Fwd: Need your help to reach high-impact startups

For those of you that have an affinity towards Massachusetts, here's a new competition for you.

Also worth checking out the MIT 100K, which is open to all competitors in the Fall.

Howie

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: John Harthorne <john@masschallenge.org>
Date: Fri, Apr 23, 2010 at 9:38 AM
Subject: Need your help to reach high-impact startups
To: hwr2@duke.edu

Global Startup Competition April 2010 MassChallenge launched a global startup competition on April 14 with an award pool of $1 Million. I am writing you to request your help to connect with high impact startups around the world so we can provide them with access to the resources they need to launch and grow. We are a non-profit designed to catalyze a startup renaissance by helping the world's best early stage startups launch and succeed immediately. What you can do to help We will send you an email with instructions on how startups can enter. Please forward that email to every high-impact startup you can reach. We are eager to help them win. Startups can enter online: http://masschallenge.org/ I have included more information about MassChallenge below my signature. You can also learn much more about MassChallenge on our website. Please let me know if you have additional questions after reviewing that information. Thank you, John Harthorne Founder & CEO, MassChallenge What is MassChallenge? MassChallenge is a non-profit started by entrepreneurs to help entrepreneurs. On April 14, we launched the first annual MassChallenge global startup competition with a $1M prize pool to accelerate the launch and success of high-growth, high-impact new businesses. We take no equity stake in entrants and place no restrictions on winners. Our sole goal is to help entrepreneurs win. We plan to run one competition annually. The 2010 submission deadline is June 11 and winners will be announced in early October. Every MassChallenge entrant receives access to training, feedback, PR and networking support via expert volunteers from partner organizations. Around 100 of the highest-potential entrants will receive ~3 months of intensive mentorship and other free resources in Massachusetts, including premium office space and targeted introductions to customers and funding sources. The very best startups will be identified by expert judges to receive cash awards toward launching their businesses along with enhanced PR and privileged access to top investors seeking to place seed capital to work in high-growth firms. MassChallenge is a non-profit leveraging both public and private funding. What kind of startups are we seeking? We support all startups, but we are primarily focused on finding high impact startups, i.e. disruptive businesses with the potential for signicant growth, revenue, profit and/or societal benefit. We support early stage startups, i.e. less than $500K of investment to date and less than $1M in annual revenue. The competition is open to anyone in the world with any startup in any industry, including both for-profit and not-for-profit startups. Selection of Committed Supporters Deval Patrick, Massachusetts Governor   Gregory Bialecki, Massachusetts Secretary of Housing and Economic Development Thomas M. Menino, Mayor of Boston Desh Deshpande, Founder Sycamore Networks, serial entrepreneur, avid coach for young entrepreneurs Josh Boger, Founder of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Colin Angle, Chairman of the Board, CEO and Co-Founder iRobot Jeff Taylor, Founder of Monster.com and Eons.com Carl Schramm, President and CEO, Kauffman Foundation Amy Stursberg, Executive Director, The Blackstone Charitable Foundation Leonard Schlesinger, President Babson College Susan Hockfield, President Massachusetts Institute of Technology Dennis Berkey, President Worcester Polytechnic Institute Jack Wilson, President University of Massachusetts Robert Brown, President Boston University Michael Greeley, Chair of NE Venture Capital Association, Founder of Flybridge Partners Hemant Taneja, Co-Chairman NE Clean Energy Council, Managing Director General Catalyst Partners Rich Kivel, Chairman MIT Enterprise Forum Ken Morse, Founding Managing Director, MIT Entrepreneurship Center Joe Hadzima, Founding Judge MIT $100K Entrepreneurship Competition Mike Roberts, Executive Director Arthur Rock Center for Entrepreneurship (Harvard Business School) Sara Spalding, Senior Director of Microsoft's New England Research and Development Center Tim Rowe, Founder and CEO Cambridge Innovation Center MassChallenge Team Background John Harthorne, Founder and Chief Executive Officer Senior Consultant, Bain & Co 2007 MBA, MIT Sloan School of Management Winner of 2007 MIT $100K Business Plan Competition (Robopsy) Granted 2007 Patrick J. McGovern Award for impact on quality and visibility of entrepreneurship at MIT Lead Organizer 2007 MIT $100K Global Startup Workshop World's premier conference on how to foster entrepreneurship via supportive infrastructure and catalytic events Akhil Nigam, Founder and President Senior Consultant, Bain & Co 2007 MBA, Harvard Business School Founding team member 100-person software startup with successful exit Valedictorian at Cooper Union College following full scholarship David Constantine, Founder and Chief Operating Officer Lead engineer and developer of medical devices 3 years experience in fast paced start-up environments B.S. Trinity College with major in Biomedical Engineering & minor in Russian Graduate of Phillips Academy in Andover, MA

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Howie Rhee, MBA
Managing Director, Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation
Fuqua School of Business, Duke University
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