$50K Venture Competition logo

Jabs Hall aerial photo

Virtual Event Details

The MSU $50K Venture Competition was a two-day virtual competition taking place Wednesday, April 7 from  4:00-6:00 pm (MDT) and Thursday, April 8 from 4:00-6:00 pm (MDT).

CONGRATULATIONS to the 2021 winners!

Traditional Venture Track: 

1st Place, $14,000: Resilient Computing

2nd Place, $6,000: SporeAttic

3rd Place, $4,000: TWEERL 

Judges' Choice Award, $1,000: Flux Motion

Slanted Digital Design Services, $5,000:  Medicine Mountain Scrub Company

 

Social Venture Track:

1st Place, $14,000: Foothold

2nd Place, $6,000: The Growing Health Tea Project

3rd Place, $4,000: Positivity Outward

Judges' Choice Award, $1,000: Round Table

Slanted Digital Design Services, $5,000: Positivity Outward

 

Finalists

The 14 finalists were selected from among 36 entries submitted by MSU students, faculty, staff and recent alumni.

Traditional Venture Track to pitch Wednesday, April 7:

  • Big Sky Mountain Products, building the world's most reliable, durable, and affordable climbing skins.
  • Flux Motion, Innovative new helmet inserts to greatly improve protection for athletes.
  • Ignis Technologies, the tools to modernize how firefighting organizations communicate and distribute information.
  • Medicine Mountain Scrub Company, producing sustainably sourced, ethically manufactured medical workwear for women.
  • Ninja Marmot Bicycle Company, high-performance solid-state full suspension bike frame.
  • Resilient Computing, novel computer technology that can survive space radiation.
  • SporeAttic, LLC, a commercial gourmet mushroom farm in Bozeman, MT.
  • TWEERL, connects friends and family in the real world - helping them easily explore activities and make plans together.

 

Social Venture Track to pitch on Thursday, April 8th  are:

  • Bonbon Bouye, which translates to “Baobab delight”, is a children’s peanut nutrition bar, produced by women who have small farms in Kaffrine, Senegal, in efforts to boost economic development and provide job opportunities.
  • Foothold, building high-quality, sustainable, and affordable prefabricated homes.
  • Positivity Outward, aims to help improve the mental health of rural youth by connecting them to service opportunities that encourage personal development and community improvement.
  • Roundtable, facilitating dialogue around racism in America to challenge and change the status quo within communities and political systems.
  • Success Prints, innovative products and services to help students excel in the transition to college.
  • The Growing Health Tea Project, creating and supporting a local tea marketplace in the Blackfeet Nation.

Eligibility

This competition was open to all MSU-Bozeman students (undergraduate and graduate), MSU-Bozeman faculty and staff, and recent MSU-Bozeman alumni (10 years or less). Venture Award winners (1st, 2nd, 3rd place) from previous MSU $50K competitions were not eligible to complete. The venture must not have received any institutional funding (Venture Capital or Angel) at this time, but grants such as SBIR/STTR or MSU funding is allowed.

*If you do not qualify to compete in this event, we have other services available and would love to connect with you. Please contact us at [email protected] or click here to schedule a meeting with the LaunchPad.

Prizes

This unique event will feature $50,000 in prize money as well as access to established area entrepreneurs, investors, and numerous network resources. 

Need Assistance?

Schedule an appointment with the LaunchPad for venture coaching: https://www.montana.edu/launchpad/schedule.html

 

Questions? Contact the LaunchPad: [email protected] or 406-994-4383.

PAST EVENTS:

Winning Ventures:

Traditional Venture Track: 

1st Place: OptimaLabs -- $15,000

2nd Place: NanoMagnetic Solutions -- $6,000

3rd Place: Agile Focus Designs -- $4,000

 

Social Venture Track:

1st Place: Freats -- $14,000

2nd Place: The Ant Network -- $6,000

3rd Place: Turtle Island Tales -- $4,000

Judges Choice Award: PATH -- $1,600

*official winners announcement: http://www.montana.edu/news/20038/

Click here for more information about this year's winners.

Finalists

Our 14 finalists: Agile Focus Designs, The Ant Network, Authors A.I., CuraVoice, Dugal Health, Freats LLC, Make Kin Milkweed Apparel, Nanomagnetic Solutions, Optima Labs Inc., PATH, SkyCivic, Sky Oro, Success Prints, and Turtle Island Tales. Click here for the full announcement.