Boldbrain Startup Challenge - the heat is on

Image from the finals in 2017
Image from the finals in 2017

Institutional Communication Service

12 November 2018

On November 8, the 20 “early stage” startups and ideas taking part in the Boldbrain competition – a joint initiative of Fondazione Agire and USI Start-Up Promotion Center – completed the accelerator program. On December 3, the jury of experts will select among these the most innovative ideas, which will then be entered into the final on December 4, in the USI Aula Magna (Lugano campus).

The acceleration programme, which kicked off at the end of August, provided startuppers with useful tools and advice to help them bring their ideas to the market as soon as possible, thus creating value for the regional economy and for the innovation ecosystem in Ticino. During the past three months, the young entrepreneurs have been followed by coaches - experts and professionals in the various fields of expertise - and have attended three thematic workshops focused on a number of key subjects for the development of a start-up company: (1) Business model and value proposition, (2) Finance and investment, (3) Pitch training, and (4) Intellectual property.

The 20 startups currently competing for the final phase come from very different sectors, such as the construction sector with proposals for new and innovative insulating windows, the hotel sector with an app to facilitate the management of direct bookings, and also in the food sector with innovative solutions for the recovery of food waste or for the search and location of the preferred foodtrucker. This diversification confirms the positioning of the Boldbrain Startup Challenge as a horizontal accelerator that does not focus on a single sector of activity but on innovation and scalability.

The Boldbrain Startup Challenge is the evolution of the previous StartCup Ticino, with the intent of offering 20 new start-ups a three-month training course (accelerator) that will help them to forge an identity and to pursue their business on solid grounds. The initiative is supported by the Department of Finance and Economy of the Canton of Ticino (DFE), with the important contribution of EFG Bank. At the final ceremony on December 4, the five most promising ideas will be awarded, including cash prizes totaling 120,000 francs and other services worth over 50,000 francs - including a full scholarship for the USI Executive MBA of USI.

 

Registrations are open until November 30 to attend the final event and participate in the public vote through e-voting: https://boldbrain.cpstartup.ch/it/node/3

 

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