Press Release | Zerno is Named Winner of the 24th annual Chicago Innovation Awards

Immediate Release November 14, 2025

Chicago, IL— Zerno has been named one of the winners of the
24th annual Chicago Innovation Awards.

The winners were announced at this year’s event held on Thursday, November 13th at the UIC Forum.

The annual Chicago Innovation Awards is the Chicago region’s foremost recognition of the most innovative new products or services brought to market each year. Zerno is a coffee equipment company that makes handcrafted precision coffee grinders for home and commerical use.
 
“The Chicago region leads the charge in innovation across many industries” said Luke Tanen, President and CEO of Chicago Innovation. “The 2025 winners are solving unmet needs and making an impact in B2B, B2C, healthcare, industrial, food and beverage, advertising, sports, entertainment, electronics, agriculture, climate, energy, workforce development, health & human services, and journalism.”

"Receiving the Chicago Innovation Award marks a major milestone for Zerno. It reflects the work of a small but relentless team committed to reshaping what precision coffee equipment can be. Chicago has always been our home, and we’re proud to contribute to its legacy of world-class innovation." - Vel Genov, Co-Founder and CEO.

The winning organizations receive a variety of honors including the opportunity to ring the Nasdaq Bell in New York City. 315 organizations were nominated for this year’s awards. As a group, these nominees are responsible for generating over $4.2 billion in new revenues and creating over 2,300 jobs. The complete list of this year’s Chicago Innovation Award winners can be found at www.chicagoinnovation.com.
Chicago Innovation is supported by over fifty sponsors, including Diamond Sponsors Accenture, Molex, the UL enterprise and Gold Sponsor Comcast Business.

Contact Zerno: info@zerno.co
Chicago Innovation: Luke Tanen, luke@chicagoinnovation.com, 312-988-1516