Last time someone asked you “what would you do with a million dollars?” you were probably like “aw man, just one million? I can’t do anything with that, how about 1.1?” And then that person was like “Just kidding, you can’t have any.”
Last night MassChallenge actually gave away $1,100,000 in giant cardboard checks (aka cash money) at the Awards Ceremony. The Master of Ceremonies Orlando Jones (of MadTV and Make 7-Up Yours fame) welcomed Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick and a room full of passionate entrepreneurs, enthusiastic students and proud family members to the Boston Convention Center. The event was part networking, part entertaining and ALL INSPIRING. The NERD Team was lucky to be in attendance and honored to present an award to CoachUp, a finalist dedicated to helping students achieve their full potential in sports by connecting them with private coaches.
MassChallenge was born in the heart of the recession and laid the foundation for Boston’s Innovation District. It is a 4 month long accelerator competition that provides free office space, mentorship, and access to funding and media. Last night completed the 3rd year, holding on strong to the crown for largest startup accelerator competition in the world. Collectively the 236 start-ups that formed in the past 2 classes have already raised over $250M in outside funding and created 2,150 new jobs! (Recession? Nope.) This year’s class of 125 was selected from 1,237 applications, hailing from 35 countries, 36 states and every industry. Of those 125 teams, 26 got to pitch their company to an intimate crowd of 1,200+ last night. And the best part? Those 26 finalists were eligible for a piece of the $1.1M pie. YUM.
Everyone who participates in MassChallenge is a winner. Check out the list below to see which winners took home a piece of the pie. Big thanks to Alex Weaver for gathering and organizing this information in an easy to copy and paste manner.
Interested in participating in MassChallenge’s 4th class? Apply here. Interested in being a corporate sponsor like Microsoft NERD? Learn more here.
$100K DIAMOND WINNERS
Global Research Innovation & Technology (GRIT)
LiquiGlide
RallyPoint
Strong Arm Technologies, Inc.
$50K GOLD WINNERS
Bounce Imaging
BuysideFX
CoachUp
Dynamo Micropower
Guided Surgery Solutions
IntegralReach
Lab Automate Technologies Inc
Lovin’ Spoonfuls Inc
Ministry of Supply Inc.
NBA Math Hoops
Nordic Technology Group
Recovers.org
SILVER WINNERS
Akrivis Technologies
Black Island Wind Turbines
Capital Market Exchange
Cellanyx Diagnostics
HelmetHub Corporation
iAgree
Neumitra
OnDeckBiotech
Ubiqi Health
WindGap Medical Inc.
SIDECAR PRIZE WINNERS
The John W Henry Foundation: Prize for Social Impact
Lovin’ Spoonfuls Inc: $30K
NBA Math Hoops: $20K
Perkins’ School for the Blind: Assistive Technology Prize
Global Research Innovation & Technology (GRIT): $15K
PlenOptika: $10K
VenCorps: Prize for Greatest Potential to Positively Impact the City of New York
Rainbank: $15K
Bounce Imaging: $10K