spARK Labs

What spARK Labs does

spARK Labs by ARK Invest is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) startup incubator headquartered in St. Petersburg, Florida, operating the 45,000-square-foot ARK Innovation Center under the legal entity STAR-TEC Enterprises, Inc. The organization provides early-stage technology startups with physical workspace, mentorship, programming, and access to capital and customer pipelines, organized around five deep-tech platforms—artificial intelligence, robotics, energy storage, blockchain, and multiomics. Originally established as the Tampa Bay Innovation Center, the entity was relocated from New York to St. Petersburg in 2021 by ARK Invest founder Cathie Wood, and rebranded to spARK Labs by ARK Invest in late 2025 alongside a model pivot. ARK Invest is the parent entity providing research-driven backing and access to its venture network.

The product surface centers on a single primary membership program, augmented by the AIR Supply adviser-in-residence program, which connects member startups directly with ARK Invest research analysts on a monthly cadence for market intelligence and strategic guidance. Under CEO Rebecca Brown, who took the helm in July 2025, the organization shifted from a time-boxed accelerator model to a sustained high-touch membership model with incubation periods typically exceeding 12 months. Two complementary financial products are slated for the 2026 timeframe: an early-stage venture fund and an angel network, both targeting the same five platform areas and complementing ARK Invest's later-stage ARK Venture Fund.

The revenue model is subscription-style membership-based with no publicly disclosed pricing tiers; members gain access to ARK Innovation Center facilities, programming events, mentorship, and the AIR Supply adviser network. Distribution is geographically concentrated in the Tampa Bay region, supported by channel partnerships with the University of South Florida and other regional institutions. As of mid-2026, the incubator reports 45 member companies—up from 10 under the prior accelerator model—operates at full facility capacity with a documented waiting list, and is staffed by a six-person core team that is actively being expanded across community, program, operations, and marketing roles.

Name

spARK Labs

Legal name

STAR-TEC Enterprises, Inc.

Website

https://sp-ark-labs.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2024

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

spARK Labs by ARK Invest is a 501(c)(3) startup incubator in St. Petersburg, FL, providing early-stage deep-tech founders with workspace, mentorship, and research-driven capital connections across AI, robotics, energy, blockchain, and multiomics.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Startup Incubator / Innovation Hub

NAICS

Other Management Consulting Services (541618), Portfolio Management and Investment Advice (523940)

SIC

Investment Advice (6282)

akta.pro primary industry

Accelerators & Incubators (Investor-Operated) (FSANAAAM)

Keywords

• Startup incubator services
• Innovation hub workspace
• Venture mentorship programs
• Deep tech incubation
• Angel network investing

Headquarters

HQ city

St. Petersburg

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Membership Fees: spARK Labs operates as a nonprofit innovation hub with a membership-based model. Startups join as members to gain access to the incubator's facilities, mentorship, research partnerships, and community resources. The organization shifted from an accelerator-based model to a high-touch membership model under CEO Becca Brown.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

spARK Labs by ARK Invest is a nonprofit innovation hub that incubates early-stage technology startups through a sustained (12+ month) membership model. Members gain access to a 45,000-square-foot physical workspace, mentorship via the AIR Supply adviser program connecting them with ARK Invest research analysts, capital introduction through ARK Invest's network, and curated community programming focused on AI, robotics, energy storage, blockchain, and multiomics biology.

Product overview

spARK Labs by ARK Invest is a nonprofit innovation hub operating as a single unified offering — a high-touch incubator membership program backed by ARK Invest. The core product provides startups with membership at the ARK Innovation Center (45,000 sq ft workspace), access to ARK Invest's research insights, mentorship through the AIR Supply adviser program, capital connections, and community programming. The organization recently announced two complementary initiatives: an Early-Stage Venture Fund and Angel Network, both focused on AI, robotics, energy, blockchain, and multiomics startups. The portfolio consists of the membership program, physical innovation center, adviser program, and forthcoming investment vehicles.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• spARK Labs Membership Program A high-touch membership program offering early-stage technology startups access to physical workspace at the ARK Innovation Center, mentorship, ARK Invest research insights, capital connections, and community programming. Supports founders at all stages with sustained incubation over 12 months or more.
• ARK Innovation Center A 45,000-square-foot incubator space in St. Petersburg's Innovation District featuring flexible workspaces, private offices, meeting rooms, and event spaces designed to move founders from concept to creation. Capacity for 75 companies.
• AIR Supply Adviser Program An adviser-in-residence program connecting member startups directly with ARK Invest research analysts through monthly sessions and touchpoints, providing research-driven insights across five platforms of disruptive innovation.
• Early-Stage Venture Fund A new venture fund focused on investing in early-stage startups in AI, robotics, blockchain, energy storage, and multiomics, complementing ARK Invest's existing later-stage ARK Venture Fund.
• Angel Network An angel investor network designed to expand access to capital for early-stage founders while educating new angel investors and strengthening Tampa Bay's innovation ecosystem.

