2026 NEXT Awards and Entrepreneurs’ Hall of Fame recap, presented by Amazon
October 19, 2026 · Schermerhorn Symphony Center
Relive the night.
More than 630 people. Twelve winners. Three founding teams in the Entrepreneurs’ Hall of Fame. And, for the second year running, a conga line.
Presented by Amazon
The 2026 NEXT Awards & Entrepreneurs’ Hall of Fame
One very loud room.
The red carpet line stretched all the way to Third Avenue. Inside, cowboy hats, custom suits and sparkly dresses filled the Schermerhorn, and the champagne wall was poured at 5:15 and empty by 6:00. The first applications arrived in February. On October 19, eight months of work came together in one night.
Winners were handed their awards on the way up the stairs, turned back to the crowd and waved. Most of them never heard their walk-up songs. Chelsea Moubarak, the first winner of the night, was out of breath and still jumping when she got backstage.
Read the full recap on the EC blogThe 2026 Winners
Twelve winners. Eight industries.
One Music City stage.
Every industry winner is a Middle Tennessee company five years old or younger. Tap a card to visit the company, and hear each founder’s story in the backstage interviews.
Entrepreneur of 2026 & Legacy Awards
Entrepreneurs’ Hall of Fame · Class of 2026
The bank, the buildings
and the restaurants.
“Three Nashville founding teams who, between them, built the bank, the buildings, and the restaurants that turned Nashville into a national city.” Watch the tributes played on stage.
The Hall of Fame 15th anniversary was presented by Dr. Michael Burcham and Shore Capital Partners. See every inductee since 2011
Backstage with the winners
Straight off the stage.
Just offstage, every winner sat down with the Relationary team while the applause was still going. They thanked the people around them and said, in their own words, where their companies go next.
The night in photos
Nashville Black-Tie.
Photography by Morgan Visual Productions. See and download the full gallery.
The Red Carpet
Doors at 5:30 · Arrivals on the Schermerhorn steps
The Awards
Dinner, the ceremony and backstage
Cocktails in the Courtyard
Presented by Michael Burcham and Shore Capital Partners, with support from Southwest Airlines
All photos © Morgan Visual Productions for Nashville Entrepreneur Center. Tag us: #NextAwards2026 · @ENTRECENTER
Thank you to our 2026 sponsors and partners
It takes a city to celebrate a city.
The companies, founders and civic leaders who made the 2026 NEXT Awards possible.
As printed in the 2026 NEXT Awards program.
The 2027 NEXT Awards
Your story could be on this stage next.
Most of this year’s winners started with an application or a nomination. If you are a founder with a story like these, or you know one, applications and nominations for the 2027 NEXT Awards are open now.
Sponsor the NEXT Awards: reach out to Lauren McWhirter, VP of Investor Relations, at lauren.mcwhirter@ec.co