A new partnership between Troy University's Montgomery Campus and the Montgomery TechLab (MTL) officially launched last week, making the Montgomery Campus the future home of the MTL Defense Accelerator.
The announcement marks a significant milestone in Montgomery's growing defense innovation ecosystem, creating a dedicated hub where entrepreneurs, students, faculty, industry leaders, and defense stakeholders can collaborate to advance technology, workforce development, and economic growth.
Beginning this summer, TROY's Montgomery Campus will serve as the home base for accelerator programming, workshops, founder engagement activities and community innovation events. The partnership strengthens the connection between higher education and entrepreneurship while creating new opportunities for students to engage directly with high-growth technology companies operating in artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, application development, and national security markets.
“This partnership represents much more than a new location,†said Charisse Stokes, Partner Liaison for Montgomery TechLab. “It creates a visible and accessible center for innovation in downtown Montgomery where founders, students, faculty, industry, and government can come together to solve real-world challenges. By establishing a home at Troy University Montgomery, we're building stronger pathways between talent, entrepreneurship, and economic opportunity while continuing to grow Montgomery's role as a hub for defense and technology innovation.â€
The accelerator is supported by Innovate Alabama, Opportunity Alabama, the City of Montgomery, Alabama Power, and Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Alabama, all of whom share a commitment to strengthening Alabama's innovation economy and growing the state's small business defense industrial base.
“The partnership between Troy University Montgomery and Montgomery TechLab reflects our shared commitment to preparing the next generation of leaders, innovators, and entrepreneurs,†said Dr. Dionne Rosser-Mims, Vice Chancellor of the Troy University Montgomery Campus. “By bringing the Defense Accelerator to our downtown campus, we are creating meaningful opportunities for students and faculty to engage with emerging technologies, startup founders, and industry partners while contributing to the economic growth and innovation capacity of our region.â€
In addition to the announcement of the new partnership, MTL introduced the companies selected for its Summer 2026 Defense Accelerator cohort during a reception on Tuesday evening at the Montgomery Campus. The Summer 2026 cohort includes five companies developing innovative solutions with applications across defense, government, and commercial markets:
- ARBK Series — Developing mobile technologies that support critical mineral recovery, supply chain resilience, and secure equipment disposition.
- Culper Systems — Building secure communications and privacy-focused technologies designed for highly regulated and mission-critical environments.
- DDC-I — Delivering safety-critical software solutions that support aerospace, defense, and mission-critical systems worldwide.
- Moro Motion — An emerging technology company building adaptive humanoid robots that operate in the world's most dangerous environments—so humans don't have to.
- Omega Security — Advancing technology-enabled security and operational preparedness solutions for government and commercial organizations.
The cohort will participate in an intensive 11-week program delivered by MTL in partnership with Treble One and Opportunity Alabama. Founders will receive mentorship, strategic guidance, defense market insights, customer discovery support, and exposure to investors, defense stakeholders, and ecosystem leaders.
The Summer 2026 cohort will culminate with Demo Day in conjunction with the Department of the Air Force Information Technology and Cyberpower Conference (DAFITC), where companies will showcase their technologies and progress to defense leaders, investors, industry partners, and potential customers.
“The momentum we're seeing in Montgomery is a reflection of what can happen when higher education, industry, government, and entrepreneurs intentionally work together,†said Brien House, Executive Director of Alabama Accelerators at Treble One. “The Defense Accelerator is creating a pathway for founders to access customers, capital, talent, and strategic partnerships while helping build a stronger defense innovation ecosystem for Montgomery and the entire state of Alabama.â€
