Flywheel Foundation 2023 Impact Report

2023 was an exciting year for the Flywheel Foundation which stimulated a pipeline flow of early-stage teams and companies numbering over 300 and supported the creation, launch, and nurturing of more than 100 companies. Our overall audience reach, membership and services have grown dramatically as we refine our service offerings and expand our geographic reach.

In 2023 four cities and counties reached out to Flywheel for assistance in developing coworking innovation centers to support entrepreneurship and organic economic development. In response to this demand, the Foundation has formalized the Flywheel Affiliate Location program with services that include:

• Strategy Development for Ecosystem Building
• Coworking Innovation Center Design and Development
• Operational Playbook for Implementation
• Entrepreneurial Support Resources – Programs, Events, and Capital
• Reciprocal Membership Throughout the Flywheel Network

In 2023, we celebrated the opening of our first Affiliate location, Masthead coworking innovation center in North Wilkesboro. The center was funded by and operated by NC Tech Paths as part of the regional strategy to cultivate Remote Technology Operations with skilled software developers responsive to corporate needs.

We launched a 3-year accelerator and incubation program focused on Health Equity. The Health Equity Innovation Challenge seeks the submission of scalable and investable solutions to problems that lead to or create significant healthcare outcome disparities. The Challenge invites applications for social and technological innovations that can be applied and commercialized with demonstrated potential for social and economic impact on the following leading indicator priorities and Drivers of Health (DOH):

• Access: Improve access for colorectal screening, A1c control, and blood pressure, behavioral health, and reduce readmissions
• Quality and Outcomes: Eliminate disparities in mortality rates, mental health, maternal and child health
• Acute Social Needs: Support systems, community engagement, structural discrimination
• Drivers of Health: Economic stability and upward mobility; food security and access to healthy foods; access to affordable housing and commercial districts; affordable transportation; affordable child care, and education access.

We have many new plans for the new year and hope you will join us. Please visit the Flywheel Foundation website or click here to learn more about our 2023 impact.