Entrepreneurship is thriving at Iowa State University! On Tuesday, October 15, after five days of preliminary pitches, 30 ambitious, cross-disciplinary students took the stage for the Fall Startup Pitch Competition Finale. These student entrepreneurs brought incredible business ideas to the table in a culmination of one of the biggest pitch competitions the ISU Pappajohn Center for Entrepreneurship has ever hosted.
Since its inception in 2013, the Fall Startup Pitch Competition has grown in participation, with this year seeing 139 students—up from 105 last year—registering to pitch their innovative ideas and existing businesses. With the increase in participants came an increase in prize money, with a total of $21,000 awarded this year, including $3,000 in honorable mention awards added on the spot due to the exceptional quality of pitches!
The event, which has grown from two days of pitches in 2022 to six days of pitches this year, proves that creativity, entrepreneurship, and innovation are flourishing across campus. This year’s competitors pitched either new ideas (concepts still in the idea stage) or existing businesses (ventures with products, revenue, or customers). Each day, six students were selected to advance, leading to the pitch competition finale with 30 finalists competing for a cut of the prize money.
Judging the finale were David Spalding (Dean of the Ivy College of Business), Mitchell Kearns (Technology and Commercialization Director, Iowa SBDC), Dylan Kline (Director of Business Development, Ames Regional Economic Alliance), and Rebecca Runyon (former Director, Start Something LAS Academy). With so many great ideas on display, the judges faced a tough task, ultimately awarding prizes to 12 standout students.
2024 Fall Startup Pitch Competition Award Recipients:
Existing Businesses
1st Place – Jonathan Duron with TagLink
2nd Place – Zackry Brannen with Perfect Plantista
3rd Place – Andrew Walton with Walton Mini Golf
New Ideas
1st Place – Olivia Burrough with Algae and Potash Fertilizer
2nd Place – Alana Corwin with Apricity
3rd Place – Zachary Foote with DripDrop
Honorable Mentions: Mohamed Saidu (Medspot), Nathan Van Thomme (Halo Heat), Caleb Frostestad (UtterX), Hunter Garton (Soapify), David Brangoccio (Additive Acoustics), and Cam Reiman (NutriCubes).
For first place winner Olivia Burrough, a junior accounting major and first-time competitor, the experience was fantastic: “Through participating in this event, I grew my confidence in public speaking, and I also had the chance to listen to 29 of my peers present their ideas. Hearing their ideas and what motivates them was very fun. I can’t wait to continue researching my idea and hope to pitch it to potential investors locally!”
The 2024 Fall Startup Pitch Competition showcased entrepreneurial talent across Iowa State University, and we are incredibly proud of all our participants. A big thank you to our judges and to everyone who helped make this event a success!
For more details about the event or to learn about future opportunities to participate, visit isupjcenter.org.