Hosted by MIT Enterprise Forum Cambridge, college entrepreneurs will mix it up at sixth annual battle for title of Best Student Startup
BOSTON, Nov. 02, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Boston area is home to some of the world’s most respected colleges and universities. It’s also a gravity well for startups that fuel the global innovation ecosystem.
Mix those two ingredients together and you have the MIT Enterprise Forum (MITEF) Cambridge’s Sixth Annual Beantown Throwdown, set for the night of November 13 at LogMeIn’s global headquarters in the heart of Boston’s Innovation District. Participating schools will include Babson, Berklee, Boston College, Boston University, Brandeis, Harvard, Mass College of Pharmacy, MIT, Tufts and Wentworth. Adding a new twist, this year’s competition will also include its first challenger from outside the U.S. – McGill University in Montreal, Québec.
Scheduled during Global Entrepreneur Week and attracting a standing-room-only crowd since its inception in 2012, the Beantown Throwdown invites participating schools to appoint one student-run startup to represent their respective institutions. A member from each team delivers a three-minute pitch to the audience, then immediately responds to three minutes of questions from an expert panel.
After all teams have presented, Beantown Throwdown attendees will serve as venture capitalists for the night by each “investing” $1 million dollars of MITEF Money in the companies that most impressed them. The startups that attract the largest investments of MITEF Money will be declared the winners. New to the event this year, the expert panel will also select the team it believes is destined for success. In addition to bragging rights, winners will also receive prizes donated by a range of organizations supporting the region’s innovation community.
This year’s participating schools and teams include:
- Babson College – LOU
- Berklee College of Music – Learnable.ai
- Boston College – Transeo
- Boston University – Pangissimo
- Brandeis University – A.I. Capital Management
- Harvard University – Hello Friend
- Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences – VRx
- McGill University – Nimbus
- Massachusetts Institute of Technology – AirWorks
- Tufts University – VASERA
- Wentworth Institute of Technology – Eleis Farm
Kicking off the night, the expert panel will open with a brief discussion on entrepreneurship, startups and innovation. Moderated by Kelly O'Brien, a seasoned technology reporter for the Boston Business Journal, panelists include: serial co-founder Nick Meyer, entrepreneur-in-residence at the Martin Trust Center for MIT Entrepreneurship and MIT lecturer; Wafaa Arbash, co-founder and CEO of WorkAround, and winner of last year’s Beantown Throwdown; and industry watcher Kelsey Alpaio, assistant editor at Innovation Leader, an organization co-founded by Boston Globe Innovation Economy columnist Scott Kirsner that helps change-makers in large organizations deliver real impact.
“The Beantown Throwdown is a perfect snapshot of what keeps our local innovation ecosystem thriving,” said Katja Wald, executive director, MIT Enterprise Forum of Cambridge. “Each year, we’re treated to an impressive portfolio of creative, hardworking teams with visions for the future and passions for developing products and services to turn those visions into realities. We also welcome the opportunity to bring dozens of student entrepreneurs together in a venue where they can meet one another while networking with investors, company executives and other valuable contacts.”
Beantown Throwdown 2018:
Tuesday, November 13, 2018
LogMeIn: 333 Summer St, Boston MA 02210
5:30pm-8:00 pm
Registration and more information is available online.
Interested in becoming a sponsor? Find out how here.
About the MIT Enterprise Forum Cambridge
The MIT Enterprise Forum Cambridge is the founding chapter and one of 27 worldwide chapters comprising the MIT Enterprise Forum, Inc. Celebrating its 40th anniversary of offering more than 40 programs and events annually that inspire innovation, MIT Enterprise Forum Cambridge initiatives facilitate critical one-on-one mentoring while providing team services that increase the skills and expertise necessary for entrepreneurs to succeed.