McGuire Program Returns Arizona Collegiate Venture Competition Territorial Cup to UA
A venture team from the University of Arizona’s McGuire Entrepreneurship Program at the Eller College of Management, bested 10 other teams from around the state to win the grand prize at the fourth annual Arizona Collegiate Venture Competition (ACVC) this past Friday at the ASU Innovation Center at SkySong. The win marks the second consecutive year the Wildcats have taken top prize in the prestigious Phoenix competition.
The WorkSphere team, creators of a smartphone app that gives employers the ability to manage communication, accountability and productivity on one device, won the competition’s top prize of the Territorial Cup Trophy and $5,500 cash. The student team includes Daniel Dicochea, business management; Dante Egger, business management; Ivan Mendez, MIS; Timothy Wolfe, business economics; and Chaoying Yan, MIS.
In addition, Dicochea, the team’s CEO, was awarded a $10,000 scholarship to attend an intensive seven-week entrepreneurship experience at Draper University in Silicon Valley. Founded by legendary Silicon Valley venture capitalist Tim Draper in 2012, Draper University has created more than 250 startups that have raised more than $50 million, funded by some of the most prestigious investors, including Draper, Marc Andreessen and Marc Benioff.
“We’ve made a lot of progress, thanks to the curriculum and our mentors at the McGuire Program, but attending Draper will propel us even further,” Dicochea said.
Two other UA McGuire Entrepreneurship Program venture teams competed against WorkSphere and eight other teams from Arizona State University, Northern Arizona University (NACET) and Grand Canyon University for a piece of $60,000 in cash prizes, Draper University scholarships and the Territorial Cup trophy. McGuire Entrepreneurship Program student teams took home three of the top six prizes.
Bailiwic, a non-profit CRM platform, and Defiiant Technologies, creators of a wearable 3D camera and virtual reality social media platform, were both awarded Silver Level prizes of $3,500 each. Madeline Blank, CEO of Bailiwic, also received a $10,000 scholarship to Draper University.
Blank, who turned down a corporate job to pursue her career as an entrepreneur, attributes much of the development of Bailiwic to the McGuire Entrepreneurship Program.
“Eller has been pivotal in my career. They offered great resources and mentorship in marketing and entrepreneurship. I’ve really been blessed to have great resources at Eller,” she said.
Blank, a marketing major, teamed up with Fernando Garcia, business management, and Will Zandler, information science and technology, to create Bailiwic. Defiiant Technologies is Brian Herrera, optical sciences and engineering; Clayton Jeanette, systems engineering; Zachary Kane, marketing; and Kramer Kutschko, finance.
As part of the competition, each team participated in a Conscious Capitalism Workshop provided by MAC6 Leadership and will receive mentorship over the next 12 months.
Last year, UA McGuire Entrepreneurship program venture team Infinurja, a startup that designs, produces and sells products that use organic waste and natural biological processes to generate continuous power to homes, won the grand prize in the competition.
Students in the McGuire Program receive a year of intensive experiential education that engages them in the process of moving innovation from an early-stage idea to a sustainable investor-ready venture. The McGuire Entrepreneurship Program is part of the McGuire Center for Entrepreneurship at the University of Arizona’s Eller College of Management, but it is open to UA undergraduate and graduate students from all fields of study.
Meet the 2016 ACVC Teams
Arizona State University
- Let’s Chat – an on-demand foreign language learning mobile app. Individuals from foreign countries who wish to learn conversational English are matched with native English speakers in the United States based on their topics of mutual interest. People can talk via text, voice or video chat. Speakers can earn money for teaching people English.
- Synergyan – a bioscience company that focuses on molecular and nanoscale bioengineering and synergistic therapeutics with the goal of significantly improving therapeutic outcomes and patient care. Their first product, Welseal™, is a novel protein-based surgical adhesive biomaterial for rapid healing of soft tissue tears.
- Tech Dispatcher
University of Arizona
- Bailiwic - is a simple, powerful donor analytics software solution. Their motto: “Engage your donors. Change the world.”
- Defiiant Technologies – this startup has a new take on social media, and it’s in 3D. They developed a wearable virtual reality camera and social media platform where your friends can watch you go anywhere.
- WorkSphere– is a mobile management software that can improve employee accountability, communication and productivity while reducing costs.
Grand Canyon University
- Near - is a geolocation social media application that gives users the power to search and connect with other users that are in their area, even as close as ½ mile.
- Storage Together - aims to be the Airbnb of self-storage. Its online and mobile platform uses the shared market economy model to logistically connect those who need storage (storers) and individuals with open square footage (hosts) in their communities.
- TailSpace - is an intelligent digital advertising platform that attaches to the back of semi-trucks. This display offers a geolocation and time based way for effective advertising.
Northern Arizona University
- Wild Gear Warehouse – is an outdoor online retail and travel community that aims to redesign the connection of adventuresome souls.
- PayUp – a platform that will simplify financial dilemmas of roommates sharing expenses.
About the sponsors and partners:
MAC6 is Building Better Communities to Eliminate Extreme Poverty. We Advocate Capitalism as a Force for Good. Our niche is conscious business leaders with company revenue of $250K to $30M that are in need of one or more of the following to grow their business; financial capital, intellectual capital, office / light industrial space. We are self-funded investors, a Leadership Academy for High Performing Teams and advocates of Conscious Capitalism®. For more information visit www.mac6.com.
Hool Coury Law represents entrepreneurs and investors in Arizona's most prolific fast growing companies. The firm provides comprehensive support for entrepreneurs and investors in launching and scaling companies with big ideas. For more information visit www.hoolcourylaw.com.
Draper University provides an unconventional world-class program for the brightest young entrepreneurs from around the world. Draper University accepts select entrepreneurs between the ages of 18-28. The Draper University curriculum offers an immersive seven week program for entrepreneurs that combines lectures from all-stars in various fields, experiential and creative activities that challenge the student’s creativity and imagination, networking opportunities with classmates and mentors, and other surprises. To-date, Draper University has created over 250 startups that have raised more than $50 million, funded by some of the most prestigious investors, including Marc Andreessen, Tim Draper, and Marc Benioff. For more information visit www.draperuniversity.com.