St. Louis INNO reveals 2026 Fire Awards finalists. Here is who made the list.
By Veneta Rizvic – Special Sections Editor, St. Louis Business Journal | St. Louis INNO | May 28, 2026
St. Louis Inno is recognizing 14 local companies, organizations and startups, as well as one individual, in its 2026 class of Fire Awards.
The Fire Awards is St. Louis Inno’s premier recognition program, highlighting the businesses and community organizations that set the regional innovation ecosystem ablaze. Additionally, we also will be recognizing a Legacy Entrepreneur Award winner this year.
Our 13 finalists were sourced from reader nominations, as well as St. Louis Business Journal’s coverage, and selected by the St. Louis Inno editorial team based on the content provided in those nominations and Business Journal stories.
The winners of this year’s Fire Awards will be announced in the July 10th issue of the Business Journal. Each finalist and winner will be profiled in a special section.
See the 2026 Fire Awards finalists (and one winner) below.
Startups on Fire — Firms under 5 years old
- API Innovation Center
- NeuroFore
- Daugherty Enterprises
- nCase Technologies
Startups on Fire — Firms over 5 years old
- Ryval Studios
- KnowledgeLake
- SWADE Cannabis
Fire Starters and Community Builders
- Cortex
- TechSTL
- St. Louis Community Credit Union
Top Deals
Legacy Entrepreneur Award
- John Simanowitz, IntegrityXD
