The Company Lab, in partnership with First Tennessee Bank, will present the first public GIGTANK event of the summer. “GIGTANK Presents: Ross Mason on Innovation, Healthcare and Chattanooga” on the evening of June 25 at the First Tennessee Bank building.
Mr. Mason, venture philanthropist and founder of the Healthcare Institute for Neuro-Recovery and Innovation, will speak to Chattanoogans about his work in healthcare and the ongoing need for entrepreneurial thinking across the industry.
“Chattanooga is uniquely positioned to be a national and global leader in digital healthcare solutions because of the amazing investment in infrastructure and tremendous commitment to innovation the community has made,” Mr. Mason said. “The 'Gig City' can also take advantage of the market leadership of Nashville in healthcare services and Atlanta in healthcare IT to develop the digital platform that will provide the next generation of healthcare technologies, treatments and cures.”
Originally from Madison, Ga., Mr. Mason became passionate about healthcare after volunteering at an AIDS hospital in Zambia. In 2004, he founded HINRI, a venture philanthropy that provides free venture capital services to early stage nonprofits.
Mr. Mason’s commitment to healthcare innovation has been further inspired by a more personal, life-changing event: due to a biking accident in 2007, he was paralyzed from the collarbone down. Prior to his accident, Mr. Mason pursued a broad range of outdoor sports and active hobbies; that energy is now applied to identifying breakthrough healthcare solutions and improving the lives of others.
He is particularly interested in supporting organizations that aid war veterans, including Warrior 2 Citizen, which helps assimilate veterans to civilian life. The June 25 event will focus in part on recognizing and raising funds for UTC’s Veterans Entrepreneurship Program.
"Healthcare has an immense and growing presence in Chattanooga, and it’s highly relevant to GIGTANK 2013,” said Mike Bradshaw, CO.LAB entrepreneur-in-residence. “Two of our eight teams are developing businesses in the healthcare space, and BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee, a program sponsor, has demonstrated a longstanding commitment to healthcare innovation. We’re excited to learn how the ideas and technologies Ross has introduced to the Georgia market could be supported by Chattanooga’s unique infrastructure.”
To register for the event, visit
http://gigtankrossmason.eventbrite.com/.