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Pharrell Williams's Black Ambition Awards $50K to
Farm to Flame Energy
Pharrell Williams recently handed Carnegie Mellon alumnus and Farm to Flame Energy CEO Kwaku Jyamfi an oversized check for $50K at his Black Ambition Demo Day.
Jyamfi, also a James R. Swartz Entrepreneurial Fellow, won the money through Black Ambition, an organization Williams started to help close wealth and opportunity gaps in capital and resource access for Black founders. The prize money will help Farm to Flame continue to develop a sustainable biofuel cheaper than diesel by converting wood and agricultural waste into energy.
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| Velo AI Bike Light Cameras Help Ann Arbor
Understand Risks, Stresses for Cyclists
Cycling in Ann Arbor comes with significant variation in risk from street to street, and officials are digging into data to better understand that. The Downtown Development Authority recently teamed up with 2023 VentureBridge startup Velo AI, founded by Carnegie Mellon University alumnus Clark Haynes, PhD, which makes an AI-powered bike light and camera called Copilot that can detect surrounding vehicles, pedestrians and cyclists while analyzing their behavior in real-time.
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Carnegie Robotics Unveils Cutting-Edge Body-Worn Compute System for Military Use
Carnegie Robotics, a leader in advanced robotics systems and sensors, has announced the introduction of its military-grade, body-worn compute system called CardShark. CardShark is designed to empower soldiers with real-time AI processing capabilities in the field.
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|  | The 2023-2025 Swartz Fellows and Innovation Scholars visiting Accel last year
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The 2024-26 James R. Swartz Entrepreneurial Fellows and Innovation Scholars Prepare for the Annual Entrepreneurship Trek
Anticipation is growing as the 2024-26 cohort of graduate Swartz Fellows and undergraduate Innovation Scholars, twelve in each cohort, prepare to travel to California's Bay Area the week of January 6-10 for the annual Entrepreneurship Trek. Among the many visits planned throughout the week, the students will visit several Carnegie Mellon University alumni founder offices, multiple VC firms and attend networking events with alumni.
For the past several years, the students visit Accel, founded by Tepper School of Business alumnus Jim Swartz, to hear from Jim and attend a networking mixer hosted by the firm. Swartz Fellow and Innovation Scholar alumni are also invited to attend the networking event.
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41239APPLICATION DEADLINES
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Calling ALL Current CMU Student Entrepreneurs!
Registration opens today for the 2025 McGinnis Venture Competition, a platform exclusively for Carnegie Mellon University's community of student entrepreneurs. This competition brings together Carnegie Mellon's best and brightest student entrepreneurs to compete for $60K in investments. All participants receive crucial interaction with alumni entrepreneurs and venture capitalists, an opportunity to raise capital and valuable feedback about ventures.
New this year: Social Enterprise Prize Track!
Ready to create a company that makes an impact on the world's biggest challenges? The Swartz Center Social Enterprise Prize is a new competition at Carnegie Mellon University designed to empower students to develop entrepreneurial solutions for social and environmental challenges.
Learn more about the competition and hear from previous participants at an info session:
Info Session - January 8
Register
The round 1 deadline is January 14, 2025.
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| CONNECTS/START SMART LAW SEMINARS
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The CONNECTS Seminars have ended for the Fall semester and will resume
in January, 2025.
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| Can't make a CONNECTS? Watch on our YouTube channel.
Find out more and see the full schedule.
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The mission of 99 Tartans is to partner with the highest potential, early-stage CMU alumni companies and accelerate their success through access to capital and networks. Find out more.
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CMU ENTREPRENEURSHIP CLUBS
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| Click the images to see upcoming Club events!
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The CMU Tech & Entrepreneurship group aims to build a bridge between CMU students and alumni across the startup and tech continuum. With main chapters in NYC, Pittsburgh, and SF, we offer a range of in-person and online events and programming in the form of panels, workshops, founder/investor engagements, startup support, and socials to foster collaboration, innovation, and networking opportunities.
Join 7,000+ Tartans on our Slack workspace and mailing list for resources and updates on how you can engage in the community and CMU entrepreneurial ecosystem. Find out more and
get involved!
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The following companies help directly support our programming and entrepreneurs.
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| Pillsbury and Steptoe & Johnson, PLLC are holding office hours for the CMU Swartz Center for Entrepreneurship. The office hours are for any interested CMU graduate, undergraduate or alumni interested in entrepreneurship or connecting with members of the Swartz Center network.
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Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP
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Legal Services Weekly Virtual Office Hours with Matt Kirmayer
Mondays 1:00-3:00 PM ET (10-12 PT)
Matt Kirmayer of Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP, is offering office hours for newly established startup and emerging companies. Matt specializes in representing technology startups and emerging growth companies, assisting with entity formation, fundraising and overall growth needs. Startup companies with a founder who is a CMU graduate, undergraduate or alumni is eligible to register for
an appointment. Complete the Signup Form for a 30 minute session by the Thursday prior to your
desired appointment.
Contact Daria Stokes for office hours outside of these regular hours.
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| PATRON SPOTLIGHT
Founders Hub
Microsoft for Startups Founders Hub is a digital platform that provides free access to the latest AI tools and 1:1 guidance from experts to help founders solve challenges as they grow their business. We provide the right resources at the right time in a startup’s journey so founders can build faster and dream bigger. Sign up for Microsoft for Startups Founders Hub!
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HOW TO WORK OUT OF THE SWARTZ CENTER
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Swartz Center Education and Resources
No matter what phase of the entrepreneurship cycle you're in, there are programs and resources at the Swartz Center for Entrepreneurship that will take your idea to the next level. Find out more.
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Project Olympus Incubator Program
Want more help with finding product/market fit, developing your business model, making connections and attracting funding? Project Olympus will team you up with a business coach to develop a personalized ‘roadmap. Find out more.
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COMMUNITY OPPORTUNITIES/RESOURCES
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FIND OUT WHAT OUR PARTNERS ARE DOING
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Have startup news or opportunities to share? Have questions about the Swartz Center Weekly Bulletin? Send news, opportunities or questions to Sonya Ford, Program Manager.
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Carnegie Mellon University Swartz Center For Entrepreneurship
5000 Forbes Avenue | Pittsburgh, PA 15213-3890 |
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