Montana State University reported on May 5 that its students, alumni, post-doctorate researchers and faculty earned top honors at the $100K Venture Competition finals held in MSU’s Inspiration Hall on April 21. The event, hosted by the Jake Jabs College of Business and Entrepreneurship and the MSU LaunchPad, is in its seventh year as a key funding opportunity for entrepreneurs seeking support to build and grow their businesses.
The competition is significant for fostering innovation among participants from Montana State University, University of Montana, Montana Tech and affiliated campuses. Teams affiliated with MSU won the highest awards this year. Nine finalists were selected from more than 50 applicants after a semi-final round featuring 15 strong contenders.
“The MSU venture competition was such a great experience. Preparing a pitch for the competition was incredibly useful, and the advisers at MSU’s Launchpad provided guidance throughout the process that I found really helpful,” said Lauren Jonas, founder of Beeotics. “From the competition, I now have funding to move forward with crucial experiments to advance my product.”
Winners were announced across three categories: Deep Tech/University Based Research; Social Impact; and Traditional Venture. In Deep Tech/University Based Research, first place went to Beeotics for its honeybee immune system product; Barley Bloom took second with barley-based food ingredients; Ocka received honorable mention for targeted educational instruction tools. For Social Impact ventures, Empress of Ghee won first prize aiming to make grass-fed ghee widely available; indelible.Blob placed second with image authenticity technology; Coincident Systems earned honorable mention for rural healthcare coordination infrastructure. In Traditional Venture category, TENT secured first place as an online marketplace for handcrafted outdoor gear; COPILOT by Big Sky Dynamics came second with an AI cockpit adviser for pilots; Modulus received honorable mention for durable daily carry bags.
The judging panel included Tanaya Carter (First Western Trust), Jim Cole (PricewaterhouseCoopers), Teresa Harting (Foundant Technologies), Steve Krenzer (former Groupon/Experian executive) and Taylor Newill (Oracle). The Launchpad supports entrepreneurship across all disciplines at Montana State University by providing mentoring opportunities and resources.
Montana State University leads in research funding in the state with annual expenditures exceeding $288 million according to the official website. The university also ranks among the top five percent of global universities per rankings from Center for World University Rankings and leads within Montana according to its official website. With about 17,165 students evenly split between residents and nonresidents—and as Montana’s land-grant institution—MSU focuses on research, education and community outreach efforts addressing key challenges while serving both local communities through volunteerism as well as broader regions beyond state borders according to its official website.