Celebrating Women Across the CenterState CEO Innovation Ecosystem

March 6, 2026

In recognition of International Women’s Day on March 8 and Women’s History Month, CenterState CEO celebrates the women who lead, build and support innovation across our organization and entrepreneurial community.

Women play a vital role at every level of the CenterState CEO ecosystem. From setting strategy and delivering programs to launching companies and advancing new ventures, their contributions strengthen New York State’s innovation economy and expand opportunity for founders and businesses across the region.

Within the INSPYRE Innovation Hub, women clients are building companies, scaling ideas and contributing to a collaborative startup community. As entrepreneurs and leaders, they bring creativity, resilience and momentum into the shared space and play a key role in shaping the culture of innovation at INSPYRE.

“It’s encouraging and invigorating to be surrounded by both established and entrepreneurial women in tech. In an industry where women are traditionally underrepresented, the INSPYRE hub provides organic opportunities to align and support each other’s growth and advancement.”

Emily Garrison
Metis Consulting Group. Metis is woman owned and certified MWBE.
Learn more about Metis:
https://inspyrehub.com/tenant-showcase-metis-consulting-group/

Through GENIUS NY by CenterState, women founders and leaders are advancing high growth technologies and commercializing innovative solutions. Their participation strengthens the accelerator and highlights the importance of diverse perspectives in building scalable impactful companies.

Companies Flox, Lamarr.AI, Crover, Circle Optics and ResilienX all have talented women leaders driving these companies forward.

“On Women’s Day, as a female founder and CEO, here’s a stat that lives rent free in my head and that I want to share: only around 2% of global VC capital goes to companies founded by women. Think about that. Imagine the innovation we’re leaving on the table. When I founded Flox Intelligence, I made the decision to go against those odds. Today, five years later, I’m scaling a VC-backed, award-winning company trusted by some of the world’s industry leaders and I get to do it side by side with some of the best minds and leaders in my industry who happen to be women. The future will be built by more women founders and that’s a future worth investing in.”

Sara Nozkova
CEO and Co-founder, Flox Intelligence
GENIUS NY Cohort 9

Learn more about Flox:
https://geniusny.com/flox-intelligence-raises-3m-seed-to-scale-ai-that-talks-to-wild-animals/

Across departments and roles, women at CenterState CEO support entrepreneurs, manage complex initiatives and deliver programs that serve businesses throughout New York State. Their work both behind the scenes and on the front lines is essential to sustaining a strong connected and effective innovation ecosystem.

“Supporting women in business means meeting founders wherever they are in their journey, whether it’s the first idea on a napkin or scaling a growing company, or making sure they have the community resources and encouragement to keep going.”

Kara Jones
Director of Programming and Engagement
CenterState CEO

Together, these women represent the full scope of leadership and contributions creating impact that extends far beyond a single day of recognition and reflects the ongoing work required to build a more inclusive resilient and forward-looking innovation economy.

As we recognize International Women’s Day and Women’s History Month, CenterState CEO remains committed to supporting women as leaders founders and changemakers throughout the year

Be Inspired!

From hands-on workshops and pitch nights to networking mixers and industry events, INSPYRE Innovation Hub is where ideas ignite and connections turn into opportunity.

Accepting New Clients!

Be a Client. Build What’s Next. With tailored client tiers, mentorship, startup support, and a community that shows up, this is where ideas become companies.

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