The new age in entrepreneurial ventures is female-led.听From mental health campaigns and apps to data-driven analytics for content creators, the next wave of female-driven innovation was on full display Wednesday night at the New Venture Challenge (NVC) 15 Female Founders Prize Night听at Imig Music.
Many attendees braved the snow while others joined remotely for presentations from five ventures founded and developed by female-identifying entrepreneurs. Each team pitched their works in progress to a panel of judges, competing for a share of $10,000 in prize money.听
鈥淚t was such a pleasure to not only see young people be so innovative and creative, but to see these ideas come from women! If I could, I鈥檇 host this event every year,鈥� said听Barbara Brooks, CEO and founder of SecondAct|Women and host of the event.
First place: AI-driven data for social media influencers
Notice., the night's first place winner, was awarded $5,000 for their qualitative data platform for small-scale social media influencers. For $30 a month, content creators can receive feedback and suggestions after each tweet, Instagram photo or TikTok. Their AI sentiment analysis takes comments and user engagement to transform data into actionable suggestions to increase a creator鈥檚 influence online.
鈥淚 am so grateful to the judges and the incredibly inspiring teams I met last night,鈥� said Notice. team member and representative. 鈥淚t feels so good to finally sit in a room with other entrepreneurial women and speak about each of our innovating ideas in 鈥榬eal life.鈥欌��
The night鈥檚 judging panel not only evaluated the teams鈥� pitches and awarded prize money, but also gave constructive feedback to each of the teams on their presentations. Kanitha Heng Snow, director of strategic partnerships and marketing for Energize Colorado and co-founder of the Colorado Universities Innovation Council; Joanna Money, client manager at Innosphere and a consultant at IndustriaSpark; and Yoriko Morita, founder of Patents Integrated, asked hard-hitting questions for student pitches and encouraged all the teams to continue pursuing their passions after graduation.
鈥淚t has been a difficult two years for anyone and especially for young female entrepreneurs, so receiving the opportunity to just experience last night made me feel very seen, heard, respected and recognized for my and my team鈥檚 hard work,鈥� said Hopper, noting the great support and resources available to student founders at 澳门开奖结果2023开奖记录 and within the Boulder community.
Support student ventures at this year's April 12 championships
Additional prize winners
Second place and $3,000 was awarded to runner-up听Vitro3D, presented by co-founder and Leeds School of Business alumna听Camila Uzcategui, PhD. A听previous NVC participant, Vitro3D demonstrated the future of 3D printed dental aligners. These devices can be made in only an hour or two in the dentist鈥檚 office, saving both patients and providers money and time. The business made a major strategic pivot this past year, shifting听away from its original听focus on 3D-printed materials that mimic the human body for clinical oncology drug trials. Vitro3D also recently presented to potential investors at the 2022 Destination Startup庐听showcase, hosted by the university鈥檚 commercialization arm Venture Partners at 澳门开奖结果2023开奖记录.听
Third place and $1,000 went to Chembotix for their听robotic automation platform, which is designed to听dramatically speed up chemistry research and听development (R&D). This deep-tech venture is led by Kailey Shara, a PhD student at the ATLAS Institute. As a three-time NVC participant, Chembotix was named the first-place winner at last year's NVC Female Founder Prize Night and received Audience Favorite at the 2021 championships. Chembotix鈥檚 technology is based off the ChemBot, a low-cost chemical synthesis robot built to automate chemistry lab operations developed by Shara and Carson Bruns, PhD.
Digital Wellness x NoSo November, which placed fourth, hopes to market camps for at-risk kids negatively impacted by social media. By promoting an oasis away from social media pressures, Digital Wellness will help teens build self-esteem and develop skills to manage anxiety and social pressures. Led by Annie Bruns, teaching assistant professor with the ATLAS Institute,听Digital Wellness听aims to听help teens build self-esteem and develop skills to manage anxiety and social pressures听by promoting an oasis away from social media pressures.听In tandem, the NoSo 鈥淣o Social Media鈥� November campaign encourages everyone to take a month away from their phones and use that time to tend to personal wellness. With a few camps already under their belt, the team hopes to expand their services to other states.
Fifth place team The Connective looked to bring essential mental health services straight to college students with a free-to-use app. Unlike leading mental health apps on the market, The Connective is entirely free for college students struggling with balancing exams, their social life and work. This business has received mentorships from similar services including Calm and HeadSpace.
About the New Venture Challenge
Now in its 14th year, the New Venture Challenge has been 澳门开奖结果2023开奖记录鈥檚 premier, cross-campus entrepreneurial program and competition, giving aspiring entrepreneurs the chance to build a startup through outstanding support and mentorship. Teams from Wednesday night will continue competing in the NVC general track, ahead of the championship coming up on April 12, 2022.
Learn more at .听听 听 听 听
Winner Priscilla Hopper was awarded $5,000 towards her venture, Notice.
Camila Uzcategui, PhD, of Vitro3D presents her pitch to a packed auditorium
While judges deliberated, participants answered questions from the audience.
From left to right: Priscilla Hopper, Laura Orland, Annie Margaret, Madeline Freeman, Kailey Shara, Camila Uzcategui and Barbara Brooks