Student teams that compete at CMU VC are offered a unique value proposition: exposure, funding, and feedback. Early-stage companies require significant prototyping funds before a working product can materialize. In order to help teams grow from the experience, the CMU VC aims to objectively reward innovative teams with capital, services, and constructive feedback from experts in a variety of technical and legal domains.
We believe
in great ideas.
Abby Huang, Duke University 2023 Graduate, Launches Headquarters in New York!
"Dime, a venture-backed startup originally founded by Abby Huang at Duke University and now headquartered in New York, has successfully tapped into the Gen Z and university market, revolutionizing how businesses engage with the upcoming generation of consumers."
- Yahoo News
What is CMU VC?
For thirteen years, under the Undergraduate Entrepreneurship Association, CMU Venture Challenge has been bringing together brilliant students to launch their ideas, technologies, and talent.
CMU VC offers student entrepreneurs a strong network of resources, including mentorship from serial entrepreneurs, venture capitalists, attorneys, and business leaders. Finalists are invited on an all-expenses paid trip to Pittsburgh for the opportunity to pitch their ventures to a panel of distinguished judges and VCs, hear from industry-leading speakers, network with fellow innovators, and truly push their creations to the limit.
$50,000+
in capital funding distributed
Student entrepreneurs compete to secure monetary prizes to empower their ventures.
45
startups successfully backed
Finalists gain access to a network of resources, including mentorship from industry experts.
15+
schools represented across the U.S.
VC attracts aspiring students from renowned academic institutions like Harvard, MIT, and Stanford.
demo day attendees
200
VCs, students, faculty, and other startup founders attend demo day to support and network.
2024 Speakers
Blake Scholl is an alumnus of Carnegie Mellon University's School of Computer Science, where he completed a Bachelor of Science degree with honors. Scholl's journey in the tech industry included pivotal roles at Amazon and Groupon, showcasing his skills in software engineering and product development. In 2014, he embarked on a bold venture by founding Boom Supersonic, driven by the vision of making supersonic air travel widely available and transforming the way we connect across the globe. As the CEO of Boom Supersonic, Scholl applies his deep understanding of technology and business to lead the company towards achieving faster-than-sound travel, aspiring to significantly reduce flight times and make the world more accessible
Lucy Guo is a notable entrepreneur and software engineer, recognized for co-founding Scale AI, a leading artificial intelligence company specializing in data annotation for machine learning algorithms. Before her entrepreneurial journey, Guo demonstrated her technical prowess at companies like Snapchat and Quora, contributing significantly to their product development. At Scale AI, she played a crucial role in the company's rapid growth and success, which involved providing high-quality training data for AI applications in various industries, including automotive and technology. Her achievements have positioned her as an influential figure in the tech industry, particularly in the AI and machine learning sectors, showcasing her blend of technical expertise and business acumen.
Blake Scholl
Lucy Guo
