Ben Teague: Planting Seeds of Innovation Across North Carolina
When Ben Teague talks about innovation, he doesn’t speak in buzzwords or balance sheets. He talks about people — families, students, and the next generation of North Carolinians who deserve the chance to build a better life. “Everything about what we do has to be personal,” he says.
That conviction has shaped Teague’s entire career — from his early days in technology-based economic development in Mississippi to his leadership in Western North Carolina, where he helped transform the region’s innovation landscape. As a member of NCInnovation’s Board of Directors, he channels that same purpose into strengthening the state’s innovation ecosystem and ensuring opportunity reaches every corner of North Carolina.
Teague’s path began at the University of Mississippi, where he was first introduced to the world of venture and angel capital. “I thought private equity was interesting, but what really captured me was the idea of using investment to seed innovation in communities,” he recalls. Working with Innovate Mississippi, he focused on commercializing alternative-energy technologies and saw firsthand how research and entrepreneurship could create jobs and transform lives.
When Hurricane Katrina struck, Teague shifted to helping rebuild the Gulf Coast economy — and soon after, opportunity came calling in the mountains of North Carolina. He moved to Asheville to lead economic development for the region and eventually joined Biltmore Farms, where he’s spent the past decade helping Western NC grow through purposeful innovation. “We have hotels and love our visitors,” he says, “but it’s always been innovation, not just visitation, that drives what we do.”
That philosophy led to major wins, including attracting Pratt & Whitney and more than 1,000 high-wage jobs to the region. But for Teague, success isn’t measured only in numbers. It’s about closing the gap between the “haves and have-nots” — ensuring that people who work hard can climb a career ladder tall enough to reach their full potential.
For Teague, innovation isn’t abstract — it’s deeply human. Years ago, he watched his sister-in-law die of cancer at just 34, leaving behind her husband and two young daughters. That experience reshaped his understanding of why innovation matters. “I never want another family to go through that,” he says. “That’s why healthcare innovation means so much to me.”
Another moment that marked him came when a manufacturing plant in Western North Carolina faced closure because it hadn’t kept up with new technology. Seven hundred people faced losing their jobs just before Christmas. “That’s when economic development stopped being about capital investment and started being about people,” Teague says. “Innovation became about job security — about stability for families.”
Teague first learned of NCInnovation years ago, as the organization began shaping its statewide model. At the time, he was determined to make sure Western NC had a seat at the table. “Innovation doesn’t only happen in [the research triangle],” he says. “There isn’t a monopoly on smart people.”
He watched the legislative process unfold and saw parallels to his experience in Mississippi, where innovation programs had helped strengthen regional economies. Joining the board, he says, felt like an opportunity to bring that perspective home — to help build a model that worked for the entire state.
“It’s unacceptable that anyone in this great state goes hungry or feels insecure about their future,” he says. “We have an obligation to use innovation to make life better for people.”
At Biltmore Farms, Teague gets to host the Kenan Fellows program which brings teachers into the company to see business and innovation in action. “They’re planting seeds for the future,” he says. “That’s exactly what NCInnovation is doing — planting ideas that might someday cure cancer, eliminate antibiotic resistance, or bring medical technology to rural areas.”
He believes the secret to success lies in unity and early investment. “Unified communities win projects they never should have won,” he says. “Divided communities lose projects they never should have lost.” Through NCInnovation, he sees the power of planting grants and ideas in fertile ground — nurturing them until they grow strong enough to thrive independently.
Looking ahead, Teague envisions NCInnovation as a lighthouse for innovation in America — a model other states will study. “We’re strategically marshalling the resources of our state to direct some of the smartest minds toward benefiting society” he says. “That’s how we become the example everyone looks to.”
