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| Join Us for the Final Round Celebration on March 19!
Help cheer the final round graduate and undergraduate teams to victory! Attend the final round celebration on Tuesday, March 19, 2024. The event will also be live streamed to allow for international and remote community members to attend. Find out more.
Schedule of Events:
1:00 - 5:00 PM - Final Round Team Presentations
5:30 - 7:00 PM - Award Ceremony & Networking Reception
Location:
Carnegie Mellon University Swartz Center, Tepper Quad Bldg., 4765 Forbes Avenue, 3rd Level
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 | This year's McGinnis Competition is in loving memory of Jerry McGinnis, founder of Respironics.
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| RET Ventures Leads $7.5M Series A in Conservation Labs to Interpret Sound for Water Conservation and
Machinery Maintenance
Conservation Labs, an artificial intelligence (AI) company that developed a groundbreaking platform that decodes audio data into actionable insights in the built environment to reduce carbon emissions and energy and water usage, today announced that it has raised a $7.5M Series A funding round. The round was led by RET Ventures’ Housing Impact Fund and included the participation of Sustain VC. Carnegie Mellon University alumnus Mark Kovscek is founder and CEO.
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Carnegie Mellon Founded Holy Cow Productions' New Game to Join PlayStation's Incubator Program—India
Hero Project
Holy Cow Productions, co-founded by Goutham Dindukurthi, ETC 2010 alumnus and Vinay Ramakrishna, have announced that its newest game, Requital: Gates of Blood, has been chosen to be a part of PlayStation’s incubator program–India Hero Project. The game is one of five games from India to be accepted into PlayStation's incubator program. Holy Cow Productions is an independent game development studio located in the Silicon Valley of India, Bangalore.
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| Adam Paulisick Featured on Apple Podcast Dealing with Mental Health and Entrepreneurship
Adam Paulisick, CMU Swartz Center EIR, adjunct professor and CEO of SkillBuilder.io, was recently featured on a podcast: The Ripple Effect with Stephanie Romero, Ed.D., discussing mindfulness and the transformative concept of "welcoming". Adam shares his journey, revealing how the practice of "welcoming"—accepting every moment and challenge with openness and readiness—has been a game-changer in his approach to entrepreneurship and personal fulfillment.
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|  | Bugra Akcay (left), Ugar Kaner (center) and Hooman Radfar (right)
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Collective Selected by Forbes As One of America's Best Startup Employers
Financial solutions company, Collective, has been named by Forbes as one of America's Best Start-up Employers again this year. Collective is co-founded by Carnegie Mellon ECE alumnus Hooman Radfar, Ugar Kaner and Bugra Akcay. In a recent Linkedin post, Hooman stated, "So proud of our amazing team for continuing to invest to make our workplace better and better, all while continuing our rapid growth".
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| JJ Xu, Founder of TalkMeUp, Announces
Latest Blog and Webinars
JJ Xu, founder of the AI communication coach TalkMeUp, has announced the latest blog for the company, "Lessons Learned About Persuasive Communication Skills Improvement in 2023". This is a must-read for anyone looking to elevate their communication skills. Read the blog here.
Check out the archived blogs and webinars.
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Call for Beta Test Users - MyTABA
myTABA, co-founded by Tepper School of Business alumnus Ben Oppenheim, makes travel planning a breeze. The company offers personalized recommendations tailored to your interests, helping you uncover the most thrilling experiences and hidden gems at your dream destinations. No more sifting through endless search results or settling for generic suggestions—myTABA is your ultimate
travel companion!
The founders are fine-tuning the beta version of the platform. If you love traveling, but wish your travel planning experience could be better, they want to hear from you. You will have a chance to test the myTABA platform and share your feedback, ideas and desires. Your valuable input will help to shape myTABA into the ultimate travel tool you've been waiting for.
Sign up to test myTABA!
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UBS Family Business Leadership Series talk with
Helen Hanna Casey, CEO, Hanna Holdings
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Join the CMU Swartz Center for its next UBS Family Business Leadership Series talk with Helen Hanna Casey. Helen Hanna Casey has been a Real Estate industry leader for more than four decades, repeatedly being named the Most Powerful Woman in Real Estate by the Swanepoel Power 200 report for the past ten years, as well as being recognized as a Top ten Industry Leader overall. She was the first person to be named a Newsmaker by RISMedia’s Real Estate magazine, has been named 100 Most Influential People in Real Estate list by Inman News and was honored with the 2019 Women of Influence Career Achievement Award from The Pittsburgh Business Times.
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| Apply to the VentureBridge Summer Accelerator
by March 29!
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The VentureBridge Summer Accelerator is a 12-week summer program that helps CMU startups by providing funding ($25K investment from CMU), speakers, workshops, 1:1 support, and introductions to mentors and advisors.
Eligible startups must have at least one Carnegie Mellon University affiliated alumni founder that is full time on the company. All applications must include a pitch deck and a two-minute pitch video.
The final deadline to apply is March 29, 2024. Send questions to Aleks Petkov, Program Manager.
Register for the next information session on March 4, 2024.
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|  | 2023 Innovation Scholars visiting BCV Labs during the 2024 Silicon Valley Trek
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Apply for the 2024-26 Undergraduate Innovation Scholars Program by April 5!
The CMU Swartz Center has opened applications for the next cohort of undergraduate Innovation Scholars. This prestigious program fosters innovation and entrepreneurship aimed at increasing the number of successful startups initiated by or involving Carnegie Mellon University’s undergraduate students from across campus. Students in their junior year are eligible to apply.
Applications close on April 5, 2024 at 11:59 PM ET. Early applications are encouraged. Find out more.
Register for the next virtual info session on March 21, 2024 | 12:30 PM ET
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Apply for the Innovation Commercialization Fellows Program by April 15!
The Swartz Center for Entrepreneurship has opened applications for the 2024-2025 Innovation Commercialization Fellows program. Graduate students and postdoctoral fellows working with faculty investigators and are interested in driving the commercialization efforts for their Carnegie Mellon University research-based startup are eligible to apply.
This is a year-long program that will begin on July 1, 2024. Along with cohort-based educational workshops and expert one-on-one mentoring, Fellows will receive a $50K contribution from the Swartz Center, contingent on a $50K match from another source, to support them while they focus on the commercialization process.
For further details on the program and eligibility, register for an upcoming information session on March 14; 2:00 pm ET and March 26; 10:00 am ET.
Apply by April 15, 2024 at midnight ET. Send questions to Melanie Simko.
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| CONNECTS/START SMART LAW SEMINARS
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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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|  3/14
REGISTER
CONNECTS: Building A Startup From Zero to One: Operations and Fundraising (Mar Hershenson, Pear VC)
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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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| | CMU UEA: Venture Challenge
Demo Day, March 23!
Register
Join the UEA for the final round of pitches at the CMU Venture Challenge, the premier annual event of the Undergraduate Entrepreneurship Association. Special guest speakers are: Lucy Guo, co-founder of Scale AI and founder of Passes, and Blake Scholl, founder of Boom Supersonic. See pitches from 12 finalist teams and network with other entrepreneurial-minded people at this can't-miss event. Lunch will be provided!
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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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Legal Services Weekly Office Hours
Sign up for weekly office hours.
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| PATRON SPOTLIGHT
Microsoft for Startups 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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