Featured Competitions
We encourage all innovators and entrepreneurs to explore opportunities presented by the following competitions.
Competitions
CLEANTECH OPEN
A national organization to find, fund and foster entrepreneurs with big ideas that have led to businesses in the six fields of: energy generation; energy efficiency; green building; air, water & waste; transportation and smart power. The Cleantech Open addresses today’s urgent energy, environmental, and economic challenges and works to provide infrastructure, expertise, and relationships that turn these big ideas into the most successful cleantech companies on the planet.
Minnesota Cup
MISSION: The Minnesota Cup is an annual competition that seeks to support and develop the next generation of entrepreneurs with breakthrough ideas.
DIVISIONS: There are six divisions BIOSCIENCES, CLEAN TECH & RENEWABLE ENERGY, GENERAL, HIGHTECH, SOCIAL ENTREPRENEUR, STUDENT
ENTRY GUIDELINES: Anything from an idea to a company less than 5 years old and generating less than $1 million can be entered in the competition. Entries can be high tech or no tech, a service or a product; every idea counts!
IDEA Competition
September 2012 will mark the beginning of the fifth year of the IDEA Competition in Northwest Minnesota. Since its launch, the competition has awarded over $90,000 to Northwest Minnesota entrepreneurs. The purpose of the competition is to assist the most promising local entrepreneurs in the commercialization of innovative products, processes and deliveries by connecting them to the best resources available along with access to capital that can help them launch a successful venture. The IDEA Competition is looking for people with good ideas and a solid plan for turning those ideas into profitable businesses in Northwest Minnesota.
IDEA has been made possible by the generous financial contributions of the following: 360° Manufacturing and Applied Engineering Center of Excellence, Blandin Foundation, Bremer Banks of Crookston and Warren, Midwest Minnesota Community Development Corporation, Northwest Minnesota Foundation, Northwest Regional Small Business Development Center, and University of Minnesota, Crookston.
TiE CONS
TiE CONS are business competitions held around the globe at the site of several of the TiE Global Chapters. All TiE Members may compete in these independent competitions that enable the showcasing of ones early stage business to various geographic audiences throughout the year. Visit www.tie.org to see the many, often sector specific, TiE CONS in India and around the globe. Charter Membership in TiE Minnesota enables one to experience unparalleled access to these innovation settings and the people behind them.
The premier North American TiE Con is TIE CON SILICON VALLEY held in May. It features six competition and exhibit categories: Mobile, Social/Internet, Cloud/Software, Energy, Life Sciences, and Service Providers.
Minnesota Inventors Congress
MISSION: The Minnesota Inventors Congress is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization dedicated to stimulating economic development by supporting innovation and inventors at all phases of the invention development process.
Each year in June, the Minnesota Inventors Congress is held, drawing inventors from across the state and nation, who come to display their inventions and to attend the forums.
New products create new markets and new markets retain and create jobs. By providing year round access to knowledgeable staff, the Minnesota Inventors Congress helps inventors learn the product development process, so they spend their time and money in the right places with the right companies. We connect inventors with the information and experts to help them get their products into the marketplace., For further information, contact: 507-627-2344
Project Skyway
Project Skyway, the vision of Cem Erdem who together with Casey Allen, hosts two accelerator cohorts of up to 10 companies each during the year. It is Minnesota’s first seed-stage tech startup accelerator program for motivated entrepreneurs. The program will build connections among entrepreneurs, mentors, investors, and other innovation hubs, and bring them together both online and in physical space. 2010 was Project Skyway’s first year with one cohort and a graduating class of five companies.