Building Florida's Blue Economy: 2026 Tampa Bay Wave BlueTech|X Accelerator Pitch Night
Some of Florida’s greatest innovation opportunities are emerging from one of its oldest economic drivers: the water.
On September 17, Tampa Bay Wave brought founders, investors, industry leaders and community partners together at Port Tampa Bay for the 2026 BlueTech|X Accelerator Pitch Night, reflecting the growing momentum around entrepreneurship and innovation across Florida’s blue economy.
The evening marked the culmination of this year’s blue economy Accelerator and offered a look at what is possible when entrepreneurial talent connects with industry expertise, capital and a region uniquely positioned to support maritime and ocean-focused innovation.
A Conversation About Florida’s Blue Economy
Pitch Night began with a panel discussion exploring Florida’s blue economy and the opportunities emerging at the intersection of innovation, entrepreneurship and the state’s extensive connection to the water.
The conversation set the stage for the evening by looking beyond individual companies to the larger ecosystem required to help blue economy technologies grow. Collaboration among entrepreneurs, established industry, investors, research institutions and regional partners will be increasingly important as Florida works to turn its natural advantages into new economic opportunities.
The panel was moderated by Karl Strauch, vice president of marketing at Port Tampa Bay. The panelists included Dr. Colin Polsky, associate vice president at Florida Atlantic University; Alison Barlow, CEO of the St. Pete Innovation District; and Michael Anderson, CEO and co-founder of Seagate Space.
Five Founders. Five Visions for What Comes Next.
Following the panel, the spotlight shifted to the five founders in Tampa Bay Wave’s 2026 BlueTech|X Accelerator cohort.
Each founder took the stage to share their company, the challenge they are working to solve and their vision for growth.
Pitch Night represented more than the completion of an Accelerator program. It gave the founders an opportunity to build connections with investors, partners and leaders from across the region while demonstrating the breadth of innovation emerging within the blue economy.
A $2 Billion Milestone for Tampa Bay Wave Founders
The evening also offered an opportunity to recognize a milestone extending well beyond this year’s BlueTech|X cohort.
During the program, Tampa Bay Wave CEO Linda Olson announced that companies in Tampa Bay Wave’s portfolio have now crossed $2 billion in capital raised.
It is an important marker of just how much the ecosystem has grown.
Behind that number are founders building and scaling companies, investors backing ambitious ideas and partners creating the infrastructure entrepreneurs need to succeed. It also reflects the momentum that Tampa Bay’s innovation community has built through years of collaboration.
And there is much more ahead.
Building the Next Chapter of BlueTech Innovation
Hosting BlueTech|X Pitch Night at Port Tampa Bay underscored the opportunity in front of the region.
Florida has a distinctive platform from which to grow the blue economy, and Tampa Bay has an opportunity to be an important part of that future by connecting entrepreneurial talent with the industry relationships, expertise, partnerships and capital that help companies scale.
The 2026 BlueTech|X founders are part of that story.
Tampa Bay Wave is grateful to the founders, mentors, speakers, investors, partners and community members who contributed to this year’s accelerator and joined us for Pitch Night.
Congratulations to the 2026 BlueTech|X cohort. We look forward to seeing what you build next.
The 2026 BlueTech|X Cohort:
1Print – Pompano Beach, FL | Founded by Fredrik Wannius, 1Print uses 3D concrete printing to build coastal and land infrastructure such as artificial reefs, seawalls and breakwaters in complex shapes traditional molds cannot achieve. The company’s Chief Sales Officer, Fred Meinke, is based in the Tampa Bay region.
Dreadnot – Seattle, WA | Founded by Shawna Ruff, Dreadnot provides real-time seismic and climate monitoring to help community leaders protect coastal and island communities from disaster.
ONA – Madrid, Spain | Founded by Nil Diaz, ONA builds the data and intelligence infrastructure that turns fragmented data into a single, verifiable source of truth for the blue economy.
SampleServe – Traverse City, MI | Founded by Russell Schindler, SampleServe is the operating system for the environmental services industry, replacing paper-based sampling workflows with digital chain-of-custody, lab integrations and automated regulatory reporting.
SwimSmart – Marquette, MI | Founded by Jacob Soter, SwimSmart modernizes beach safety through purpose-built technology solutions.
To learn more about Tampa Bay Wave’s accelerator programs, portfolio companies and founder resources, click here.