LEADERS OF FIVE young companies pursuing transportation-sector innovations will work April 21-24 as members of the Spark Mobility Lab Cohort, which is a program of the University of Tennessee Spark Innovation Center led by Director William "Bill" Malkes Sr.
In December, the Spark Innovation Center announced that the mission of the Lab is to improve early-stage mobility founders' readiness for engagement with mentors, industry and the investment sector by ensuring founders' understanding of the importance of employing techno-economic analysis (TEA) and life cycle assessment (LCA) tools and techniques to help improve business scalability.
According to a press release issued today, the incoming Lab cohort will feature TEA and LCA workshops led by Jack Ferrell of Golden Carbon Solutions LLC, of Golden, Colo. Spark Expert-in-residence Chris McAdoo will assist founders in the Lab cohort to develop their investor pitches.
“Mobility is a core part of American leadership. Tennessee has the energy assets, manufacturing base, and national laboratory infrastructure to lead," Malkes said in a press release today.
Malkes added, “The Spark Mobility Lab brings these companies in to test their assumptions, build their models, and make decisions that move them toward commercialization.”
FIRST LAB COHORT:
☐ Electrovia Technologies Corp. is a Delaware company led by Thomas Rush of Nashville. It is developing high-power autonomous wireless charging systems for electric vehicles to help enable unlimited electric transport.
☐ Fuel Daddy Inc. is a Delaware company offering its AI-enabled operating system for fleet fuel procurement. Developed in Georgia, by Hari and Krishna Chawla of Woodstock, Ga., the system helps fleets eliminate the hidden costs of refueling by optimizing procurement logistics and reducing labor and compliance risks.
☐ PF DesignLab, led by Kentucky-based Patrick Flaherty, provides engineering services focused on natural fiber composite applications, according to its F6S profile. It develops and prototypes natural fiber composite systems, integrating material performance, process design, and cost modeling to enable scalable manufacturing. Work spans tooling, fabrication, and supply chain development, establishing the foundation for scalable composite solutions. Related.
☐ PRSVR Systems is a logistics tech company led by Marcella Kaplan PhD, a research assistant professor at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville’s Center for Transportation Research. The company is building a routing platform that "optimizes routes across mixed fleets in seconds, supporting everything from trucks and vans to electric vehicles, autonomous vehicles, and drone delivery," with results including "less time planning, lower costs, and a measurable cut in emissions." Related.
☐ ThermoVerse is an urban innovation startup from Detroit, Michigan, led by Shantonio Birch and Mani Venkata Sainadh Reddy Sathi. Its technology unlocks hidden grid capacity in commercial buildings by leveraging Thermal Energy Storage to redirect energy equivalent to a Tesla Megapack from HVAC systems, making it available for other applications like EV Charging and micromobility.
A timeline for applications and admissions to a second Mobility Lab cohort has yet to be established.
Bill Malke (LinkedIn) not only is executive director of the Spark Innovation Center, but he also remains and active advisor on private transactions; a member of the advisory board of the Accelerate Fund of the University of Tennessee Research Foundation (UTRF); chair of the board of NellOne Therapeutics; and, an active member in supporting innovation efforts by the Knoxville Chamber -- much of which came after a career in which he served in C-suite positions in at least a half-dozen enterprises.
The Spark Mobility Lab is supported not only by UT, but also by by Knoxville-based nonprofit Tennessee Advanced Energy Business Council (TAEBC) and by nonprofit Tennessee Technology Development Corporation dba Launch Tennessee, an arm of Tennessee Department of Economic & Community Development, among others.
TAEBC is led by Executive Director Cortney Piper, who is also founder and president of Piper Communications, the Knoxville-based strategic communications advisory firm.
Piper lists among its clients, in addition to TAEBC, University of Tennessee Research Foundation, Smart Factory Institute, Oak Ridge National Lab, PYA and others.
The Spark Innovation Center is allied with Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Tennessee Valley Authority and others in the region to move early technologies and their principals through steps leading to validation, deployment and market adoption. VNC
.last edited 1631 14 April 2026