Rural Built | Big Ideas: 5 Tech Founders Building Startups From Small Towns

Описание: Rural communities are full of bold builders, creative thinkers, and entrepreneurs turning big ideas into reality.

Across rural America, founders are building innovative companies from the places they call home—proving you don’t have to leave the town you love to chase your dreams.

Rural Built | Big Ideas is a video series from the Center on Rural Innovation (CORI) that highlights entrepreneurs building cutting-edge tech companies in small towns across the country. These founders are creating new technologies, new opportunities, and new futures for their communities.

In this first video, meet five entrepreneurs turning big ideas into reality in rural America:

• Callon B. Nanny, WholeNote — Paducah, Kentucky
• Gretchen Heinen, AuthSnap — Marquette, Michigan
• Matthew Stone, Pathless Productions — Portsmouth, Ohio
• Leah Kyaio, RespexTech Inc — Shenandoah Valley, Virginia
• Joshua Spicer, Capnesity — St. Johnsbury, Vermont

Their stories reflect something we see every day: when talented people are supported to build where they live, rural communities become powerful engines of innovation.

👉 Watch the full stories from each entrepreneur: ruralinnovation.us/video-rural-built-entrepreneurship/
• Callon B. Nanny — WholeNote:    • Rural Built | Big Ideas: Callon Nanny of W...  
• Gretchen Heinen — AuthSnap:    • Rural Built | Big Ideas: Gretchen Heinen o...  
• Matthew Stone — Pathless Productions:    • Rural Built | Big Ideas: Matthew Stone of ...  
• Leah Kyaio — RespexTech Inc:    • Rural Built | Big Ideas: Leah Kyaio of Res...  
• Joshua Spicer — Capnesity:    • Rural Built | Big Ideas: Joshua Spicer of ...  

About CORI
The Center on Rural Innovation (CORI) works to advance economic prosperity in rural America by supporting tech entrepreneurs, developing tech talent, and helping communities build thriving innovation ecosystems. Learn more: https://ruralinnovation.us/

All of the entrepreneurs featured in this video competed in CORI’s 2025 Small Towns Big Ideas Rural Pitch Competition, held in November 2025, and showcased promising tech startups from rural communities across the country. Learn more about the event: https://ruralinnovation.us/blog/small...