The ten finalists in Ben Franklin’s 2017 BIG IDEA Contest will be making their presentations to a panel of area judges beginning sharply at 1:35 PM on Thursday, November 16, 2017. Each presenter will get five minutes to make their pitch which will be followed by seven minutes of Q&A.

If you know any of the folks listed below, or if you are just excited about the Startup Alleghenies initiative in general, organizers would love to have you stop by the Bottle Works, located at 411 West Third Ave in Johnstown, to hear the presentations:

• Joseph DiGangi with AssureTech (Huntingdon County)
• Justin Capouellez with Boomerang Beacon (Cambria County)
• Heather Moyer with Crossroads Consulting (Cambria County)
• Mark Kasterko with MT Arms (Somerset County)
• Adam Stokes with muonSoft (Blair County)
• Donald Nixon with Nixon’s Technical Service (Clearfield County)
• Hunter Swisher with Phospholutions (Centre County)
• Ryan Kieta with Real Design (Cambria County)
• James Wang with SimplrTechnologies (Centre County)
• Anthony Biddle with Siterite (Blair County)

At the conclusion of the presentations, while the judges deliberate, you are invited to participate in networking with the finalists, learning more about them in preparation for casting your vote for the People’s Choice award, polling for which will close at 6:15 PM. All of the winners will be announced at 6:30 PM.

This year’s cash prizes will be awarded to four winners: First Place: $25,000; Second Place; $15,000; Third Place; $7,500 and a People’s Choice Award: $2,500.

In Addition To The $25,000, The First Place Winner Will Also Receive:

• A Pre-Seed Grant from Ben Franklin valued at up to $10,000
• A one-year pass to seminars offered by Ben Franklin’s eMarketing Learning Center valued at $3,000
• A free consult (and proposal prep), valued at $3,000 on how to access Federal R&D grant money from the Innovation Partnership

Planning to Attend? Send a quick note to JillEdwards@psu.edu

About Ben Franklin Technology Partners:
The largest early-stage seed investor in our region, Ben Franklin Technology Partners/CNP, (an initiative of the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development and funded by the Ben Franklin Technology Development Authority) provides funding, operational assistance, and business support services to emerging tech-based companies and small, existing manufacturers for the purpose of creating and retaining jobs in Pennsylvania. Visit Ben Franklin’s website at www.cnp.benfranklin.org.

We Inve$t in Innovation