1 Smart Business Story: The 17 Startups Rebuilding America Now

The Business Model: Why 3.5 Million SMEs Are Cautiously Optimistic

In today’s economic climate, business leaders, particularly those of small and medium-size businesses, are rightfully cautious. However, despite inflation, ongoing war, and other factors, Sharon Miller, Bank of America’s president of Business Banking, says this of BoA’s client base:    “As we enter 2026, balance sheets were stable and profitability had actually risen from a year ago. So, when you look at what’s happening in our client base—and we serve 3.5 million small and medium-size companies in the U.S.—what we’re seeing is certainly cautious optimism, but we are seeing growth in our local communities.”    On this episode of The Business Model, Inc. senior staff writer Melissa Angell recently sat down with Miller for a conversation about borrowing, the business of banking, and the role of AI.

1 Smart Business Story: The 17 Startups Rebuilding America Now

While venture capitalists have been pouring money to fund companies aligned with “American Dynamism,” there is a new crop of startups focused on building sustainable companies for the supply chain to support the country’s future.     Inc. senior editor Leah Carroll led a recent story on the top 17 companies that are rebuilding America. On this episode of The Business Model, Carroll joins Inc. staff reporter Chloe Aiello to give you a behind-the-scenes look into the process that formed the final list. Plus, you’ll hear from Inc. staff members who delve into the details of why select startups made the list.

Founder Group Chat: Launch Strategies

On this Founder Group Chat, we’re looking at three very different companies: A food truck for dogs, kid-coded cereal for adults, and yet another craft beer brand.     Any of these ideas could get you laughed out of the room during a pitch meeting. Still, the founders of these companies managed to build successful brands in the wildly saturated food and beverage space — while having some fairly out-of-the-box ideas.    On this episode, Graham Winfrey goes back to where their journeys began in a chat on launch strategies with Ron Holloway of Woofbowl, [https://www.mywoofbowl.com/] LeAnn Darland of TALEA Beer Co., [https://www.taleabeer.com/?srsltid=AfmBOooGrwW69Fd5B_qY1cymWcOnud4dnv-QG2EKWPcgUvUHDdA4lwQC] and Gabi Lewis of Magic Spoon. [https://magicspoon.com/?srsltid=AfmBOoqAx6uW3QFZgFr4S0uZEgC6JcbjgX2gFdCQw2WVCKtKDrD_xEj9]

Why Small Businesses Might Actually Be Winning the AI Race

Leaders from Salesforce, SaaStr, and Asymbl discuss how fast-growing businesses are using AI to sharpen decision-making and scale smarter.  The gap between where a business stands today and where it could be is often driven by manual processes, disconnected tools, and inefficient workflows. Inc. correspondent Shibani Joshi moderates a panel featuring Adam Alfano, president of global SMB and emerging product sales at Salesforce; Amelia Lerutte, chief AI officer at SaaStr; and Brandon Metcalf, founder and CEO of Asymbl to discuss how SMBs are scaling smarter with AI and unlocking significant gains.

Founder Group Chat: The Stories Behind the Labels

Almost every founder goes through a humbling experience when they launch their brand, and these founders in the food and beverage industry are no strangers to that.   In today’s Founder Group Chat, we’re talking origin stories with three founders:  * Ron Holloway’s Woofbowl [https://www.mywoofbowl.com/]: A food truck for dogs serving up delicious dog treats  * LeAnn Darland’s TALEA Beer Co. [https://www.taleabeer.com/?srsltid=AfmBOooGrwW69Fd5B_qY1cymWcOnud4dnv-QG2EKWPcgUvUHDdA4lwQC]: New York City’s first women-owned brewery  * Gabi Lewis’s Magic Spoon: [https://magicspoon.com/?srsltid=AfmBOoqAx6uW3QFZgFr4S0uZEgC6JcbjgX2gFdCQw2WVCKtKDrD_xEj9] Fun, high-protein, keto-friendly, gluten-free cereal  We’ll learn about how each of these founders overcame early challenges and their advice about launching a business.