The 43North Foundation was created with the belief that entrepreneurship is key to a thriving community.
That belief has been a guiding force in Buffalo for the past 15 years as many people in the private, government and philanthropic sectors strived to create the infrastructure for a modern innovation economy.
It worked.
Buffalo has market-leading startup companies that prove it can be done here, a deep bench of angel and seed investors and many resource providers that provide support for early-stage companies.
This work represents an opportunity to meaningfully change Buffalo’s economic trajectory.
Now it’s the time to capitalize on that opportunity.
The 43North Foundation was created from the proceeds of 43North, an annual $5 million business competition that brings cutting-edge companies to Buffalo every year. 43North's successful portfolio created the opportunity to reinvest back into the community.
The Foundation is focusing on four strategic pillars to drive a new era of growth. Over the next 10 years, we believe Buffalo has the attributes to become a nationally recognized center of startup activity and entrepreneurship.
This work is active, ongoing and gaining momentum. Here’s a snapshot of what’s happening.
Building new businesses
The foundation created Radial Ventures to bring a new pipeline of high-growth tech startups in Buffalo to market.
Led by one of Buffalo’s most successful entrepreneurs, ACV Auctions co-founder Dan Magnuszewski, Radial is an AI-native venture studio that features its own proprietary validation and market research engine.
Radial creates software products, brings them to the market and then spins them out into their own companies under talented leadership teams.
Radial is currently commercializing its first company, MakeOff, which is using an AI-tool to dramatically improve the process of bidding and estimates in the electrical contracting space.
Makeoff launched the first version of its product this summer and already has paying customers. Check out the company here!
Radial expects to create many more companies in Buffalo in the next few years.
Talent development
The foundation is the primary funder of TechBuffalo, which is dedicated to the creation of a world-class tech talent pool in Western New York.
The TechBuffalo team, which is helmed by CEO Jeffrey Botteron, has a diverse set of programs that start in elementary school all the way through adulthood. That includes talent attraction and local residents who are changing careers.
That includes the flagship PowerUp Tech internship program, which brings talented college students to Buffalo to work at marquee employers and experience early adult life in the community.
TechBuffalo’s partnership with Microsoft for the TechSpark and Innovation Fellows programs recently received national recognition from Microsoft president Brad Smith.
Check out Microsoft’s blog on its partnership with TechBuffalo here.
Corporate connectivity
Buffalo’s high-growth startup movement is gaining real momentum.
For it to expand our economy and deliver broad benefits, collaborations between corporates and startups must become a seamless engine of growth.
Companies can partner with 43North Foundation across its programs in talent development, storytelling, and innovation, while also engaging directly with startups as investors, pilots, customers, mentors, and active participants in the ecosystem.
To lead this effort, the Foundation appointed John Gavigan as VP of Corporate Connectivity in July 2025. John is a seasoned executive, entrepreneur, and lifelong advocate for Buffalo. He will be working directly with companies across the region to help them engage, collaborate, and grow alongside startups.
More participants. More energy. More opportunity for all.
Storytelling
Entrepreneurs, investors and support entities are doing amazing things in Buffalo. But they’re doing them in relative obscurity.
The 43North Foundation has appointed Dan Miner as VP of storytelling to coordinate all this activity into one loud voice.
Dan is an experienced journalist who covered the high-growth entrepreneurship scene in Buffalo from its nascency into a powerful civic force.
Now he is creating an engine of civic storytelling that will serve as a bullhorn – within Buffalo and across the country – for the momentum and progress in the community.
Powered by the foundation, the storytelling effort will launch soon under an exciting brand that will provide a constant drumbeat of vital stories about what’s happening here.
Stay tuned!
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