We will maintain a list of frequently asked questions on this page, which is also linked from the main contest webpage.

 

Am I eligible to enter?

There’s a quick checklist on the competition webpage, but we’ve reproduced it here for completeness’ sake. If you can answer yes to all these questions then you are most likely eligible to enter, but you’ll still need to check the official rules for the small print:

  • Is your corporation, LLC, partnership, non-profit, or other corporate entity already legally formed?
  • Do you employ fewer than 50 people?
  • Is your annual sales under $5 million?
  • Is the product or service you are entering new and not yet or only recently commercially available (less than 3 years)?
  • If your product is based on an open source technology, has it made substantial additions or changes to it?
  • Are you and your country free from any trade restrictions or sanctions enforced by the United States?

I’ve entered before, can I still enter?

Yes except for for one exception:

  • If you are a previous winner, you cannot enter the same product that won one of our previous challenges. However if you have a new product, you can enter that.

Previous finalists who did not win the competition (Grand Prize or Audience Vote) are welcome to enter, assuming you still meet the criteria around our eligibility clauses (See above) and our startup criteria (Annual sales < $5M, R&D spend <$1m / year)

Can I enter as an individual?

Yes, and no. According to the official rules:

The Competition is open only to corporations (including not-for-profit corporations and other nonprofit organizations), limited liability companies, partnerships, and other legal entities that, at the time of entry are legally formed, and employ fewer than fifty (50) people and have under $10 million in revenue or balance sheet capital (“Organizations”). Size of organization shall include any affiliates, parent, or subsidiary entities.

Thus you cannot enter as an individual, but you can enter if you are a legally incorporated corporate entity with only one employee, i.e. yourself.

Can I enter if I just have a great idea but no business plan?

No. The judging process will of course take into account how good the idea is, but it will also place a lot of emphasis on how good your plan is to turn that idea into a commercial success. You can check the full judging criteria in the official rules.

If you’ve got an idea that you want the Pistoia Alliance to investigate further but have no plans to turn it into a business yourself, then feel free to submit it to IP3 for the Pistoia Alliance community to discuss.

Will you be publishing or sharing my business proposal?

No. Only the judges will see the business proposals. However, as part of the entry process you will be asked to submit a one-paragraph summary of your plan that can be published openly. Please bear this in mind when writing the public summary so that you don’t include anything confidential or sensitive in it.

Will I know who judged my entry?

Only in round 2. The identity of the round 1 judges will not be disclosed. The judges for the round 2 live judging will be made known at the time of the event.

What if one of the judges is employed by my competitor?

All our judges are asked to sign up to a code of conduct that requests them not to read or score any entry that might represent a potential conflict of interest. They will make this decision after reading your public summary paragraph.

Will I get any feedback even if I’m not a finalist or winner?

All round 1 entrants will receive written feedback from the judges. Finalists will be able to network on the night to gather verbal feedback on their pitches directly from the judges and audience.

Can I register my interest now and complete my entry later?

Yes. The Younoodle system allows you to create your entry without completing all the fields. You have right up until the deadline to complete or edit your entry and submit it.

What is “a startup”?

To bring the right innovative ideas and products to the attention of our members, we have defined the startup entry criteria to those new companies that are not yet available on the market or have only been on the market within the last 3 years. The companies annual sales must be less than $5m revenue and have less than 50 employees. On the market means that they can be bought or installed by a customer.