Topeka startup backers launch ‘Golden Ticket’ to lab space in just-opened incubator

One winning startup is expected to receive a full year of free lab space at Topeka’s LINK Innovation Lab — luring startup talent to the state-of-the-art startup incubator facility as the capital city ramps up its entrepreneurial support infrastructure.

Dr. Kevin Mills, president and CEO of AdAstra BIO, and Stephanie Moran, senior vice president of innovation for LINK Innovation Labs, announce the Golden Ticket opportunity in Topeka; photo by Erin Young, Greater Topeka Partnership

Plug and Play’s Topeka accelerator operation announced on Thursday a new “Golden Ticket” opportunity for participants in this week’s Pitch & Putt startup competition. Seven animal health companies in the local Plug and Play program were in Topeka for the end-of-cohort showcase.

Valued at $15,000, the Golden Ticket offers a year of complimentary occupancy in LINK’s shared lab — a prize designed to give an early-stage company the space and resources it needs to grow, organizers said.

“LINK offers premium lab space — appropriate lab space — that a smaller business usually can’t find outside of a university or corporate setting,” said Dr. Sam Al-Murrani, CEO and owner of Bimini Pet Health in Topeka, one of the corporate sponsors of the Golden Ticket alongside AdAstra BIO and DL Smith Electric.

LINK Innovation Lab launched in early 2026 as a community collaboration led by GO Topeka to attract and support high-tech startup companies and entrepreneurs in Topeka. Plug and Play — a global technology accelerator and open innovation platform that nurtures and promotes innovative startups and fosters connections with world-leading companies — was among the space’s first tenants.

“Once LINK was built, we understood that every new startup venture still needs some help,” said Al-Murrani. “It became logical and sensible to support ways to get startup companies into the space to grow both them and LINK.”

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LINK Innovation Labs’ shared lab space, seen from a public viewing area at the on-site Sparrow Coffee shop; photo by Tommy Felts, Startland News

LINK Innovation Labs’ shared lab space in Topeka; photo by Tommy Felts, Startland News

The year of residency is a valuable boost for recently formed companies seeking to test and develop their technology, activate their business plan, and forge connections with other entrepreneurs in a vibrant startup environment, said Dr. Kevin Mills, president and CEO of AdAstra BIO.

“This prize is about so much more than just lab space,” he added. “It’s about giving high-potential startups a real runway to accelerate their work in a cutting-edge facility, surrounded by other innovators and entrepreneurs.”

Startups from the Plug and Play Topeka cohort will be evaluated on the strength of their concept, team, business plan and growth potential as the program and sponsors determine the prize winner.

Katharina Bansemer, co-founder and CSO of pivio, speaks on a panel conversation between Plug and Play cohort members in Topeka, shortly before her company was announced as winner of the Startup Award at the event; photo by Tommy Felts, Startland News

Lindsay Lebahn, senior program manager for Plug and Play in Topeka, awards Pitch & Putt top honors to Andrew Brown, founder and CEO of Orlando, Florida-based VetBreath Analytics during Plug and Play's showcase in Topeka; photo by Tommy Felts, Startland News

Thursday’s showcase in Topeka also offered organizers an opportunity to award prizes for the top-scoring startup in the previous day’s golf course-based Pitch & Putt startup competition, as well as an honor for the top-ranked startup over the course of the cohort’s run.

Orlando, Florida-based VetBreath Analytics won the Pitch & Putt challenge with its non-invasive pet breath diagnostics technology designed to detect heartworm and other conditions months earlier than traditional blood tests; while Düsseldorf, Germany-based pivio — a company that builds AI agents designed for customer interactions across pet insurance, veterinary services, and pet food brands — earned the Startup Award.

Dr. Sam Al-Murrani, CEO and owner of Bimini Pet Health; photo by Tommy Felts, Startland News

Topeka has all the right elements to attract such companies to build their U.S. headquarters in the Midwest, said Al-Murrani, who’s lived in the region for 22 years — a place where he chose to build Bimini, a contract manufacturer for pet health supplements, “smackdab in the middle of the Animal Health Corridor.”

“There’s a lot of land. There’s a lot of people who work in the industry — the talent pool is extensive with people ranging from pharmaceuticals to food and pet food manufacturing,” he said. “The area has the fundamentals for success, but it just needs a little push.”

GO Topeka and LINK both have shown they’re designed and ready to be that catalyst, Al-Murrani added.

“Sometimes people look at the Midwest and think ‘It’s too far away from everything. There’s too little support for anything,’” he said. “But if you’re an animal health company looking for a space to start your company, this is it. And you have a community here that is actually willing to help.”

Check out more photos from Thursday’s Plug and Play showcase event below.