It’s been a terrific BPC this year: We had a record 104 student teams from 11 universities apply to participate in the competition. Over 140 judges devoted a full weekend the beginning of April to screen that group down to 37 teams—and provide feedback. At the Investment Round in late April, those 37 teams pitched their hearts out to 250 judges at Bell Harbor—and 16 advanced to the next round. Yesterday the Sweet 16 teams made their full presentations to another set of judges.  Five highly credible teams made it to the Final Round, where they presented to seven entrepreneur judges.

The next generation of start-ups are focused on bringing low-cost solutions for clean drinking water to the developing world, providing fresh produce and pantry staples to urban food deserts, producing resistant starch from potatoes that will lower glycemic index response in people with diabetes, and developing new medical imaging technology capable of replacing CT and MRI for patients with heart disease and cancer. We would like to thank the judges, sponsors, volunteers, faculty, and our colleagues at Bainbridge Graduate Institute, Evergreen State College, Seattle Pacific University, Seattle University, Shoreline Community College, University of Idaho, University of Washington, UW Bothell, Washington Technical College and Washington State University.

It takes a community (and a region) to raise an entrepreneur!

$25,000 Herbert B. Jones Foundation Grand Prize
PotaVida, UW
Provides a low-cost, reusable tool that takes the guesswork out of solar disinfection of water, for use in disaster relief and areas lacking potable water.
Tyler Davis, PhD Evans School of Public Policy; Damon Gjording, EMBA; Charlie Matlack, PhD Electrical Engineering; and Jacqueline Linnes

$10,000 WRF Capital Second Prize
Stockbox Grocers, Bainbridge Graduate Institute
A mini grocer tucked inside a reclaimed shipping container, to provide fresh produce and basic staples in urban food deserts.
Michael Brooks, MBA; Carrie Ferrence, MBA; Jacqueline Gjurgevich, MBA; and Eliza Michiels, MBA

$5,000 Blue Box Group Finalist Prize
Solanux, WSU, University of Idaho
Produces patented potato food ingredients with high amounts of resistant starch (RS) which help lower a person’s glycemic index response, improve insulin levels, and lower fat and cholesterol levels.  
Gaylene Anderson, EMBA; Anna Hansen, Accounting; and Jacob Pierson, J.D.

$5,000 Fenwick & West Finalist Prize
LodeSpin Labs, UW
Manufactures tracers for Magnetic Particle Imaging, a new medical imaging technology capable of replacing CT and MRI for imaging patients with heart disease and cancer.
Shivang Dave, PhD Bioengineering; Matt Ferguson, PhD Materials Science; Amit Khandhar, PhD Materials Science; and Garrett Leischner, MBA


BEST IDEA PRIZES
The BEST IDEA prizes were created to reward teams in the Business Plan Competition for their exceptional work in several different categories. The teams receiving these prizes were selected by a special group of judges during the Investment Round. This year we gave away SIX $2,500 Best Idea Prizes.

UIEvolution Best Technology Idea
Aqueduct Neurosciences, UW
Developing innovative medical device technology to improve the treatment of hydrocephalus through improved control, feedback, and failure prevention.  
Daniel Butts, Evening MBA; Jennifer Davis, MBA; Erik Feest, PhD Bioengineering; Paula Kim, MBA; Samuel Browd; Thomas Clement; and Barry Lutz

Gist Best Consumer Product Idea
Tripbox, UW
Makes leisure trip planning simple, smart and enjoyable by providing an easy to use online service that automatically generates an itinerary that optimizes cost, timing, and routes and allows users to further customize their trip.
Vasavi Epari, TMMBA; Davor Golac, TMMBA; Gautam Mehandru, TMMBA; and Gustavo Rubio, TMMBA

Perkins Coie Best Innovation Idea
PotaVida, UW
Provides a low-cost, reusable tool that takes the guesswork out of solar disinfection of water, for use in disaster relief and areas lacking potable water.
Tyler Davis, PhD Evans School of Public Policy; Damon Gjording, EMBA; Charlie Matlack, PhD Electrical Engineering; and Jacqueline Linnes

DLA Piper Best Service/Retail Idea
Stockbox Grocers, Bainbridge Graduate Institute
A mini grocer tucked inside a reclaimed shipping container, to provide fresh produce and basic staples in urban food deserts.
Michael Brooks, MBA; Carrie Ferrence, MBA; Jacqueline Gjurgevich, MBA; and Eliza Michiels, MBA

Synapse Product Development Best Clean-Tech Idea
Static Flow Analytics, UW
A technology to improve algae monitoring which will help algal biofuel companies be more informed and better able to make optimal decisions about their production processes.
Charlie Berg, MBA; Valerie Lieu, PhD Chemical Engineering; Guoqiang Ren, PhD Chemical Engineering; Casey Stratton, MBA; Bill Hardin; and Kevin McFarland

Sensors in Motion Best Sustainable Advantage Idea
Urban Canopy, UW
Provides SaaS software that guides customers through design, execution, and maintenance of green building initiatives, including LEED certification.
Bill Barnard, TMMBA; Shane Egeland, TMMA; Carolina Gonzalez, TMMBA; Gabe Miller, TMMBA; Dilip Mujumdar, TMMBA; Debbie Egeland; and Jennifer Franks


A special thanks to the sponsors of the 2011 UW Business Plan Competition! Learn more about all the teams that competed in the Sweet 16 on May 26.