Startup Madness
It’s well known that we are “mad” about entrepreneurship and basketball in the Triangle, so Startup Madness, which took place on Wednesday at Bay 7 in American Tobacco, was the perfect combo for an event to showcase the entrepreneurial activity going on in the Triangle and around the southeast.
Tee Gee
Startup Madness was a bracket style competition where startups from universities throughout the US — such as UVA, University of Miami, UNC, Duke and NC State competed by giving two minute pitches.
The pitches ranged from “the smartest stuffed animal in the universe” named TeeGee , which is a stuffed animal powered by a parent’s iPhone or iPod Touch, to Mushroom Mountain, which (as far as I understood) uses mushrooms in a method similar to that of pesticides. In somewhat unrelated but yet similar line of business, the company also makes mushroom beer, which was a big hit with the Startup Madness crowd.
After the “Elite 8″ gave their pitches, two winners were announced – an overall winner and a North Carolina winner – who were each awarded $5,000 checks.
Mark Slaughter of Cohealo accepting his check
The overall winner was Cohealo, a company that helps to create system-wide collaboration within hospital systems, allowing for cost-sharing of capital assets.
NC IDEA also sponsored a North Carolina prize, which was awarded to a Duke-based startup, Neurospire, which uses neuroscience and brain imaging technology in market research.
The entrepreneurs celebrated and schmoozed after the competition at Fullsteam Brewery, a fitting end after a hard day’s work (or pretty much any day for that matter).
All in all it was a great event that showcased the ideas and innovations that are emerging out of some of the best universities in the US in a region that continues to be touted as one of the most innovative in the US.