Covington's bioLOGIC is expanding and expecting to attract related companies. The life sciences incubator will triple its size when it moves in its newest companies in March. 

"Our goal is to be the first stop and the first step for anything in life science. They can start here and if there are resources on the Kentucky side that are good for them we'll take them that direction. If it's on the Ohio side, we can work though that as well."

Frontier Airlines' arrival at the Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport this spring is projected to have a $16 million annual impact on the local economy, according to results of an airport-commissioned study.

A company that began in a Union, KY basement is expanding, adding 24 jobs and a $1 million investment to the region.

With a low cost of business, high quality of life, and lots of bourbon, Kentucky just makes sense for Westpack. 

New and existing companies created or committed to create thousands of jobs in Boone County in 2012, in part due to efforts by Northern Kentucky Tri-County Economic Development Corportation.  Writes Boone County Judge / Executive Gary Moore in an op-ed for the Cincinnati Enquirer:

As chair of Tri-ED's Board of Directors and chair of the business retention and expansion committee, I was pleased to assist with the launch of NKY Boost, an enhanced effort to serve our existing businesses in Boone County and Northern Kentucky. Our goal is to visit primary industry employers in Boone County on a regular basis. We will be meeting with companies that directly create jobs in fields of advanced manufacturing and technology. Through these meetings, we will help our existing companies address workforce needs, identify expansion opportunities and facilitate solutions to any challenges they are facing. Duke Energy's sponsorship and ongoing support of this program is a groundbreaking move for the community and will have tremendous impact on our business base.   

Read the full story here.

Here comes the flood: Water is about to be a life force for innovation in Northern Kentucky. Regulators from Ohio, Kentucky and Indiana signed a landmark agreement this month aimed at making Greater Cincinnati more attractive location for water technology companies.  

PizzaBomba, a Northern Kentucky food truck, is no longer just on four wheels. As of Dec. 26, PizzaBomba opened its doors to its permanent location on E. Fifth Street in Covington. Both the food truck and the store serve New York-style pizza, made with homemade dough and sauces and local ingredients.

Eight Northern Kentucky startups were unveiled to a roomful of educators, aspiring entrepreneurs and potential investors at a Demo Day event at Northern Kentucky University. Following drinks, bites and conversation, each company's founder pitched their vetted and nurtured informatics-based idea. The companies came from a variety of places; some are still in the beta stage, while others are on the market with paying customers. All grew dramatically in six months as the first class of Northern Kentucky's UpTech superaccelerator. UpTech is a new business informatics incubator launched by several Northern Kentucky institutions, including Northern Kentucky University, Tri-ED, ezone and Vision 2015. The intense, six-month accelerator program started in June and included $100,000 in funding. Companies selected to participate will also be working with students and faculty at NKU's College of Informatics. The organization plans to invest in 50 companies over the next five years. It’s funded mostly by private investors and some state funding. Many of UpTech’s mentors and support service providers are students and volunteers. Through a series of programs, Up-Tech guides participant startups through areas of business development that range from marketing and fundraising to market research and pitching the company to both investors and clients. Each company must stay in the Northern Kentucky region for two years after completing the program. During Demo Day, companies outlined their business ideas, their stages of business development and ended by asking for investment for continued growth. Each company had one-on-one coaching with mentors, in addition to the volunteer business team they were assigned. You can read about the UpTech companies here. Some companies made big changes in their business focus, names or even their business idea through the process. For example, Adam Treister came out of UpTech with a new company name, logo and revised direction. Student Source, formerly Student Designed, is an online student freelance work site. The company, which is working with local and other universities, matches students with businesses seeking contact work. Projects range from $50 to $5,000. Student Source has three partners and has raised $145,000 to date. Treister found the UpTech experience invaluable. "Working closely with NKU gave us an inside view of what universities are looking for, and how to better meet the challenges of partnering with a university," he says. While in UpTech, Triester also made a change in how businesses connect with students. Initially, company projects had to go through a professor who could use the idea as a class project. Now, companies can work directly with a student, speeding up the process. "We launched this version a week ago, and we're really excited," Treister says. By Feoshia H. Davis This story originally appeared in Soapbox on Dec. 11, 2012.