What a night for emerging entrepreneurial talent! Seven teams gave their startup pitches for a chance to win up to $10K in seed funding furnished by Credit Suisse.
From sports tech to wellness, immigration and cultural experiences, the University of Melbourne’s Master of Entrepreneurship students tackled some pressing problems and big market opportunities, both locally and globally.
We were thrilled to be joined by some powerhouse panellists – entrepreneurs, intrapreneurs and investors with plenty of skin in the game when it comes to new ideas.
Drumroll please…!
The winner of the Credit Suisse ‘Best Startup Pitch’ Award –ImmuneID.
Managing Director (Private Investment), Credit Suisse Stephen Pickles (left) with co-founder of ImmuneID, Clare Morgan (right).
ImmuneID bridges the gap between the lab and the clinic to accelerate coeliac disease drug development. Many new drugs fail clinical trials because lab tests used in their development poorly replicate what happens inside patients’ bodies. ImmuneID reproduces the patient response in a specialised lab test that can be used to help make new drugs.
The winners of the MYOB People’s Choice Awards were:
1st prize ($1,500) – Foodtropia
(From left: Co-founders Sangeeta Mulchandani & Laura Galvis, MYOB Brand Media & Partnerships Manager Lauren Nikolareas, and co-founder Dario Martinez)
2nd place ($1,000) – Wunder
(From left: Founder Dr Arshad Damree & MYOB Brand Media & Partnerships Manager Lauren Nikolareas)
3rd place ($500) – ImmuneID
(From left: Co-founder Clare Morgan & MYOB Brand Media & Partnerships Manager Lauren Nikolareas)
Surprise super honourable mention
Congratulations to Dr Arshad Damree, founder of gamified hospital knowledge repository Wunder, who received a one year Startup Victoria membership worth more than $30,000. Nice one, Arshad!
Spata Sports
Valencia Gabriella, Gabriel Evalle, Cameron Ensor
Amateur basketball players do not have access to the statistics they need in order to improve their game. We collect comprehensive statistics of players and teams using film technology.
Website: https://spatasports.com
Email: contact@spatasports.com
L(i)vely
Nolana E. Lynch
Young professionals are strong leaders struggling to manage multiple portfolios at work and at home and cater to physical and mental needs. L(i)vely leads the professional parent to overcome personal challenges through 1:1 wellness coaching and the implementation of self-care practices to improve work-life balance and release parents’ liveliest selves lf at work and at home. In fact, EAP systems are utilized by less than 6% of staff in Australia, while health and wellness issues cost global businesses $1 trillion per annum. My trial cohort of clientele, 10 professional women between the ages of 30 and 45, have demonstrated great progress over the past 12 weeks and are more engaged at work and home!
Website: https://lively.today
Email: nolanalynch@gmail.com
Wear Less Noise
Jarrah Goodwill
We are tackling the complex problem of noise-induced hearing loss in music industries around the world. Our solution involves making effective hearing protection devices (earplugs) more accessible to those who are most at risk. We are creating a conscious community around our brand that is helping young people get informed about the risks of exposing themselves to loud music for prolonged periods.
Website: https://www.wearlessnoise.com.au </span
Email: jarrah@wearlessnoise.com.au
Emidox
Abbas Ahmadi
There is a lack of transparency in immigration and visa services, which causes mistrust between migration agents and customers. Emidox is a two-sided platform for immigration and visa services that connects users with immigration professionals of around the world. In fact, our customers have told us that they: 1. look for support from an international organisation when dealing with migration agents. 2. want to know more their immigration and visa options. 3. look for simple, fast, and affordable immigration services.
Website: https://emidox.com
Email: contact@emidox.com
ImmuneID
Clare Morgan, Jason Tye-Din
Many new drugs fail clinical trials because lab tests used in their development poorly replicate what happens inside patients’ bodies. ImmuneID reproduces the patient response in a specialised lab test that can be used to help make new drugs for coeliac disease, for which there is no cure or effective treatment. ImmuneID has the proven expertise needed to bridge the gap between the lab and the clinic and accelerate coeliac disease drug development.
Email: cmorgan@wehi.edu.au
Wunder
Dr Arshad Damree
Doctors working in unfamiliar environments face steep learning curves which are not without risks for patients. Wunder provides doctors with all the working knowledge needed to hit new grounds running with safety, confidence and efficiency. Patients are at 82% higher risk of clinical mistakes and 6% increased risk of death within the first week of a doctor starting a new job in an unfamiliar clinical environment.
Email: arshaddamree@gmail.com
Foodtropia
Sangeeta Mulchandani, Dario Martinez, Laura Galvis
You know how people get bored in their routine lives, don’t know how or where to go to make new friends, and have great experiences? What we do is bring interesting strangers together to connect and enjoy authentic home-cooked cultural delicacies among great conversations, in private homes. We connect people who enjoy hosting dinners and sharing their culture and stories (hosts) with people who enjoy meeting new people and making connections (guests). It’s a beautiful experience for people to gather, make new friends and learn a little more about themselves and the world through cultural dinner parties. In fact, we have already created a few dinner experiences and made revenues through ticket sales. Our guests have given us amazing feedback on social media and we even have a pipeline of guests waiting for our next dinners to open!
Website: https://foodtropia.com
Email: foodtropia.melbourne@gmail.com
Congratulations to all who pitched, and to all 2019 University of Melbourne Master of Entrepreneurship students for their amazing achievements this year. We can’t wait to see where your newfound entrepreneurial skills take you!
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Wade Institute of Entrepreneurship is a leading centre for entrepreneurial education. We deliver programs to accelerate learning, creation and connection.
