Grand Ideas Pitch Competition
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Do you have an innovative idea?
We want to hear it! Enter to win up to $5,000 to help bring your idea to life
The Grand Ideas pitch competition is for Massey University students, distance students, recent graduates, and faculty/staff who have a great idea for a commercial or social enterprise. All ideas are welcome; no business plan required.
All participants are eligible to receive expert mentoring and coaching to help turn their idea into a reality.
How to Enter
The competition is conducted in three stages:
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First stage: submit a short description of your idea, using the entry form provided. Ideas will be evaluated on originality, feasibility and impact to qualify for the second stage.
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Second stage: participants will be invited to submit more information about their idea, using the template provided. Participants in this stage are eligible to receive mentor support to help them complete their submission.
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Third stage: up to 10 finalists will progress to the finals where they’ll have 3 minutes to live pitch their idea to a panel of judges online. The top 3 ideas, as chosen by the judges, will receive seed funding to help bring their idea to life.
Key Dates
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6 March 2023: Entries open
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9 April 2023: Entries close
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12 April 2023: Finalists announced
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27 April 2023: Live pitch finals
Prizes
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First Place: $5,000
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Second Place: $2,500
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Third Place: $1,500
All participants are eligible to receive expert mentoring and coaching to help bring their idea to life.
Grand Ideas FAQ's
What do I have to do?
The competition has three stages:
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Submitting a short idea description in the first stage
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If selected, submitting more information about your idea in the second stage
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If selected, live pitch your idea to a panel of judges for a chance to win seed funding.
Judging process and prizes
The most innovative ideas will progress to the finals where you’ll have 3 minutes to pitch your idea live and online to the judges. The top ideas, as selected by judges, will win seed funding to help turn their idea into reality.
What are judges looking for?
Judges will assess applications on the following criteria:
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Originality and innovation of the idea
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Feasibility of the idea
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Impact the idea will have on the target market/community
Who is eligible to enter?
Undergraduate and post graduate students, distance students, recent graduates (within the last two years), and faculty/staff of Massey University are all eligible and strongly encouraged to participate.
How can I be assured that my idea is safe?
The Grand Ideas competition honours the confidentiality of all ideas. Submissions will not be released or copied for any purposes other than use in the Grand Ideas competition. The judges also recognise the confidentiality of the materials being presented.
Terms and conditions
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Funding will be awarded to the most innovative ideas as chosen by the judging panel.
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No correspondence will be entered into and the panel decision is final.
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The prize money is to be spent on progressing the idea and the winners will be expected to propose how they intend to spend the money to further develop their concept.
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The winners are responsible for ensuring they comply with any tax issues resulting from the prize.
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The Massey University, Massey Ventures Ltd and their subsidiaries are not liable for any actions taken by the business.
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The Massey University, Massey Ventures Ltd and their subsidiaries reserves the right to publicise non confidential information about the winning business for the purposes of its PR.
Hayley Fung, Grand Ideas 2021 Winner
“I entered because I knew that even if I didn't win, pitching to a panel of judges and sharing experiences with other entrepreneurs would be a great learning opportunity. I’m really glad we did it and getting some positive feedback from the judges and other contestants gave me more confidence to continue developing UpdateCove.”
