{"id":99468,"date":"2026-06-11T03:35:05","date_gmt":"2026-06-11T07:35:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/news.utoledo.edu\/?p=99468"},"modified":"2026-06-10T13:42:46","modified_gmt":"2026-06-10T17:42:46","slug":"applications-open-june-15-for-tech419-startup-competition","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/news.utoledo.edu\/index.php\/06_11_2026\/applications-open-june-15-for-tech419-startup-competition","title":{"rendered":"Applications Open June 15 for Tech419 Startup Competition"},"content":{"rendered":"

Applications for Tech419, the annual founder development program and innovation showcase, officially open Sunday, June 15.<\/p>\n

Hosted by The University of Toledo Business Incubator, the competition seeks innovative, technology-focused startups from across northwest Ohio. Five finalists will be selected to participate in a structured pitch preparation program and compete for more than $20,000 in funding and prizes during a live event in October.<\/p>\n

\"Dr.

Applications for Tech419, the annual founder development program and innovation showcase, officially open Sunday, June 15. Hosted by the UToledo Business Incubator, the annual competition offers technology-focused startups the chance to compete for more than $20,000 in funding.<\/p><\/div>\n

Through coaching, feedback and guided practice, finalists refine their pitch, strengthen their message and gain valuable exposure to regional business leaders, investors and innovation partners.<\/p>\n

\u201cMany entrepreneurs spend countless hours developing their technology but far less time learning how to communicate its value,\u201d said Pamela Moore, director of The University of Toledo Business Incubator. \u201cTech419 creates a space where founders can pause, evaluate how they\u2019re presenting their business and receive feedback before they\u2019re in higher-stakes conversations.\u201d<\/p>\n

Applications are open to anyone developing technology-focused products, services or companies. Ideal applicants are working on a prototype, pilot program or minimum viable product and are committed to growing their venture in northwest Ohio.<\/p>\n

The 2026 prize structure includes:<\/p>\n

\u2022\u00a0 First Place: $10,000<\/p>\n

\u2022\u00a0 Second Place: $5,000<\/p>\n

\u2022\u00a0 Third Place: $2,500<\/p>\n

\u2022\u00a0 Fourth and Fifth Place: A 12-month coworking membership valued at $1,500 each<\/p>\n

Regardless of whether they are selected as finalists, all qualified applicants will be invited to join the UToledo Business Incubator to receive ongoing advising and commercialization support services.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Tech419 Pitch Competition was something I aspired to participate in for several years after being an audience member,\u201d said Dr. Caroline Humberston, a 2025 competitor and founder of PlayTime Fitness. \u201cThe process to narrow down the information into five slides was grueling, but helpful for creating the forward momentum I needed to go from startup to operational.\u201d<\/p>\n

The application deadline is 11:59 p.m. Sunday, July 5. To apply or learn more, visit the official Tech419 application page<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The live Tech419 pitch competition and networking showcase is scheduled for Thursday, Oct. 29, at the Brady Center and Nitschke Technology Commercialization Complex. Registration and networking will begin at 5:30 p.m. Attendees must be at least 18 years old, and tickets can be reserved through the event registration link<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"\"Dr.<\/a>

Hosted by the UToledo Business Incubator, the annual competition offers technology-focused startups the chance to compete for more than $20,000 in funding.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":17,"featured_media":95887,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[50,32,1,7],"tags":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.utoledo.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/99468"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.utoledo.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.utoledo.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.utoledo.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/17"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.utoledo.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=99468"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/news.utoledo.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/99468\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":99470,"href":"https:\/\/news.utoledo.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/99468\/revisions\/99470"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.utoledo.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/95887"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.utoledo.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=99468"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.utoledo.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=99468"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.utoledo.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=99468"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}