Founders paced back and forth, many muttering scripted sub-one-minute pitches they were soon to deliver on the knee-high stage at 1776. The inaugural D.C. Region Challenge Cup was about to kick off, and for many of the early-stage entrepreneurs, they were about to give one of the most important pitches in their young company's history. Of the more than thirty startups in the fields of education, health, energy and smart cities, though, only four would get the chance to be compete in the global Challenge Cup competition next May.
The format for the initial round of the D.C. Challenge Cup last night was a brutal test for many of the founders who took the stage. With only a minute to convince a panel of experts why their company is worthy of moving on to a longer five-minute pitch, public speaking became more of an obstacle than ever. Even if a company's concept was brilliant on paper, if they experienced word vomit or hesitated on stage their night was likely over. And for many this happened, cut short in the meat of their message as staff member hit a gong, sounding off that their minute was up.
There were great ideas in each of the four categories, but only eight – two from each – were selected to deliver full pitches: EdBacker, eduCanon, Ethical Electric, Sunnovations, Dorsata, ChronoKair, RideScout and TransitLabs. And it was amazing how much of a difference four extra minutes made for the founders in their ability to compose themselves and deliver solid pitches. As the speakers finally had time to add some personality, they began capitalizing on the ability to humanize their startups and really sell to the judges. During the Q&A session for EduCannon, founder Ben Levy wittily answered a judge's question about funding with another question: "You mean the money you're going to give me?" His company was one of the winners come the end of the night.
A confident and crisp pitch wasn't the only thing that went into being selected as a Challenge Cup finalist, but it was common among all the teams that walked away on top Tuesday night. Take the gentleman who pitched RideScout – he might have been modestly dressed, but he was full of energy and confidence in his delivery, and his company was chosen as the finalist for the smart cities category. Richard Graves of Ethical Electric might not have had any on-stake quirks to lighten the mood, but he did know what he was talking about (plus his company's claim that founder Tom Matzzie is the infamous Acela NSA eavesdropper; no, really he is). Dorsata's David Fairbrothers used game-time-like determination while on stage that he picked up during his time as a football player for the University of Virginia.
Of course, there's more to great companies than the ability to pitch it to an audience. But in a competition like Challenge Cup in which most every company has a fantastic idea and business, it's those who stand out and exude credibility that rise to the top. And last night at the D.C. Region Challenge Cup, that was EduCanon, Ethical Electric, Dorsata and RideScout. Congratulations, and see you in May!
