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Respondr Technologies wins $75,000 in nondilutive funding at Alabama Launchpad Cycle 2 technology competition

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (Nov. 10, 2026) – Respondr Technologies, an Alabama-based first responder technology company, has won the technology track of Alabama Launchpad’s Cycle 2 competition and will receive $75,000 in nondilutive funding.  Founded by Joseph Patton, Respondr built TerritoryBoard, a mobile app that helps firefighters learn and keep their response territory: the real streets, hydrants and hazards they are responsible for. The app uses gamified drills and crew competition to make training something firefighters want to do, and it gives chiefs an admin dashboard to assign training and track hours. TerritoryBoard is live with multiple Alabama fire departments.  “I have seen firsthand what one wrong turn costs on a real fire call, and Alabama Launchpad gave me the coaching, and now the funding, to make sure fewer crews ever have to,” said Patton, founder and CEO of Respondr Technologies. “This win means Respondr will keep growing right here in Alabama, with Alabama firefighters leading the way.”  Respondr will focus the Launchpad award on growth. Most of the funding will go toward customer acquisition, getting TerritoryBoard in front of more Alabama fire chiefs through conferences, demos and department visits.  The remainder will support onboarding, with Alabama firefighters serving as part-time trainers so every department is live within one to two weeks, and product enhancements that allow for faster scaling and multitenancy, along with more direct GIS data connections.  The company aims to grow from five founding departments today to 160 by the end of 2027, and to create 10 to 20 or more Alabama jobs in sales, engineering and customer support over the next two to three years. Respondr was founded in Alabama, is headquartered in Alabama and will stay in Alabama.  The technology track finalists were judged by James W. Childs, Jr., shareholder and chair of the Private Markets Practice and Maynard Nexsen Venture Partners at Maynard Nexsen; Lynn Troy, board chair of AI Huntsville; Chris Winslett, product marketing manager at Snowflake, and Donnie Garvich, chief technology officer of Stella Source.  “I was very impressed by the quality of the finalists and their founders, as well as the extent to which Alabama Launchpad helped them hone their pitches,” Childs said. “Each of the finalists has an opportunity to build a world-class company and achieve a successful exit event, which made our decision all the more challenging. Launchpad is clearly moving the needle and adding value to Alabama’s expanding ecosystem.”  “I was honored to represent AI Huntsville as a judge for Launchpad’s five tech track finalists — the quality of all five projects made it a very difficult decision,” said Troy. “I was impressed by the diversity of ideas, the gaps these entrepreneurs identified and the technology they developed to address them. I was especially impressed with how mature several ventures were with only bootstrap funding. Launchpad gives Alabama’s tech entrepreneurs a valuable platform to sharpen their ideas, gain visibility and secure funding to grow their businesses.”  Every finalist ahead of the technology and life sciences investor meetings receives a $2,500 stipend and is paired with a group of Launch Advisors, specialists who provide intensive consulting in areas such as sales, finance, marketing and software, for weeks of one-on-one preparation. It is access to what would otherwise amount to thousands of dollars in consulting, provided free of charge.  That preparation builds toward closed-door investor meetings with industry experts, matched to each finalist’s track: technology finalists meet with technology investors, and life sciences finalists meet with life sciences investors.   The life sciences finalists’ closed-door investor meetings will take place Nov. 12. To learn more and stay up to date on upcoming winner news and application cycles, visit alabamalaunchpad.com. 

More About Alabama Launchpad

Established in 2006, Alabama Launchpad is Alabama’s most active early-stage seed fund investor, driving innovation and job growth through startup competitions and ongoing mentoring for Alabama entrepreneurs. . It is the state’s longest-running business plan and pitch competition. Over the past 19 years, Alabama Launchpad has invested more than $6.6 million in 124 Alabama startups. The winning startup companies have generated more than 1,600 jobs for the state and have a combined post-money valuation of more than $1 billion.

More About Our Partner, Innovate Alabama

Innovate Alabama is Alabama’s first statewide public-private partnership focused on entrepreneurship, technology and innovation with a mission to help innovators grow roots here in Alabama. Innovate Alabama was established to implement the initiatives and recommendations set forth in the Alabama Innovation Commission’s report, including smart policy solutions that will create a more resilient, inclusive and robust economy to remain competitive in a 21st-century world. With founding CEO Cynthia Crutchfield leading the charge, Innovate Alabama is also made up of a board of 11 innovation leaders appointed by Gov. Ivey, collaborating across sectors to advance industries, drive technology and facilitate an environment where innovation and entrepreneurship thrive. Learn more about Innovate Alabama at www.innovatealabama.org.

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