Partner News

Officials Laud University City’s Ongoing Development as $100M Project Marks Construction Milestone

March 23, 2022

When state Sen. Vincent J. Hughes took the podium at a ceremonial topping out of 3.0 University Place, a $100 million development at 4101 Market St. in University City, he noted the significance of its location. “This is special,” he said. “The history has always been that everything stopped at 40th Street. We have been […]

Gov. Wolf’s Proposed Budget Would Give Ben Franklin Technology Partners $8M to Fund More Startups

February 10, 2022

Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf’s ambitious $43.7 billion budget proposal includes an $8 million boost for Ben Franklin Technology Partners, a move that the organization’s leadership says could get more Philadelphia-area startups funded. Wolf’s budget proposal sets aside $2 million for each of the four Ben Franklin Technology Partners offices — located in Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, State […]

What is 1Philadelphia? Sylvester Mobley on Building Infrastructure For Racial Equity in Philly Tech

December 9, 2021

“Systemic” is just buzzwordy enough to become meaningless without context. But Sylvester Mobley can offer one stark example of the real-world effects of a systemic issue hindering Philly young people’s futures. After launching the Innovation League, a competition-driven tech skills development initiative, this year, he kept hearing from parents that they didn’t feel comfortable about […]

3 Philadelphia Startups Land Six-Figure Investments in PACT’s ‘Lion’s Den’

November 8, 2021

Three Philadelphia-area startups secured hundreds of thousands of dollars in growth capital from The Lion’s Den, a “Shark Tank”-like production hosted by local investors. Dozens of local startup founders, from early-stage companies to fast-growing technology and life sciences firms, pitched their ventures during the Philadelphia Alliance for Capital and Technologies’ 2021 Capital Conference on Thursday […]

PACT and Ben Franklin’s All-Star Mentor Connect Line-Up: Could You Be Next?

October 26, 2021

It’s October in Philadelphia. The actual baseball fields here are getting ready for off-season maintenance, but when it comes to entrepreneurial mentorship, we’re already a city of champions. Innovation has no offseason here, so while the Mentor Connect lineup of mentors and leaders is deep, tryouts are always open – and recruiting never stops. If […]

Mentor Connect: Join PACT and Ben Franklin’s All-Star Lineup to Advise Rookie Entrepreneurs

October 25, 2021

It’s October in Philadelphia. The actual baseball fields here are getting ready for off-season maintenance, but innovation has no offseason here. When it comes to entrepreneurial mentorship, we’re already a city of champions — and while the Mentor Connect lineup of mentors and leaders is deep, tryouts are always open, and recruiting never stops. If […]

Philly’s BIPOC Entrepreneurs Get New Promises to Fund Businesses and Correct a Historic Deficit

October 6, 2021

Kimberly Wilson, a Black woman who struggled to get white doctors to take her symptoms seriously after a 2017 fibroids diagnosis, founded digital start-up HUED a year later to enable Black and Latino patients to find culturally sensitive medical care. Wilson is a model for what many in the region hope to encourage: a Black […]

Philly Just Ranked High on a Global List of Startup Ecosystems. These Local Leaders Aren’t Surprised

September 23, 2021

A report assessing the strengths, talent and startup resources of regions around the globe this year named Philadelphia in its top 30 ecosystems. The city moved up 15 spots in the Startup Genome’s Global Startup Ecosystem Report (GSER) after being named the top “emerging” ecosystem last year. For 2021, it’s No. 28 on the global […]

Philadelphia’s Startup Ecosystem Climbs 15 Spots Into the Top 30 Worldwide, Report Says

September 22, 2021

Philadelphia’s startup ecosystem ranks among the best in the world, reaching No. 28 globally, according to the latest report from research firm Startup Genome. Startup Genome’s Global Startup Ecosystem Report ranked more than 275 regional ecosystems based on factors like startup growth and activity, innovation and research, capital availability, talent and support for companies. Silicon […]

Ben Franklin Technology Partners Uses Additional Funds to Focus on ‘Surviving and Thriving’ firms during pandemic

July 20, 2021

Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Southeastern Pennsylvania, a state-backed nonprofit, invested $6.9 million in 46 companies last year, an increase of over $2 million from 2019. BFTP receives funding from the state, the previous year’s returns, and partner capital – which includes universities like Temple and Drexel along with health care companies like Independence Blue […]