Glo co-founder and CEO honored by his alma mater a decade after turning a classroom project into a global sensory toy company
STARKVILLE, Miss., May 22, 2026 – Mississippi State University’s Bagley College of Engineering has named Hagan D. Walker, co-founder and CEO of The Glo Companies, its 2026 Emerging Leader. The award recognizes a young alumnus whose early career reflects the college’s standard of innovation, leadership and service.
Walker earned a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering from the Bagley College in December 2015. Rather than accept an offer from Tesla Motors, he chose to pursue Glo full-time alongside co-founder and Chief Creative Officer Anna Barker, building on a concept that began as a classroom project at MSU.
“Everything about Glo traces back to Mississippi State, from the first prototype to the people who took a chance on us,” Walker said. “To be recognized by the college that gave me the tools to build this company is an honor I share with our entire team and with Starkville.”
Walker holds two patents for the liquid-activated LED technology that powers Glo Pals light-up sensory toys, and has patents pending on the newly released Light-Up Library collection of interactive children’s books. Since 2016, the company has sold more than 10 million products to customers in more than 60 countries through retailers including Walmart, Target, Nordstrom and Macy’s, and recently secured a licensing partnership with Sesame Street for three Elmo Light-Up Library books launching in 2026.
Under Walker’s leadership, The Glo Companies employs 34 people while maintaining profitability and Mississippi-based operations. The company was named Fast Company’s No. 2 Best Workplace for Innovators in 2025 and ranked No. 282 on the Financial Times list of the Fastest-Growing Companies in the Americas. Walker was named to the Mississippi Business Journal’s Top 40 Under 40 in 2025 and was recognized as one of Mississippi’s Top Entrepreneurs in 2018.
Beyond Glo, Walker serves as Chair of the Advocacy Committee for the American Specialty Toy Retailing Association, sits on the Goldman Sachs Small Business National Advisory Committee, and is past president of the Starkville Main Street Association. In 2021, he and his team partnered with local community members to transform the historic Rex Theatre into Glo’s headquarters through a $1.4 million renovation.
Walker is a licensed private pilot and lives in Starkville with his wife, Clara.
Read the Bagley College of Engineering announcement at bagley.msstate.edu.
About The Glo Companies
The Glo Companies is a children’s sensory toy and interactive content company headquartered in Starkville, Mississippi, with additional offices in Birmingham, Alabama. Founded in 2015, the company has sold more than 10 million products in more than 60 countries. Its brands include Glo Pals, the water-activated light-up bath toy; Glo Cubes; and Light-Up Library. Through Glo Fulfillment, the company also provides warehousing and fulfillment services to other brands. Learn more at glo.co.
Media Contact
Cecilia Wood, Communications Manager
pr@glo.co
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