Melbourne, FL – The inaugural Startup Weekend Space Coast event will be hosted this weekend by Florida Tech’s Nathan M. Bisk College of Business and take place at the Center for Aeronautics and Innovation in Melbourne, Florida.
Startup Weekend Space Coast brings enthusiastic entrepreneurs together with real-world business experiences and gives them the ability to pitch their startup ideas to interested investors. It is part of a larger, worldwide competition called the Global Startup Battle that includes thousands of participants from all over the world, helping these spirited professionals learn the basics of starting a new business.
“Being able to attract a Startup Weekend on the Space Coast is in itself a big deal,” said Ahmed Reza, a former NASA worker and co-founder of a high-tech incubator called TrepHub. “They usually only happen in big cities. You have to have a technology base in the area, and a decent amount of interest before you’re even allowed to have one.”
The event’s keynote speaker is Alex Rudloff, CEO and co-founder of Emursel.com, Twitterholic.com and Atqui.com. He is also currently the chief digital strategist for TEDx.
Participants of the event will be given a set amount of time to make a business idea pitch. They will then break into individual groups to collaborate and share ideas. Each group will be given 54 hours to build a prototype and pitch it to the judges and investors. Anyone is allowed to pitch an idea on Friday, November 15th and receive feedback from peers. Registration for the event starts Friday, November 15th at 6:30pm and costs $100.
The winners of the competition will be seeded in what’s called the RCBiznovation event, which carries a $50,000 award and a spot in Florida Venture Forums’ Early Stage Competition. Winners will also be entered into the International Global Startup Battle with prizes up to $500,000 and pitch opportunities to major venture capital groups.
“Each participant will leave the event better prepared to navigate the chaotic but fun world of startups,” said Abram Walton, associate professor of management and innovation at Florida Tech.
For more information about the event, visit http://spacecoast.startupweekend.org.
For information on Florida Tech’s 100% online undergraduate and graduate degree and certificate programs, including several MBA specializations and Mini MBA for-credit graduate certificates, visit http://www.floridatechonline.com.
Florida Tech is a regionally accredited university that is world renowned for its distinguished faculty, comprehensive curriculum and unyielding innovation. Florida Tech is ranked a Tier 1 Best National University by U.S. News & World Report. It is also rated by the Fiske Guide to Colleges and named a best buy in Barron’s Best Buys in College Education. Founded in 1958, Florida Tech has more than 50,000 alumni. Its main campus is located on 130 subtropical acres in Melbourne, Florida, on the state’s famous Space Coast.
The University Alliance (UA) facilitates the promotion and online delivery of associate’s, bachelor’s and master’s degrees as well as professional certificate programs from the nation’s leading traditional universities and institutions. Powered by UA’s technology and support services, its university partners have surpassed 450,000 online enrollments – making UA the largest facilitator of e-learning in the country. University Alliance partners include Villanova University, the University of Notre Dame’s Mendoza College of Business, Tulane University’s Freeman School of Business, the University of San Francisco, the University of South Florida, Florida Institute of Technology, The University of Scranton, Dominican University and Jacksonville University.
