University of Baltimore MBA student Sheik Md Akij has secured a $40,000 Technology Advancement Grant from TEDCO's Baltimore Innovation Initiative to expand Potomac24, a digital media platform documenting Maryland's entrepreneurship ecosystem.
The grant, announced on July 14, 2026, recognizes Akij's project, "Digital Media Infrastructure for Maryland's Entrepreneurship Ecosystem," as one of eight Technology Advancement Grants in TEDCO's latest funding cycle. The Maryland Innovation Initiative awarded $664,448 to 13 projects supporting innovation and technology commercialization across the Baltimore-Columbia-Towson metropolitan area.
Akij is pursuing his MBA in marketing at UBalt's Merrick School of Business while serving as a graduate assistant at the university's Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation. There, he supports entrepreneurship programming, student engagement and business outreach connecting students with founders, investors and industry partners.
"Sheik exemplifies what happens when industrious students apply classroom knowledge to real-world challenges," said Henry Mortimer, director of the Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation at the University of Baltimore. "His work with Potomac24 demonstrates how our center connects student ambition to community impact—building infrastructure that will serve Maryland's entrepreneurs for years to come."
The latest TEDCO award adds to a growing list of recognitions for Akij and Potomac24. Earlier this year, the platform received the 2026 Spark Impact Award for its potential contribution to Baltimore's startup ecosystem.
He also received Early Career Research Grant from the World Biodiversity Forum at the University of Zurich in Davos, Switzerland, as well as the University of Baltimore's 2025-2026 Turner Research and Travel Award. His academic achievements have also been recognized through the 2025 Sigma Nu Tau Founder's Scholarship and the Mu Kappa Tau Scholarship, sponsored by UPS, for excellence in marketing, leadership and academic performance.
A lifetime member of several international honor societies, Akij belongs to Beta Gamma Sigma, Omicron Delta Kappa, Mu Kappa Tau, Sigma Iota Epsilon and Sigma Nu Tau. Earlier in his academic career, he was recognized as Best Ambassador at the Jakarta Model United Nations in Indonesia, reflecting his longstanding involvement in leadership and international engagement.
Potomac24 addresses a critical gap in Maryland's entrepreneurial landscape. Although the state hosts more than 100 university entrepreneurship centers, incubators and accelerators investing tens of millions annually in startup development, much of that information remains fragmented across institutional websites, press releases and social media.
The platform creates a centralized digital infrastructure documenting startup formation, research commercialization, entrepreneurial events and university innovation activities. Rather than functioning solely as a news outlet, Potomac24 serves as a permanent, searchable archive enabling entrepreneurs, investors, policymakers and researchers to access information about Maryland's innovation economy.
Akij brings more than a decade of experience in entrepreneurship, journalism, leadership and business development to the project. The Technology Advancement Grant will accelerate development of digital infrastructure designed to preserve Maryland's innovation history while making it easier to discover and share stories of entrepreneurship and startup success.
"The Maryland Innovation Initiative is proud to invest in innovation coming from Baltimore's institutions of higher education," said Abi Kulshreshtha, executive director of the Maryland Innovation Initiative. "The Baltimore Innovation Initiative plays an instrumental role in deepening Baltimore's strengths in life sciences, healthcare and artificial intelligence."
Since its launch, the Maryland Innovation Initiative has invested more than $59 million in university-based research commercialization, supported nearly 200 companies and helped generate approximately 400 jobs across Maryland, according to TEDCO.
The Baltimore Innovation Initiative was established as part of Maryland's participation in the federally designated Baltimore Tech Hub.
