PitchTexas

ARE YOU READY TO #PITCHTEXAS?
The University of Texas at Austin's SXSW Graduate Startup Pitch Competition
March 8, 2019 @ SXSW
$50,000 in Cash Prizes
Applications Open January 7, 2019
TIMELINE
See below for all of the important PitchTexas 2019 dates.

Submission Portal Open
January 7, 2019
Submission Portal Closed
January 18, 2019 by 5pm (CST)
Application Deadline
January 25, 2019 by 5pm (CST)
Semifinalists Announced
February 1, 2019 by 5pm (CST)
Semi-Final Round
March 8, 2019, 9–11am (CST)
Finalist Round
March 8, 2019, 5–6pm (CST)
ABOUT
The University of Texas at Austin's 2019 SXSW PitchTexas Competition for Graduate Students

The University of Texas at Austin is proud to present the 6th Annual 2019 SXSW Startup PitchTexas Competition—with prize money up to $50,000.

In an opportunity of a lifetime, startups led by graduate students from across the country will compete to impress and win over the savvy entrepreneur and venture capitalist judges for up to $50,000 in cash prizes, bragging rights, and a chance to impress and inspire the SXSW crowd. This is the 6th year for the PitchTexas competition at SXSW, started and run by the Texas McCombs MBA Entrepreneurship Society, a graduate student organization at The University of Texas at Austin McCombs School of Business.

The top 16 PitchTexas applicants will compete at preliminary rounds on March 8, 2019, at Robert B. Rowling Hall on The University of Texas at Austin campus. Later in the day, four finalists will take the stage at Startup Village @SXSW and pitch in front of the audience, field tough questions from the judges, and do their best to win the SXSW 2019 PitchTexas.

Cash Prizes
$50,000 in cash prizes—1st prize $35,000, 2nd prize $10,000, 3rd prize $5000. Winners will be announced and cash prizes awarded at the end of the competition. Finalists will also benefit from exposure at the official event during SXSW's Startup Village track.

Applications are open January 7, 2O19 and are due by 5 pm CST, January 25, 2019. The top 16 applicants will be notified by 5 pm on February 1, 2019.

Check out the winners from PitchTexas 2018!
1st Place - Lapovations is redefining laparoscopy by developing innovative medical devices that minimize invasiveness, simplify procedures, and improve surgical outcomes.

2nd Place - Brandefy is an online platform that tells shoppers when the store brand/generic product is the same as the name brand, helping shoppers save time and money.

3rd Place - Leaf is a blockchain money transfer platform for refugees.
EVENT DETAILS
WHEN
March 8, 2019

WHERE
Preliminaries will be held at Robert B. Rowling Hall in the morning. Finalists will present at SXSW's Startup Village starting at 5 pm. at SXSW Interactive, at the Hilton Austin Downtown. Finalists will receive a SXSW Interactive badge.

SCHEDULE
8:15–9 am
Breakfast and check-in

9–10:30 am
Preliminary Round - Four teams per room given 15 minutes each. The format is a 5-minute presentation, 5 minute Q&A, and 5-minute judges' feedback. One finalist selected per room.

11am–Noon
Lunch with contestants and judges.

5–6 pm
Final Round. Judges will select the winner as the team they would most likely want to invest in based on the potential of the idea to be successful, the presentation, and professionalism of the team.
Notice: This schedule may be subject to change.

PRESENTATION REQUIREMENTS AND FORMAT
Team Structure
For a team to be eligible to compete, at least one current founder who is a current graduate student (two maximum) must present in Austin for the competition on March 8, 2019, during SXSW. Businesses with more than $500,000 in previous funding or over $100,000 in MRR will not be considered for the competition. There is no specific vertical requirement for startups to compete. We accept early-stage ideas from all categories.

Preliminaries
Presentation: 5 minutes, Q&A: 5 minutes, Feedback: 5 minutes

Finals
5-minute presentation (hard cut-off) with 5 minutes Q&A

During check-in for preliminaries, we will randomly assign each team a room and time for their presentation. One team from each room will advance to the final round.
PARTNERS

Thank you to our event partners:
McCombs School of Business
Cockrell School of Engineering
Graduate School

Special thanks to:
Texas McCombs MBA Entrepreneur Society
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ARE YOU READY TO #PITCHTEXAS?

The University of Texas at Austin's SXSW Graduate Startup Pitch CompetitionMarch 8, 2019 @ SXSW$50,000 in Cash Prizes

TIMELINE

See below for all of the important PitchTexas 2019 dates.

Submission Portal Open

Submission Portal Closed

Application Deadline

Semifinalists Announced

Semi-Final Round

Finalist Round

ABOUT

Check out the winners from PitchTexas 2018!

EVENT DETAILS

PARTNERS

Thank you to our event partners:McCombs School of BusinessCockrell School of EngineeringGraduate School Special thanks to:Texas McCombs MBA Entrepreneur Society

GET IN TOUCH

CONTACT US

The University of Texas at Austin's SXSW Graduate Startup Pitch Competition
March 8, 2019 @ SXSW
$50,000 in Cash Prizes

Thank you to our event partners:
McCombs School of Business
Cockrell School of Engineering
Graduate School

Special thanks to:
Texas McCombs MBA Entrepreneur Society