8 founders. One bracket. $25,000 on the line. Welcome to Tweener Madness 2026, the high-stakes startup competition where North Carolina’s most promising companies go head-to-head.

In this Round 1 matchup, Utilyst and BeneDoc step into the arena to pitch their businesses to a panel of experienced investors. Each founder has one shot to make their case, answer tough questions, and prove they deserve to advance.

One moves on. One goes home.

🧠 What you’ll see in this episode:

• A power infrastructure startup tackling knowledge loss in utilities
• A healthtech company rethinking regulatory workflows with AI
• Live investor Q&A and real-time feedback
• Behind-the-scenes judge deliberation (what actually matters in a pitch)

👇 Featuring the Round 1 Selection Committee:

• Jan Davis - RTP Angel Fund / Triangle Angel Partners
• Robbie Hardy - Accel Ventures
• Jen Summe - Primordial Ventures

👉 Subscribe for more episodes as we move through the bracket
👉 Follow along as we go from the Exceptional 8 → Fantastic 4 → Championship

⏱️ Timestamps

00:00 — Welcome to Tweener Madness
00:45 — Meet the Selection Committee
03:05 — Format + What’s new this year
05:05 — Matchup Intro: Utilyst vs. BeneDoc
05:35 — Utilyst Pitch
10:30 — Utilyst Q&A with Judges
20:40 — BeneDoc Pitch
26:15 — BeneDoc Q&A with Judges
40:00 — Judges Deliberation Begins
41:10 — Feedback on Utilyst
43:10 — Feedback on BeneDoc
46:20 — Pitch Lessons + What stood out
49:05 — Final Decision (Winner Revealed)

🎯 About Tweener Madness

Tweener Madness is run by the NC Tweener Fund, Powered by NC IDEA and showcases top startups from across North Carolina. The winner receives a $25,000 investment and statewide exposure.

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Tweener Madness is hosted by Scot Wingo, run by NC Tweener Fund, Powered by NC IDEA, and brought to life by Walk West, who leads production and podcast creation.

We couldn’t share posts like this without our amazing sponsors:

Platinum:
NC IDEA: https://ncidea.org

Gold Sponsors:
- Balentine: https://www.balentine.com/triangle-entrepreneurs
- EisnerAmpner: https://www.eisneramper.com
- Robinson Bradshaw: https://www.robinsonbradshaw.com

Silver Sponsors:
- Automated Consulting Group: https://automated.co

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Triangle Tweener Talks is sponsored by:

• Atomic Object: https://atomicobject.com/

This episode kicks off Season 2 of Tweener Madness and sets the stage for what’s ahead. You’ll get:

• The evolution of Tweener (from list → fund → statewide platform)
• Why this competition exists (and why founders love it)
• How the bracket works
• What judges are actually looking for
• And of course… the reveal of all 8 competing companies

This isn’t just a competition. It’s a behind-the-scenes look at how early-stage investors think.

🔥 What Were the Biggest Takeaways From the Selection Show?

• Tweener officially expands statewide with NC IDEA partnership
• $4M investment from NC IDEA fuels the next phase
• 50+ startups applied from across North Carolina
• Focus on venture-scale, IP-driven companies (not lifestyle businesses)
• Real investor judges, real feedback, real decisions
• Founders iterate pitches throughout the competition
• Episodes drop starting March 31, leading to a live championship

The stage is set. The pitches are ready. Now it’s time to see who can rise above the rest.

Timestamps

• 00:00 – Welcome to Tweener Madness 2026
• 00:40 – Tweener origin story (List → Fund → Media)
• 02:40 – NC IDEA partnership + statewide expansion
• 04:00 – Why founders love this format
• 05:00 – Sponsors + ecosystem support
• 06:20 – Meet the judges
• 10:10 – How the bracket works
• 12:00 – Selection criteria explained
• 15:20 – What didn’t make the cut (and why)
• 17:40 – The Exceptional 8 revealed
• 22:20 – Bracket matchups
• 23:30 – What’s next + episode schedule

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This episode of Tweener Talks is hosted by Scot Wingo, presented and produced by NC Tweener Fund, with creative assets and design support from Walk West.

