Student startup teams from colleges across the country compete for top honors and bragging rights in Student Startup Madness tournament.

Thursday, Dec 19, 2013

Contact: Sean Branagan

(315) 443-6310 - startups@syr.edu

Startups from 34 colleges and universities from 16 states across the nation have been selected to the starting field of 64 teams in the 2013-14 Student Startup Madness competition. The first two rounds of the tournament will be held online, and the competition culminates with the finals at South By Southwest (SXSW) Interactive in Austin, Texas, on March 10, 2014, when the Entrepreneurial Eight will compete for top honors and the SSM National Championship.

Student Startup Madness (SSM) is the only nationwide collegiate tournament focused on digital media startups. It affords college student startups the opportunity to compete against fellow student entrepreneurs, grab the attention of potential investors and supporters, and build an elite professional network. At the SSM finals at SXSW, eight elite college student startups will pitch their business to well-known investors and entrepreneurs who can help them transform their idea into success.

SSM is promoted and supported by six anchor universities in six regions across the country: Syracuse University in the Northeast, Bucknell University in the Mid-Atlantic, Georgia State University in the Southeast, Saint Louis University in the Midwest, Michigan State University in the Great Lakes and The University of Texas at Austin in the Southwest. Corporate sponsors for the tournament include: Turner Broadcasting’s Media Camp, TriNet and other companies who support early-stage ventures.

The 2013-14 SSM Starting Field of 64: (in alphabetical order)

• Advlo from Syracuse University
• Arcadium: The legend of Mr Pixel from Georgia State University
• BABU - Receipt Reducer from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
• Burpy from University of Texas at Austin
• Campus-in.com from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
• Cara's Quest from  Georgia State University
• Carbon Cash from Michigan State University
• Centscere from Syracuse University
• Coast from Ithaca College
• Cooper Union Info from The Cooper Union for The Advancement of Science and Art
• Cork & Oak from Appalachian State University
• Daapr from Cornell University
• DepthChartz.com from University of Memphis
• DragAroundMe from Wayne State University
• Dwndlr from Wayne State University
• Eventable from University of California at Berkeley
• Find My Song from University of Southern California
• Flippr from University of Southern California
• Folyo from Michigan State University
• For The Byrds from Georgia State University
• GlassCeilings.TV from Howard University and Sonoma State University
• HorsesDr.com from Seton Hall University
• Independent School Evaluations from University of Chicago
• iSucceedOnline from Syracuse University
• Kinect PT from University of Virginia
• Kommingle from University of Texas at San Antonio
• Locally Modern from University of Southern California
• LocShark from Texas Tech and Lubbock Christian
• M Y C from Flagler College
• Million Dollar Scholar from Morehouse College
• Movez from Georgia State University
• Muzation.co from Purdue University
• NBA Math Hoops from Brown University
• Notefu.ly from Seton Hall university
• OneTapp from Cornell University
• open^quota from Morehouse College
• PlatypusTV from Syracuse University and Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT)
• PrintLure from Syracuse University
• Renovat'd from Brown University
• Rep Life from Georgia State University
• RoomScapeU from Florida State University
• Rootloop from Michigan State University
• Safe-Hitchhiking from Purdue University
• ScheduleFast from Bucknell University
• Sellbot from University of Southern California
• sellonspot.com from Purdue University
• SemanticMD from Carnegie Mellon University
• Sequoia Waste Solutions from Villanova University
• Servabo from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
• Snap Script from Michigan State University
• SportsCave from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
• StylePuzzle from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
• Tas from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
• The Hubb from Syracuse University
• The Song Market from Michigan State University
• TiVedo from Eastern Michigan University
• topworkoutsongs.org from Seton Hall University
• uCal from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
• UChicago Events from University of Chicago
• University Beyond from Syracuse University
• Viddobuy from Central Connecticut State University
• Voicum Cleaner from Albany State University
• YAPPERapp from George Washington University
• Yorango from Cornell University

SSM Tournament Format

Each round of the nationwide tournament will build momentum, awareness and social media buzz, drawing attention to colleges and universities as sources for innovation, entrepreneurship and talent while showcasing university entrepreneurship and encouraging college students to start businesses.

More than 100 teams applied online between August and the end of November. The first round of competition will be held online among the 64 startup teams, with judging conducted via Gust.com, a platform used by Angel investors around the world. From the starting field, 32 semi-finalists will be chosen and advance to the virtual regional round, based on their home college location. From the virtual regional round, the finalists (the top team in each region, plus two at-large teams) will be chosen in January. These finalists—“The Entrepreneurial Eight” —will be invited to pitch to a celebrity panel of well-known entrepreneurs, venture capitalists and investors at the Student Startup Madness national finals in Austin, Texas, on March 10, 2014, at the SXSW Startup Village main venue at the downtown Austin Hilton hotel conference center, salon A.

About Student Startup Madness

The Student Startup Madness concept was developed by Sean Branagan, director of the Center for Digital Media Entrepreneurship at the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University, in conjunction with SXSW. Student Startup Madness, along with its sponsors and host universities, believes in American entrepreneurship and on-campus startups—and wants to help young student entrepreneurs succeed and become a part of the SXSW experience.

Student Startup Madness debuted in 2012 at SXSW Interactive with a launch event and kick-off pitchfest, where five student startup teams representing eight colleges and universities pitched their ventures and won prizes. In 2013, SSM was selected as a SXSW Partner Program and invited into the main venue of SXSW Startup Village. For more on Student Startup Madness, visit the website (http://studentstartupmadness.com), see us on Facebook, or follow us on Twitter: @StartupMad.