Welcome to the Atlanta Startup Awards

The Atlanta Startup Awards, jointly organized by members of the Atlanta Startup Community, recognizes and celebrates the city’s most successful rising tech companies, startup pioneers, and disruptive innovators. Atlanta Startup Founders and Ecosystem Builders – it’s your time to shine.

01. Mentor of the Year
Recognizes an individual who has made an exceptional and sustained commitment to guiding founders and operators in the Atlanta startup ecosystem through hands-on, high-impact mentorship.

03. Pivot of the Year
Celebrates a startup or founder that demonstrated exceptional strategic agility by making a bold, well-executed pivot and came out stronger for it.

05. Best Technical Breakthrough
Honors a startup that achieved a significant technical innovation, patent, product capability, or engineering milestone that advances their industry or demonstrates exceptional technical differentiation.

07. Angel of the Year
Celebrates an individual angel investor who has gone above and beyond in supporting early-stage Atlanta startups — not just financially, but through hands-on involvement, introductions, and continued support post-investment.

09. Best New Deal of the Year
Celebrating the most compelling new investment, partnership, acquisition, or commercial deal involving an Atlanta startup — evaluated on strategic significance, deal structure, and potential impact on the ecosystem.

02. Community Builder of the Year
Honors an individual or organization that has made a measurable impact in building, connecting, and strengthening the Atlanta startup community.

04. Best Market Breakthrough
Recognizes a startup that cracked a uniquely effective go-to-market strategy in a way that others in the ecosystem can learn from.

06. VC of the Year
Recognizes a venture capital firm or institutional investor that has made exceptional, high-quality investments in Atlanta-area startups and demonstrated meaningful ecosystem commitment beyond writing checks.

08. Corporate Startup Champion
Recognizes a corporate or enterprise organization that has been an outstanding customer and champion of Atlanta startup products — providing meaningful contracts, honest feedback, and internal advocacy that helped a startup grow.

10. Pay-It-Forward

Honors a post-exit or experienced individual who has selflessly reinvested their time, capital, and knowledge back into the Atlanta startup community — whether as a mentor, investor, or customer.