The Steve Case-backed Rise of the Rest 2018 tour will kick off in Dallas on May 7.

The tour, officially known as Revolution’s Rise of the Rest tour with Steve Case, hosts events across the U.S. with the mission of working closely with founders and entrepreneurs in emerging startup ecosystems. This year’s five-city tour also includes Memphis, Tennessee (May 8), Birmingham, Alabama (May 9), Chattanooga, Tennessee (May 10) and Louisville, Kentucky (May 11).

Rise of the Rest is a seed fund started by Case, co-founder and former CEO of AOL Time Warner. The Dallas event will involve a celebration of innovators in the Dallas-Fort Worth area and a day of bringing together entrepreneurs, nonprofits, universities, and public officials speaking on startup growth challenges and opportunities. The day will culminate with a pitch competition where Case, and his investment firm Revolution, will invest $100,000 in the winning company.

“For the past four years, we have been encouraged by the entrepreneurs and ecosystem builders we’ve met on our tours and are excited to invest catalytic capital into these Rise of the Rest regions.”
Steve Case

This year’s slate marks the fourth year for Rise of the Rest. Over that time Case and his team have covered more than 8,000 miles traveling by bus to 33 cities across the U.S.

“For the past four years, we have been encouraged by the entrepreneurs and ecosystem builders we’ve met on our tours and are excited to invest catalytic capital into these Rise of the Rest regions,” Case said in a statement.

Dallas is excited to have been selected as the kick-off city for this Rise of the Rest Tour, Trey Bowles, co-founder and CEO of the Dallas Entrepreneur Centers told Dallas Innovates. He said it’s the region’s opportunity to demonstrate “why DFW is one of the best places in the world to be an entrepreneur and innovator.”

“We look forward to showcasing the amazing entrepreneurial and innovation work that is originating from North Texas from early stage startups to large corporations headquartered here,” Bowles said. “We appreciate the work of the ROTR tour and the entire Revolution team, headed by Steve Case, which is focused on highlighting the robust ecosystems across the country in cities like Dallas.”

Revolution, a Washington, D.C.-based investment firm founded by Case in 2005, has more than $1.2 billion in assets under management with a mission to support disruptive, innovative companies taking on large, traditional industries with new products and services. It has invested in a wide variety of companies including: OrderUp Groupon, Custom Ink, zipcar Avis, Bedrock Manufacturing, and DraftKings.

Partners of the Rise of the Rest tour include: Google for Entrepreneurs, Village Capital, Tech Jobs Tour, The Economic Innovation Group, Startup Champion’s Network, and Powderkeg. The event can be followed on Twitter and Instagram via @RiseOfRest and #RiseOfRest.