TEDCO President, Tammi Thomas, Selected as 2026 Influential Marylander

Thomas is recognized during the program's 20th anniversary, highlighting her impact across Maryland and beyond

COLUMBIA, Md., (July 30, 2026) - TEDCO, Maryland's state-backed venture capital firm, whose portfolio companies have generated nearly $2.7 billion in total economic impact for the state, today announced that Tammi Thomas has been named one of The Daily Record's 2026 Influential Marylanders. As president, Thomas leads the strategic direction and execution of TEDCO's fundraising strategy, broadening awareness of the organization and expanding the philanthropic, corporate and investor resources available to its programs. She reports to CEO Troy LeMaile-Stovall.

"This recognition is well deserved. Tammi's dedication to Maryland's ecosystem knows no bounds and has helped drive the state's recent ranking as number one for emerging venture capital investments," said LeMaile-Stovall.

The Daily Record launched Influential Marylanders in 2007 to recognize individuals for their significant contributions and leadership in Maryland across fields including civic leadership, communications, education, finance, general business, health care, law, philanthropy, real estate and technology. The 2026 list also includes Sanjeev Singh Sahni, CEO of Xometry, a TEDCO portfolio company. For more information and the full list of awardees, visit here.

Under her leadership, TEDCO has significantly expanded its thought leadership platform and ecosystem engagement efforts, including the growth of its annual Entrepreneur Expo, which drew over a thousand entrepreneurs, investors, policymakers and industry leaders in 2025. The 2026 Entrepreneur Expo will take place October 27, 2026 at the Hilton Baltimore Inner Harbor.

Thomas also helped position TEDCO to pursue new international collaboration and foreign direct investment opportunities, including the organization's memorandum of understanding with the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, whose Ministry of Digital Economy and Entrepreneurship exhibited at last year's Expo. At the 2025 Expo, TEDCO signed two international agreements: a joint declaration with Korea Venture Investment Corporation to support startups scaling between Maryland and South Korea, and an agreement enabling up to $50 million in investment capital from the APAC Investment and Innovation Development Association TAIWAN (TAIIDA) and SFIC Group to co-invest alongside qualified TEDCO investment programs.

"Every dollar the state invests in TEDCO should attract more behind it. Tammi's work expanding our base of private, philanthropic and international capital is how we multiply that public investment into real returns for Maryland's economy," said David Tohn, chair of TEDCO's board of directors.

TEDCO invests across the full company lifecycle, from pre-seed and seed through venture-stage funding. It also provides non-dilutive capital, including matching funds for federal SBIR/STTR awards and grants that commercialize university. Beyond capital, TEDCO delivers programming that builds founder capability - among it the Institute for Women Entrepreneur Excellence, a Maryland nonprofit established with the state's four historically Black colleges and universities that supports women entrepreneurs through cohort programming, workshops and access to capital.