New business incubator offers entrepreneurial opportunities for local residents

Ali Khan, the CEO of MOATiT and the information technology advisor for the Clean World Foundation, is excited for the potential of the business incubator and its ability to connect people together. MOATiT is a Pocatello-based IT support provider. Clean World Foundation is a nonprofit group associated with the Museum of Clean.

“The real (job) of the incubation center is to actually bring in the right people and connect them with the right people,” Khan said. “That’s the core of (what we are doing). For example, we at MOATiT, we have built this technology that we need to take to market. We’re very good developers but we don’t know how to create these companies, where to register them, who to talk to. How does the seed round and investment work? How do you evaluate your company? There is so much advisory that is needed to create a multi-million-dollar company starting from scratch, or any product for that matter. The idea is that the incubation’s job is to basically connect all these people together.”

The new space, which will be located at the Museum of Clean on 711 S. Second Ave., will provide opportunity and a platform for burgeoning new businesses and enable growth through technology support, product research, consulting, marketing or whatever the businesses require. The business incubator will also focus on education, instructing the next generation of IT developers on artificial intelligence, quantum computing, online digital marketing and how to get hired for online jobs.

The business incubator has already filled its first free educational class in July for young adults ages 15 to 25 that offers an introduction to applied AI. Applications will open again in September for participants and applicants to be a part of on a regular basis.

Executive director of the Clean World Foundation, Samantha Stoddard, understands not only the positive economic impact that the new venture could enable but how the varying organizations and individuals involved create an environment catered for success.

“This is not specific to Pocatello,” Stoddard said. “This is a project that is an opportunity for people in our region to participate in. We’re working with the (Southeast Idaho Council of Governments) and (Regional Economic Development for Eastern Idaho), which are economic development groups, to push this along. There’s a lot of people that are in this to support this project and make it successful.”

Over the next few months, the Idaho Business & Technology Incubation Center will continue to establish local collaboration between leadership in the community and institutions such as Idaho State University before officially launching sometime in September, but in many ways the business is already up and running.

“One of the products that we’re about to launch using the platform is called ProviderNote,” Khan said. “That helped us out in connecting with a lot of people. There is (also) a new patented cleaning idea that is being supported.”

Other ideas include a sustainability concept through the use of mycelium and mushrooms called Sporadicate which “rapidly break down plastics and remove harmful pollutants, leaving behind clean and safe byproducts,” according to its website. The organization has already partnered with the Idaho National Laboratory, Simplot, ISU and the University of Oregon.

Idaho Business & Technology Incubation Center has a litany of ways that it can help entrepreneurs make their dreams a reality. The vision is clear and a significant amount of work has already gone into collaborations with local businesses, community leaders, investors and a host of other organizations. As the incubation center ramps up, there are sure to be more opportunities and announcements in the coming months.

For more information, you can check out the Idaho Business & Technology Incubation Center website, idahobusinesstechnology.com.