Earlier this week, i.Lab Incubator entrepreneurs showed off their hard work at the Summer Incubator Showcase. The incubator is the flagship venture-development program of Darden’s Batten Institute for Entrepreneurship and Innovation, and provides accepted UVA and Charlottesville-area venture founders with grant funding, dedicated workspace, legal support, community, connections and mentorship from industry experts.
From workshops to demo nights to an off-Grounds visit to an innovation center in Richmond, Virginia, the 2019 cohort of founders leaves the program with the skills, connections and inspiration to take their ventures to the next level. At the event, each venture team had the opportunity showcase their products and give a short presentation about their business to an audience of over 100.
Several UVA and Darden student and alumni entrepreneurs participated in the incubator, showcasing everything from wearable doppler ultrasound, a platform that connects college and young athletes for sports training sessions, 3D-printed ACL braces, a portable bidet and more. Check out the full listing of 2019 i.Lab companies.
Among Darden representatives in the incubator program, Amanda Joseph (MBA’19) shared her love of travel and inspiration for creating Trulli, a platform that helps users build travel plans and find hidden gems based on personal recommendations.
The ultimate take-home prize is the $25,000 Kathryne Carr Award for Entrepreneurial Excellence — awarded to the summer incubator entrepreneur(s) whose venture shows the greatest potential for commercial success, and whose founder or team best emodies “magnetic, selfless leadership.”
This year’s $25,000 award went to PurPics, an app that allows student organizations to fundraise for charitable causes through social media while helping brands reach and engage their Gen Z consumers. Since their time as a 2018 member of the incubator, PurPics Founders Aneesh Dhawan and Victor Layne have grown their team to over 11 employees. Dhawan will be taking a leave of absence from the University of Virginia this year in order to focus on entrepreneurship and participate in the esteemed Techstars Accelerator program in Austin, Texas.
Read more about the i.Lab showcase.
