Source: Coy Vaughn, Washtenaw County Parks and Recreation Writer: Natalie Burg

Source: Jason Friend, Glassbox Coffee Writer: Natalie Burg

Backyard Brains insect neuroscience kits can not only be found across the U.S. this year, but also on the other side of the world. The Ann Arbor-base company is now exporting its products to a number of South American countries, thanks to an entrepreneurship program in Chile. Chile is going through an economic boom thanks to exports of natural resources. The government is using these good times to help spur more entrepreneurship through things like its StartupChile program, which brings in entrepreneurs from around the world to help inspire more business creation. Backyard Brains won one of the start-up grants and used it as a bridge to help spread its product sales to Chile and several other South American countries. "It's been great," says Tim Marzullo, co-founder of Backyard Brains. "We have actually received another round of funding from the Startup Chile program. We have been going back and forth from Chile for the last year." Marzullo and his partner Greg Gage, both neuroscientists, started Backyard Brains three years ago as a way to provide a cost-effective product that teaches grade-school students the workings of neurons in the brain. Its Robo Roach allows them to control insects via antennas. Since then the company has expanded to a team of nine and the occasional intern after adding five new positions in the last year. Backyard Brains initially received a National Institute of Health grant for start-up funding. It is now angling for a second round grant from the National Institute of Health and otherwise using sales of its products to fund its growth. Backyard Brains' products can now be found in all 50 states and on all seven continents after sales from its Chile distribution made it ways to Antarctica. "We are pretty well-known as the go-to company in the neuroscience equipment field,"  Marzullo says. Source: Tim Marzullo, co-founder of Backyard Brains Writer: Jon Zemke Read more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.

Accent Reduction Institute could have moved wherever it wanted last year when Menlo Innovations, which it shared office space with, relocated from its Kerrytown headquarters closer to the University of Michigan's campus. Instead, the 7-year-old company found another office in downtown Ann Arbor. "This is home to us even though north of 98 percent of our clients are outside of southeast Michigan," says Judy Ravin, president & founder of Accent Reduction Institute. She adds that she and her executive team "love Ann Arbor. We are three University of Michigan graduates. We feel really connected to the community. It's a wonderfully business community." Accent Reduction Institute's close ties to U-M were a major reason for it staying nearby. The university serves a pipeline of talent for the company, mostly in the form of interns. Accent Reduction Institute has hired three of its former interns over the last year, expanding its staff to 20 people and 3-4 interns each year. "Our interns provide a wonderful pipeline for other interns," Ravin says. We get fantastic people to work with." The Accent Reduction Institute provides accent reduction training programs for non-native English speakers so they can carry on communication seamlessly. It also develops English pronunciation software to help people eliminate language barriers while maintaining their unique cultural identity. Menlo Associates, the holding company for Menlo Innovations, is still a major investor. Ravin points out that the talent gap for major companies is driving the Accent Reduction Institute's recent growth. She explains that as more baby boomers retire the company's are scrambling to find their best talent to replace them in the workforce. That in turn is prompting Accent Reduction Institute to add to its staff. It is currently looking for up to two more linguistics professionals. Source: Judy Ravin, president & founder of Accent Reduction Institutue Writer: Jon Zemke Read more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.

Entrepreneur Steve Blank has revised his opinion about Ann Arbor's investment landscape... slightly. He still says we still suffer from a risk-adverse culture that is akin to 'one hand clapping' and chastise governor Rock Snyder for not doing more to change that. Excerpt: "Blank told me what's changed in Ann Arbor is that there are venture capitalists and 'angels' in the city who are willing to invest, and who don't have to put up huge amounts of capital to get things going. Blank said there's an enormous talent pool in Ann Arbor from the University's engineering and medical schools. "And you don't need a lot of money to get some of these ideas off the ground. You don't need to put up $10 million to get things going. Basically you just need a couple hundred thousand dollars and a laptop," said Blank." Read/listen to the rest here.

Source: Reigis Recchia, Arbor One Mortgage Group Writer: Natalie Burg