Innovation Competition

Are you an entrepreneurial undergraduate student with a great idea to impact society?
Have you designed a new, innovative product as part of a class, research, or in your garage?
Have you developed a physical prototype that you think is feasible to take to market?

The Cornell Engineering Innovation Award Competition is an exciting opportunity for entrepreneurial students from across the breadth of engineering majors. The Innovation Competition offers student teams that have been working on developing physical prototypes and more fully demonstrated innovations the chance to compete for prizes to support their next stages in the development of their “real world” ideation and concept demonstration experiences. This competition will enable students who win the awards to continue with their goal of bringing new products to market.

The Cornell Engineering Innovation Award Competition is a college-wide competition open to all engineering students. Students who have developed business concepts and prototypes in their own “garages” and outside the formal engineering curriculum are encouraged to apply.

The innovation teams may include a broad range of students from across the entire university (for example students with expertise in user interface design) and from all levels (undergraduate to Ph.D.). However, as an undergraduate focused competition, undergraduate students from the engineering college must constitute a majority of each participating team.

Application Information:

Applications for the 2020 competition will not open until January 2020
Information Sessions will be held January 23, 2020 & February 13, 2020. Both sessions will be at 5:00 PM in Upson 116
Applications due by 11:59 PM on March 5, 2020
Pitches will happen March 26, 2020

Awards

Competition winners will win monetary awards and the chance to participate in future startup opportunities.

The 2020 competition will feature awards in the following categories:

Ronald ’57 and Frederick ’86 Fichtl Innovation Awards
Totaling $10,000

Unrestricted competition for the most innovative and best developed innovation concept.

Yunni and Maxine Pao Social Innovation Awards
Totaling $10,000

Multi-disciplinary social venture team meeting the following criteria:
– An innovative solution aimed at solving a pressing global challenge;
– A business plan demonstrating a clearly-defined social and/or environmental bottom line;
– The highest and most integrated potential financial and social returns; and
– Clear intent to seek further funding post-graduation, with the aim of bringing the innovation to market.

Ron G. Kermisch Innovation Awards
Totaling $5,000

Special award for an entry that includes implementation of a complex innovation as a fully demonstrated physical prototype.

(An additional award up to $5,000 may be given for an innovation involving sustainable agriculture!)

Judging

The structure and judging of the competition will be managed by a committee of faculty and entrepreneurial leaders. This committee will determine the judging criteria (spanning business concepts to fully developed and demonstrated prototypes) and assemble the judging panel.

Past Winners:

2017

Ronald ’57 and Frederick ’86 Fichtl Innovation Award: Iko Systems and XBoard
Yunni and Maxine Pao Social Innovation Award: C.U. Engineering World Health
Ron G. Kermish Innovation Award: Brella

2018

Ronald ’57 and Frederick ’86 Fichtl Innovation Award: Prometheus and Titan Analytics
Yunni and Maxine Pao Social Innovation Award: SOS Aquaponics
Ron G. Kermish Innovation Award: YNot Bikes

2019

Ronald ’57 and Frederick ’86 Fichtl Innovation Award: Speak2 Systems and Poloma Analytics
Yunni and Maxine Pao Social Innovation Award: Response
Ron G. Kermish Innovation Award: HoverBot

Apply

Thank you for your interest. Applications for 2020 will open in January 2020.

FAQs

How small and large can teams be?

Teams can be of any reasonable size from one individual to a large group. We expect the typical team to be in the 3 to 5 member range.

Who can be on a team? How is the term “majority of team must be undergraduate” defined?

Teams can consist of both undergraduate and graduate students, from both within and outside of engineering. It is expected that each team will be composed of students from Cornell. The inclusion of Cornell staff, Cornell faculty, or non-Cornell participants will be considered and may be allowed in special cases. At least 50% of the team members must be undergraduate or M.Eng., as the award donors desire to support and encourage undergraduate entrepreneurship at Cornell.

Can the project be based on a course or project?

Yes.

What is the timing of the competition?

Applications will be due March 5, 2020 at 11:59 PM. Teams will be notified if they have qualified for the final round shortly after applications close. Teams that make it to the final round will give their presentations on March 26, 2020 between 10:00 AM and 4:00 PM. Each team in the final round will be assigned a 30 minute time slot in which to give their final presentation.

Do we need to identify the specific awards for which we will compete?

No. All teams will be considered for all awards that are consistent with their presentations.

The competition talks about a pitch to a team of judges. How exactly will this work?

Each team in the final round will be assigned a 30 minute time slot. The pitches will likely be approximately 15 to 20 minutes long, which will allow time for questions. The pitch must be made by an undergraduate member of the team. The entire pitch should be made by a single individual. Other team members may be present for questions.Each team in the final round should provide extra material in the form of a portfolio as supplemental material for judging. This will be reviewed by the judges to evaluate technical details and business issues associated with the innovation.

What exactly is meant by a portfolio?

The pitch itself does not provide sufficient time to discuss all of the technical details and business challenges associated with an innovation. The portfolio provides a mechanism for judges to evaluate these issues as well. The portfolio should be in electronic form and sent in via zipped file attachment or drop box. The portfolio could include, for example, technical specifications, a survey of competitive products, a summary and evaluation of the patents on similar technologies, videos of a prototype in use, or results of market evaluations and consumer surveys.

What about intellectual property (IP) issues? Can we have a non-disclosure agreement (NDA) with the judges?

It is expected that most of the presentations will be open to the public, and most of the teams will not need to have a signed NDA. However, exceptions are possible. Let us know well in advance if you require privacy, and then we will arrange for the NDA document and we will arrange a private (closed to the public) presentation with judges covered by the NDA.

How do I get other questions answered?

E-mail innov-engr@cornell.edu.