Quantifiable outcome

• 45 member companies at full capacity with waiting list
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• BayCare Health SystemcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 July 2026BayCare Health System partnered with Rovex Technologies for a pilot program to test its autonomous hospital transport robot Rovi at Morton Plant Hospital in Clearwater. The collaboration marks a major milestone for Rovex advancing toward broader adoption of autonomous robotics in healthcare.
• Space FloridacoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 June 2026Space Florida partnered with Seagate Space through Project Manta to accelerate development of its modular offshore rocket launch platform. The strategic investment funds a full-scale prototype being built at Port Tampa Bay, advancing Florida's launch capabilities while strengthening the state's maritime and aerospace industries.
• Moffitt Cancer Center (Speros by Moffitt)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 10 February 2026Moffitt Cancer Center established Speros by Moffitt at St. Pete within spARK Labs, creating its first presence in St. Petersburg as part of a regional AI and life sciences collaboration. The partnership brings Moffitt's oncology-focused venture studio and startup initiatives into the ARK Innovation Center, fostering collaboration between researchers, biotech startups, and AI innovators while strengthening Tampa Bay's life sciences ecosystem.
• University of South Florida (USF)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2025Partnership with University of South Florida for university connections, talent pipeline, and collaborative initiatives across the Tampa Bay innovation ecosystem. Part of built-in community strategy connecting founders with academic resources.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Founders Factory: Global startup incubator and accelerator that builds and invests in early-stage companies through corporate partnerships. Comparable model combining corporate backing, sector thesis, and structured incubation to spARK Labs' ARK-backed deep-tech membership approach.
• MassChallenge: Nonprofit global startup accelerator offering equity-free programs for early-stage founders, with a strong community/mentorship orientation. Closest peer to spARK Labs based on nonprofit structure, equity-free model, and founder-first value proposition.
• Y Combinator: Largest startup accelerator globally, providing seed capital and mentorship in exchange for equity to early-stage founders. Comparable as a founder-development platform; differentiated by massive scale, equity model, and broader sector mandate vs. spARK Labs' nonprofit deep-tech focus.
• Techstars: Global accelerator network operating cohort-based programs for early-stage startups with mentor networks. Techstars is a direct comparable to spARK Labs' incubation model, though Techstars takes equity and operates worldwide while spARK Labs is a nonprofit, membership-based, single-location incubator.
• CIC (Cambridge Innovation Center): Large operator of innovation campuses and coworking space for startups and enterprise clients. Comparable as a membership-driven, facility-led incubator with curated programming, but operates at much greater scale and across multiple cities.
• Idealab: Long-running technology incubator that creates and backs companies in AI, energy, and other deep-tech verticals, often founder-led with structured programs. Comparable deep-tech thesis incubator model, with the key difference being Idealab's for-profit structure and longer historical track record.
• Innovation Works: Pittsburgh-based seed-stage venture fund and incubator focused on robotics, AI, and life sciences, founded alongside Carnegie Mellon. Comparable deep-tech regional thesis-driven incubator with nonprofit and fund components, similar in scope and structure to spARK Labs.
• 1871: Chicago-based nonprofit technology innovation hub offering coworking, programming, and corporate partnerships to early-stage startups. Comparable membership/community model with regional anchor partnerships akin to spARK Labs' Tampa Bay positioning.
• SOSV (Indie Bio / HAX): Venture capital firm operating vertical-specific accelerators (Indie Bio for biotech, HAX for hardware) with thesis-driven programming similar to spARK Labs' ARK-aligned theses. Comparable deep-tech VC-accelerator hybrid, though SOSV takes equity and is global.

Regional players

• Station Houston: Houston-based innovation hub and coworking community supporting energy, healthcare, and tech startups with curated programming and corporate access. Comparable regional innovation hub with anchor corporate partnerships, though it does not have a VC parent like ARK Invest.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/spARKbyARK
• YouTubeyoutube.com/@sparkbyark
• Facebookfacebook.com/sparkbyark
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/sparkbyark
• Instagraminstagram.com/sparkbyark

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about spARK Labs