Page 93 - South Mississippi Living - August, 2024

Left to Right:
Balki Nair, Declan Kerwin, Kim Gavin, Kelly Echols, Robert McGurrin, Joseph Graben, Joel Lawhead, Jansen Cohoon, Allyson Caridad, Dylan Sparks
2605 13th St., Gulfport 228.896.2824 www.gulfblue.org
investigating uncrewed vessel activity such as drug trafficking runners or other threats through advanced cybersecurity. The drones can even zero in on home bases if needed.
“USM allows us to have access to the facilities at the Port of Gulfport and research expertise,” said Jansen Cohoon, president of the startup. “Working with Southern Miss has been hugely beneficial.”
The USM Research Foundation is housed in the historic Gulf & Ship Island Railroad Building in downtown Gulfport. Blue economy entrepreneurs can find a home
in the building when office space is available, as well as everything needed to conduct their business. And the startups will not have to search far for mentoring or networking opportunities with the community and existing industries.
The historic building sits at the center of the Gulfport Blue Economy Innovation District, which includes Gulf Blue, the Port of Gulfport, Mississippi Aquarium, the USM Marine Research Center, and the Roger Wicker Center
for Ocean Enterprise. Other nearby sights include Stennis Space Center, the USM Gulf Park campus, Point Cadet, the USM Gulf Coast Research Laboratory, and the Port of Pascagoula.
BLUEiQ, which is headquartered in Massachusetts, joined the coastal program to protect biodiversity while developing underwater sound into intelligence. “We are trying to solve problems in the protection of biodiversity, reduce mammal strike vessels, and keep dolphin populations healthy,” said Rob McGurrin, co-founder of BLUEiQ.
Kelly Echols, founder of the Missouri-based LeVanta Tech, envisions blue tech in both the sea and air with float- and-fly drones. The drones can fly at high speeds with low detectability for civil and defense missions.
Guess added office space is currently available at the Gulf & Ship Island Railroad Building. Inquires can be made
by emailing Guess at N.Guess@usm.edu for additional information.
Kelly Echols and William Rippy.
SOUTH MISSISSIPPI Living | www.smliving.net
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