THE FLATS – In an effort to support Georgia Tech’s initiative to instill entrepreneurial confidence in students and empower them to launch successful startups, as well as leverage the knowledge, learning and innovations of Tech students to create assets for its teams, the Georgia Tech Athletic Association (GTAA) has officially become an angel investor for a GT CREATE-X startup.
Georgia Tech athletics’ initial venture investment is in LZRD Tech, founded by Tech graduates Mike Pullen (BME, 2021) and Mat Quon (BME, 2019), which was chosen to participate in CREATE-X’s Startup Launch accelerator program in the summer of 2020. LZRD Tech’s signature product is the LZRD Sleeve, an arm compression sleeve that protects the wearer’s arm from elements such as carpet burn and sunburn, while also providing maximum grip for objects that the wearer is holding. The idea was borne from Pullen’s experience as a high school football wide receiver, as he was looking to protect his arms from carpet burn on synthetic playing surfaces, but found that typical compression sleeves were slick, making holding on to the ball problematic.
The GTAA Ventures Investment Fund’s initial investment is in LZRD Tech, founded by Georgia Tech alums and producer of the state-of-the-art LZRD Sleeve.
“Innovation and entrepreneurship fit right in our wheelhouse at Georgia Tech, so we’re simply playing to our strengths when we utilize the talents of the best and brightest students in the world in those fields,” Georgia Tech director of athletics Todd Stansbury. “We think that the GTAA Ventures Investment Fund can be a game-changer for Georgia Tech, not only as a potential revenue stream, but also as a means to discover innovative ways for our coaches and student-athletes to gain an edge in training and on gameday.”
Georgia Tech athletics plans to expand its investments in CREATE-X startups geared towards sports. To that end, it has launched the GTAA Ventures Investment Fund to give donors the opportunity to support the athletics department’s investments in startups founded by Georgia Tech students. In addition to empowering Georgia Tech students to launch successful startups and supporting the GTAA’s investments in GT-based, sports-focused products and companies, donor benefits include Alexander-Tharpe Fund points and the opportunity to participate in startup selections, demo days, mentoring and more. For more information and to invest today, click HERE.
Alexander-Tharpe Fund
The Alexander-Tharpe Fund is the fundraising arm of Georgia Tech athletics, providing scholarship, operations and facilities support for Georgia Tech’s 400-plus student-athletes. Be a part of developing Georgia Tech’s Everyday Champions and helping the Yellow Jackets compete for championships at the highest levels of college athletics by supporting the Annual Athletic Scholarship Fund, which directly provides scholarships for Georgia Tech student-athletes. To learn more about supporting the Yellow Jackets, visit atfund.org.
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