From NFL draft to TitletownTech, Green Bay turns big dreams into amazing realities

Yahoo

23-04-2025

This week the NFL Draft will take place in Green Bay, and its population of 100,000 will at least double in size as football fans pour into Titletown. For our community, it was a long process to make the case for hosting the draft – many questioned, and some still do, if a small city like Green Bay can accommodate an event that routinely draws hundreds of thousands of people and millions of dollars. But turning dreams into reality is nothing new in Wisconsin.
The Green Bay Packers share a similar story, a community-owned NFL team with over a century of history and hundreds of thousands of shareholders worldwide. The holy grail of NFL stadiums rises from residential neighborhoods, bearing the name of the legendary Earl 'Curly' Lambeau. Across the street sits TitletownTech, a venture capital firm born from a partnership between the Packers and Microsoft, following the same improbable path.
For a Green Bay native who started his career at 14 years old scooping ice cream, I couldn't have imagined that I would start a global transportation energy company, sit on the board of the Packers or help launch a venture capital firm, all right here in Green Bay. But seeing the Packers' rise to global recognition, I knew that this was a place where the improbable could be possible.
Creating shared impact and financial returns without compromise. That is the driving force for TitletownTech. Central to our foundational discussions was a shared belief: that the strength of an entrepreneurial ecosystem is as crucial to success as the innovation and leadership of individual people. In many ways, we embody the ethos of our partners.
The Packers generate impact far beyond the game of football. Similarly, Microsoft continues to play a key role in supporting Wisconsin communities. Just last year the company announced its $3.3 billion investment into the state to build one of the organization's most advanced data centers and the sixth-in-the-world, Microsoft AI Co-Innovation Lab with TitletownTech's assistance. When you consider shared impact, both the Packers and Microsoft have led with trust, creating a ripple effect far beyond something as straightforward as football or software. Proudly, TitletownTech is another avenue of that value creation.
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With nearly $100 million in assets under management, more than 30 investments in startups, many of which call Green Bay home, and an investor network of dozens of corporate investors catalyzed into action, TitletownTech is hardly a sports-tech VC but a venture firm that leans into the strengths of our region.
We've invested in companies solving the world's most significant challenges, such as: RAIC Labs, which leverages AI in national security and commercial sectors; Fork Farms, which combats food insecurity through hydroponic systems; GenLogs, which advances freight intelligence to combat fentanyl smuggling and human trafficking; Oculogica, which pioneers eye-tracking technology for brain health and impairment detection; and Realta Fusion, which is developing compact fusion technology for sustainable energy solutions. And, while we do love our cheese curds and old fashioneds, there is a lot more to what we are doing in Wisconsin.
With the NFL draft coming to Green Bay for the first time, it's an opportunity to share everything we have to offer, from the obvious, football and cheeseheads, to the less obvious, innovation, technology, creativity, collaborative partnerships and the powerful engine that is TitletownTech.
In February Mark Murphy, President and CEO of the Packers and Brad Smith, Vice Chair and President of Microsoft, joined me to launch our first-ever TitletownTech Startup Draft. Founders from across the country began competing for a $1 million-dollar investment and $350K in Azure Credits from Microsoft. Select Startup Founders then came to Green Bay for the Startup Combine where they did everything from kicking field goals and running 40s to meeting with our team and receiving market feedback from dozens of corporate partners from Wisconsin's leading companies.
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Tomorrow on Startup Draft Day, April 24 in Titletown, the first pick will receive that $1 million-dollar check. We're providing another opportunity for someone to create something that endures, despite its improbable beginnings.
Through the Startup Draft we received nearly 1,000 applications from impressive startups from every corner of the country, every NFL media market, and nearly every state. But I can't say I'm surprised. Much like Microsoft launching their AI Co-innovation Lab in our backyard, the NFL Draft coming to town, or TitletownTech making venture capital in Green Bay a reality, our small community continues to turn big dreams into amazing realities with inevitable impact.
Craig Dickman is managing director at TitletownTech. He also serves on the board of directors for the Green Bay Packers.
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: NFL draft highlights Green Bay innovation in football, tech | Opinion