Next Top Entrepreneur Competition

Applications for the 2026 competition are closed!

The UGA Entrepreneurship Program invites current students from any college or university to take part in UGA’s Next Top Entrepreneur Pitch Competition on Thursday, April 16, 2026, from 5–8:30 p.m. at the UGA’s Studio 225 (225 W. Broad St.) in Athens.

UGA’s Next Top Entrepreneur is open to student startup teams from all over the country. During this live event, teams pitch their existing business plans or business idea in front of a live audience and a panel of judges for a chance to win total prize money of $17,500.

1st Place
$10,000
2nd Place
$5,000
3rd Place
$2,500

About the Competition

Current students from any college or university with a solid business idea, concept, product and/or existing business are invited to pitch in front of a panel of seasoned entrepreneurs for a chance to win top prize of $10,000.

Teams are evaluated on their business model, the validity of their idea, and their ability to execute. Our judges are looking for the business with greatest potential for success.

Teams traveling out of state for the competition are eligible for travel reimbursement of up to $1,500 (not per student).

Eligibility & Rules

  • Undergraduate and Graduate-level students only.
    PMBA, EMBA, or PhD team is required to have at least one undergraduate student on the team that has made significant contributions to the business concept, strategy, or development of the venture and who serves as a presenter or co-presenter.
  • If a member of the team has graduated, they must have graduated within the past three semesters.
  • Businesses must have less than $2 million in cumulative life-time sales plus cumulative lifetime third party funding, grants or awards.
  • There is no limit on the type of business eligible.
  • A maximum of 4 members of the team may participate in the competition (no exceptions).

How to Apply

In your application, please include:

  • Business abstract: include in your abstract who is the target market and who is the addressable market
  • Two-minute pitch video
  • Statement of revenue for the last 12 months
  • Additional photos, videos, and/or website links to help your business stand out

Only completed applications are accepted.

The applicant pool is judged by an internal committee. The top ten teams advance to the final round in Athens, Georgia.

The pitch competition takes place in front of a live audience with a panel of judges who have experience in the startup and business world. These judges pick the winning team that walk away with top prize of $10,000, 2nd place prize of $5,000, and 3rd place prize of $2,500.

Dates and Deadlines

Competition Day:
Join us on Thursday, April 16, 2026 in Athens, Georgia at 5 p.m. in Studio 225 to see teams pitch their business.

Application Deadline:
Friday, March 20, 2026 at 11:59 p.m. EST

Finalists Announced:
Wednesday, April 1, 2026
*subject to change*

Fiserv logo
D12 Cimmerical Interiors

UGA’s Next Top Entrepreneur Competition is sponsored by Fiserv and D12 Commercial Interiors.

Congratulations to our 2026 Winners!

Young entrepreneurs stand below a Truist Pitch Deck Sign at Studio 225 hold novelty large prize checks.

Tanvi Gadamsetti and Madhav Aggarwal (right) of BRCĒ took home top prize of $10,000! “BRCĒ is a high-tech shoelace startup from Michigan State University. These are the world’s first and only shoelaces that never come united, never lose grip for better angle stability.”

Hamasa Ebadi, Miles Gilliam, and Ankush (center) from Wash U., St. Louis won second-place prize of $5,000 with NeuroFore, a Parkinson’s Disease diagnosis tool that uses non-motor symptoms to diagnose the disease at its earliest stages, giving more time for interventions.

Miles Lanham (left) from the University of Virginia won third-place prize of $2,500 with Métopi, a compact inhaler design that makes it easier for asthma patients to always carry rescue inhalers.

Previous winners