ACC InVenture Prize

The LaunchPad is now accepting applications through Feb. 1 for the 2023 Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) InVenture Prize. The ACC InVenture Prize is a televised student start-up pitch competition open to teams from the 15 colleges and universities in the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) Academic Consortium. The ACC InVenture finals feature a $30,000 prize package and are open to undergraduate students or students who have received their undergraduate degree within the past year and who are the original creators, inventors or owners of the intellectual property underlying their invention. It will be held at Florida State University on March 29 – 30, 2023 and televised live by PBS.

Syracuse University student startup teams are invited to submit an online application to participate in the Syracuse campus qualifier, which will be held in Bird Library on Feb. 10  from 2 to 5 p.m. Up to 10 teams will be selected to participate in the campus qualifier. The winner will receive an all-expense paid trip to participate in the PBS-televised event in Florida in late March. Campus qualifier finalists will also be invited to apply for LaunchPad Innovation Fund grants available through a gift to SU Libraries.

Past Syracuse contestants who participated in the final five live PBS-broadcast included: Kate Beckman ’17 G’18 (Newhouse School) founder of FreshU; Kayla Simon ’19 (College of Engineering and Computer Science) and Elizabeth Tarangelo ’19 (College of Engineering and Computer Science), co-founders of In-Spire; Alec Gillinder ’20 (College of Visual and Performing Arts’ School of Design) and Quinn King ’20 (VPA School of Design), co-founders of MedUX; and Russell Fearon ’20 G’21 (College of Engineering and Computer Science) and Ricardo Sanchez ’21 (VPA School of Design), co-founders of SugEx; Noah Mechnig-Giordano ’23 (combined College of Engineering and Computer Science and Whitman MBA five-year program).

LaunchPad mentors – including past competition winners — are available to work with Syracuse innovators and inventors to help prepare for the competition.

The ACC InVenture Prize finals is a collaborative effort by institutional leadership from the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC). It represents an opportunity to stimulate undergraduate entrepreneurial activity and increase student-faculty engagement, to celebrate and highlight the exceptional creativity and ingenuity of our students, and to inspire a greater sense of camaraderie across the conference.

LaunchPad Executive Director Linda Dickerson Hartsock has served as a steering committee member for the competition since its inception. Other participating institutions include:

• Boston College
• Clemson University
• Duke University
• Florida State University
• Georgia Institute of Technology
• North Carolina State University
• University of Louisville
• University of Miami
• University of North Carolina
• University of Notre Dame
• University of Pittsburgh
• University of Virginia
• Virginia Tech
• Wake Forest University