000‑square‑foot APA Solar headquarters in Ridgeville Corners will anchor a Foundations Center of Excellence and five‑acre test site, strengthening Ohio’s position in utility‑scale solar manufacturing and engineering.
A $50 million expansion across two Ohio sites will add 730 jobs by 2029 and boost production of advanced cooling systems for AI data centers. The investment strengthens the state’s position as a growing hub for digital infrastructure and next‑generation manufacturing.
Celebrating over 20 years in Columbus, Xtek Partners provides secure, scalable IT infrastructure for Ohio’s "Silicon Heartland." This woman-owned firm bridges the gap between hardware lifecycle management and AI-driven security, focusing on identity monitoring and hybrid work resilience.
Deloitte’s Adarsh Desai highlights Ohio as a national leader in government AI modernization. By moving beyond pilots to scale high-value solutions like fraud detection and natural language constituent services, the state is transforming public sector efficiency and accessibility.
Ohio tech leaders are moving beyond generic productivity apps toward AI-native workflows. From Microsoft Copilot and ChatGPT for daily problem-solving to specialized tools like Kiro and Claude Code, these leaders are using AI to shift from "building" to "architecting" solutions.
The public Ohio school has launched the nation's only software-focused quantum computing undergraduate degree, partnering with Cleveland Clinic to build a workforce pipeline before the industry catches up
