Inmates Join High-Tech Business Incubator Movement

Felons present internet startup ideas to investors from behind bars

If you don’t have a life sentence in prison, chances are you’ve got a lot of time to think about what you’ll do when you get out. Inmates at California’s San Quentin, one of nation’s more notorious prisons, are thinking about their entrepreneurial dreams and recently got the chance to present those ideas to a roomful of investors and tech bloggers. One inmate, Eddie Griffin, who is on a third stint for drug possession, pitched a live club music streaming service idea during “Demo Day.” It’s part of the Last Mile program, an entrepreneurship course modeled after startup incubators that take young companies and grow them with seed money. The program accepted 10 inmates out of the 50 applicants for its latest batch of inductees. Chris Redlitz, founder of Last Mile, said it’s unlikely that most of the ideas like Griffin’s would be funded and or become successful. He works with the business community to find job placements for Last Mile graduates who are near their release date. (Reuters)

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