We couldn’t share posts like this without our amazing sponsors:

Platinum:
NC IDEA: https://ncidea.org

Gold Sponsors:
- Balentine: https://www.balentine.com/triangle-entrepreneurs
- EisnerAmpner: https://www.eisneramper.com
- Robinson Bradshaw: https://www.robinsonbradshaw.com

Silver Sponsors:
- Automated Consulting Group: https://automated.co
- Bank of America: https://business.bofa.com/en-us/content/technology-industry-group.html

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Triangle Tweener Talks is sponsored by:

• Atomic Object: https://atomicobject.com/

What does a go-to-market engineer actually do, and why is this role suddenly showing up everywhere?

In this episode, we unpack one of the fastest-evolving roles in modern startups. Evan shares how he went from using ChatGPT as a college student and new BDR to helping build AI-powered systems inside one of the Triangle’s best-known software companies.

The conversation covers how AI is changing outbound sales, why intent signals matter more than generic research, how tools like Clay, Cursor, Cloud Code, Lovable, n8n, and Supabase fit into a modern GTM stack, and why great go-to-market engineering is about making humans better, not replacing them.

Highlights Covered

• What a go-to-market engineer is and why the role is growing fast
• How Evan turned experimentation as a BDR into a new AI-focused role at Pendo
• Why intent signals + research create stronger outbound outreach than either one alone
• How Pendo uses AI to make BDRs faster, more focused, and more effective
• The difference between SDR inbound signals and BDR outbound signals
• How tools like Clay help enrich leads, personalize messages, and trigger outreach quickly
• Why the CRM still matters as the source of truth in an AI-heavy workflow
• How Evan builds internal dashboards using Salesforce, Supabase, Lovable, n8n, and Cloud Code
• Why GTM engineering is likely to split into multiple specialties over time
• How AI can increase sales productivity without replacing the people doing the work

If you’re a founder, operator, or revenue leader trying to understand where AI fits into your go-to-market motion, this episode is a practical look at what that future already looks like inside a fast-moving North Carolina company.

Timestamps:

• 05:05 — Meet Evan Inscoe from Pendo
• 08:05 — Evan’s background and discovering AI early
• 10:28 — What a BDR actually does
• 13:04 — How Evan created his own path into GTM engineering
• 16:29 — What the go-to-market engineer role looked like at the start
• 19:05 — Breaking down the BDR workflow
• 21:40 — Where Pendo is today after nine months of GTM engineering
• 23:00 — How Pendo uses Clay
• 24:45 — What counts as an intent signal
• 26:00 — Inbound vs outbound signals
• 31:00 — Why CRM still matters
• 35:20 — Measuring impact and efficiency gains
• 36:00 — Building dashboards with Lovable, Supabase, and n8n
• 42:35 — Tools Evan recommends most
• 43:40 — Driving adoption across the team
• 45:20 — Where GTM engineering is headed next
• 48:00 — Why AI won’t replace BDRs
• 48:45 — Evan’s next big project

Where to Find Scot Wingo:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/thescotwingo/
Tweener Times: https://www.tweenertimes.com/
X: https://x.com/scotwingo

Where to Find Evan Inscoe:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/evaninscoe/

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This episode of Tweener Talks is hosted by Scot Wingo, presented and produced by NC Tweener Fund, with creative assets and design support from Walk West.

We couldn’t share posts like this without our amazing sponsors:

Platinum:
NC IDEA: https://ncidea.org

Gold Sponsors:
- Balentine: https://www.balentine.com/triangle-entrepreneurs
- EisnerAmpner: https://www.eisneramper.com
- Robinson Bradshaw: https://www.robinsonbradshaw.com

Silver Sponsors:
- Automated Consulting Group: https://automated.co
- Bank of America: https://business.bofa.com/en-us/content/technology-industry-group.html

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Triangle Tweener Talks is sponsored by:

• Atomic Object: https://atomicobject.com/