UMass Amherst’s Berthiaume Center for Entrepreneurship Presents Student Ventures with More Than $30,000 at Awards Night

On November 14th, the Berthiaume Center for Entrepreneurship at the University of Massachusetts Amherst held the annual Innovation and Entrepreneurship Academy Awards night at the Old Chapel. It hosted esteemed faculty, enthusiastic students, and industry leaders in person and via live stream. Cash prizes totaling over $30,000 were awarded to ventures that won pitch competitions throughout the fall semester as part of the Innovation and Entrepreneurship Academy programming. This event focused on the Technology Challenge, Hult Prize: Unlimited, and Executive Pitch, celebrating the winning ventures and encouraging innovation and entrepreneurship at the University of Massachusetts Amherst.

Notable attendees of the awards night included essential members of the entrepreneurship ecosystem who expressed appreciation for the dedication to fostering innovation and empowering the next generation of business leaders and visionaries. 

We truly believe that every single student has the ability to change the world, and that everyone can be a problem solver, an agent of change in their community.

This awards night honored the winners from this semester's pitch competitions and involved community members speaking in the spirit of entrepreneurship and imparting their wisdom to this year's winners.

-Michael Boyle, Associate Director of Growth & Engagement, Hult Prize Foundation

The highlight of the event was the announcement of the winning ventures, which are as follows:

Tech Challenge

• 1st: Beyond (Meta Lidar)—Babak Mirzapourbeinekalaye 2023, College of Engineering, $8,000
• 2nd: RamCore—Molly Costa, College of Engineering 2024, $5,000
• Honorable Mention: PulsePal—Devan Yarberry, College of Engineering 2025, $1,000
• Honorable Mention: Valis—John Dale, College of Engineering 2024, $1,000

Hult Prize: Unlimited

• 1st: Carpool—Tarek El Aouji, College of Engineering and College of Natural Sciences, $8,000 and entry to a Hult Regional Summit.
• 2nd: Leap—Kurstin Burnham, Isenberg School of Management 2024, $1,000
• Honorable Mention: XChange—Grant Cooney, Isenberg School of Management 2025, $1,000

Executive Pitch 

• 1st: Nates Natty—Noah Faverman, Isenberg School of Management 2026, $8,000
• 2nd: Rota—Caitlin Sullivan, Isenberg School of Management 2024, $4,000
• Honorable Mention: Partiu Intercâmbio—Bruna Passos Amaral, Isenberg School of Management, $2,000
• Honorable Mention: Adion—Daniel Jaffe, Isenberg School of Management 2026, $500 
• Honorable Mention: ILUNNA—Shreya Karri, Isenberg School of Management and Honors College 2023, $500

The Innovation and Entrepreneurship Academy Awards is another shining example of how the Berthiaume Center for Entrepreneurship at the University of Massachusetts Amherst continues to champion the spirit of entrepreneurship and innovation, inspiring current and future students to become the next leaders of tomorrow in the business world.