The Sacramento Kings are again presenting the Capitalize contest, a crowdsourced startup competition styled as a March Madness-like tournament for a $10,000 cash prize.
Startups based within 75 miles of Sacramento are eligible to apply for the pitch competition, which culminates with a crowdsourced vote at Golden 1 Center during a basketball game April 3.
“Each year we have seen tremendous participation in Capitalize and we are excited to see what innovative ideas and business models the seventh year of the competition will bring,” said John Rinehart, president of business operations for the Sacramento Kings, in a news release. “Through this contest, talented entrepreneurs in our region are given the space to showcase their talents and receive valuable resources to grow their companies.”
Applications are now open at Kings.com/Capitalize and will close at 11:59 p.m. on Feb. 25.
The competition typically gets more than 50 applicants, which will be narrowed down to 16 companies by Sacramento Kings judges on Feb. 28.
Those companies attend pitch workshops in early March, and the “elite eight” will be announced on March 5. They will get coaching, and then attend a pitch day on March 21 to a panel of entrepreneurs, investors and executives. That event typically is attended by local angel investors, representatives of venture capital companies and other investors from Sacramento and the Bay Area.
The “final four” will make videos to be posted in the Kings.com/Capitalize site for fan voting via Twitter from March 22 until halftime at the Kings game against the Golden State Warriors on April 3, where the Capitalize winner will be announced during the game.
Previous local winners include parking technology company Japa Inc., head trauma evaluation technology developer Protxx and custom-delivered nutritional meal company Trifecta Inc.
The Capitalize contest this year is being presented by Kings partners Dialpad, a communications company in San Francisco; 3STEPS4Ward LLC, a marketing company in San Ramon; and the city of Sacramento’s Sacramento Urban Technology Lab.
The judges for the initial rounds include Rinehart; Dialpad CEO Craig Walker; Maritza Davis, a vice president with the Sacramento Kings; 3STEPS4ward CEO Doug Younger III; and Kenny Sadler, managing partner of Berkeley Strategy Advisors, a consultancy based in Berkeley.
