#pitchfest

[weexploreanddiscover]

we made it to the top 12 startups chosen for consensus 2023 Coindesk conf, major milestone achieved

[barbwritesstuff]

Hi!

Sorry for the unsolicited ask, but I'm an IF author, and I saw your post about Bindery Books' upcoming submission period, and was just wondering, as someone who is completely new to traditional publishing, if you had any general tips for submitting to the Pitchfest, and for writing the pitch letter.

I've had an adapted manuscript version of one of my games sitting around for some time and was looking to make the leap to traditional publishing, just waiting and looking for the opportunity to do so.

Hope you're having a good day, and thank you for sharing resources with prospective authors out there!

(I meant to send this as a private message, but was having issues doing so, my apologies.)

Okay, I've got some bad news first. If you've published a story before (even in IF form, online, and/or free) traditional publishing probably won't pick it up. They're primarily looking for writing that has never been published before in any form. That doesn't mean traditional publishing won't ever publish something that's been published before, but it's a lot harder.

Writing pitch/query/submission letters is not something I'm very good at. There's a ton of information free online, but the best advice I can give is to write it in the same sort of style as the manuscript. Eg, if it's a funny book, don't say it's funny, just be funny. I actually think I missed the mark on this in my submission letter, because Jaysen told me he didn't realise the book was funny until he started reading the manuscript. 😅

Finally, specificly to Bindery, know the creator you're submitting too. If you watch their content, I think you'll have a better understanding of the type of stories they're looking for, and you'll know who to submit to. I follow a lot of the Bindery creators, but I submitted to Jaysen Headley because I thought he would like my story... and I'm so glad he did. 💙

[cmweller]

I'm pitching four of my books! News at eleven

[spoopy-sloth]

So I somehow managed to win 1st place out of all of the 88 comic pitches submitted for today's Pitchfest??? It was a headspace where I felt flustered, humbled, and a bit pukey lol

Take that, imposter syndrome!!!!

[jcmarchi]

A launchpad for entrepreneurship in aerospace

New Post has been published on https://thedigitalinsider.com/a-launchpad-for-entrepreneurship-in-aerospace/

A launchpad for entrepreneurship in aerospace

At age 22, aerospace engineer Eric Shaw worked on some of the world’s most powerful airplanes, yet learning to fly even the smallest one was out of reach. Just out of college, he could not afford civilian flight school and spent the next two years saving $12,000 to earn his private pilot’s license. Shaw knew there had to be a better, less expensive way to train pilots.  

Now a graduate student at the MIT Sloan School of Management’s Leaders for Global Operations (LGO) program, Shaw joined the MIT Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics’ (AeroAstro) Certificate in Aerospace Innovation program to turn a years-long rumination into a viable solution. Along with fellow graduate students Gretel Gonzalez and Shaan Jagani, Shaw proposed training aspiring pilots on electric and hybrid planes. This approach reduces flight school expenses by up to 34 percent while shrinking the industry’s carbon footprint.

The trio shared their plan to create the Aeroelectric Flight Academy at the certificate program’s signature Pitchfest event last spring. Equipped with a pitch deck and a business plan, the team impressed the judges, who awarded them the competition’s top prize of $10,000.

What began as a curiosity to test an idea has reshaped Shaw’s view of his industry.

“Aerospace and entrepreneurship initially seemed antithetical to me,” Shaw says. “It’s a hard sector to break into because the capital expenses are huge and a few big dogs have a lot of influence. Earning this certificate and talking face-to-face with folks who have overcome this seemingly impossible gap has filled me with confidence.”

Disruption by design

AeroAstro introduced the Certificate in Aerospace Innovation in 2021 after engaging in a strategic planning process to take full advantage of the research and ideas coming out of the department. The initiative is spearheaded by AeroAstro professors Olivier L. de Weck SM ʼ99, PhD ʼ01 and Zoltán S. Spakovszky SM ʼ99, PhD ʼ00, in partnership with the Martin Trust Center for MIT Entrepreneurship. Its creation recognizes the aerospace industry is at an inflection point. Major advancements in drone, satellite, and other technologies, coupled with an infusion of nongovernmental funding, have made it easier than ever to bring aerospace innovations to the marketplace.

“The landscape has radically shifted,” says Spakovszky, the Institute’s T. Wilson (1953) Professor in Aeronautics. “MIT students are responding to this change because startups are often the quickest path to impact.”

The certificate program has three requirements: coursework in both aerospace engineering and entrepreneurship, a speaker series primarily featuring MIT alumni and faculty, and hands-on entrepreneurship experience. In the latter, participants can enroll in the Trust Center’s StartMIT program and then compete in Pitchfest, which is modeled after the MIT $100K Entrepreneurship Competition. They can also join a summer incubator, such as the Trust Center’s MIT delta v or the Venture Exploration Program, run by the MIT Office of Innovation and the National Science Foundation’s Innovation Corps.

“At the end of the program, students will be able to look at a technical proposal and fairly quickly run some numbers and figure out if this innovation has market viability or if it’s completely utopian,” says de Weck, the Apollo Program Professor of Astronautics and associate department head of AeroAstro.

Since its inception, 46 people from the MIT community have participated and 13 have fulfilled the requirements of the two-year program to earn the certificate. The program’s fourth cohort is underway this fall with its largest enrollment yet, with 21 postdocs, graduate students, and undergraduate seniors across seven courses and programs at MIT.

A unicorn industry

When Eddie Obropta SM ʼ13, SM ʼ15 attended MIT, aerospace entrepreneurship meant working for SpaceX or Blue Origin. Yet he knew more was possible. He gave himself a crash course in entrepreneurship by competing in the MIT $100K Entrepreneurship Competition four times. Each year, his ideas became more refined and battle-tested by potential customers.

In his final entry in the competition, Obropta, along with MIT doctoral student Nikhil Vadhavkar and Forrest Meyen SM ’13 PhD ’17, proposed using drones to maximize crop yields. Their business, Raptor Maps, won. Today, Obropta serves as the co-founder and chief technology officer of Raptor Maps, which builds software to automate the operations and maintenance of solar farms using drones, robots, and artificial intelligence

While Obropta received support from AeroAstro and MIT’s existing entrepreneurial ecosystem, the tech leader was excited when de Weck and Spakovszky shared their plans to launch the Certificate in Aerospace Innovation. Obropta currently serves on the program’s advisory board, has been a presenter at the speaker series, and has served as a mentor and judge for Pitchfest.

“While there are a lot of excellent entrepreneurship programs across the Institute, the aerospace industry is its own unique beast,” Obropta says. “Today’s aspiring founders are visionaries looking to build a spacefaring civilization, but they need specialized support in navigating complex multidisciplinary missions and heavy government involvement.”

Entrepreneurs are everywhere, not just at startups

While the certificate program will likely produce success stories like Raptor Maps, that is not the ultimate goal, say de Weck and Spakovszky. Thinking and acting like an entrepreneur — such as understanding market potential, dealing with failure, and building a deep professional network — are characteristics that benefit everyone, no matter their occupation. 

Paul Cheek, executive director of the Trust Center who also teaches a course in the certificate program, agrees.

“At its core, entrepreneurship is a mindset and a skill set; it’s about moving the needle forward for maximum impact,” Cheek says. “A lot of organizations, including large corporations, nonprofits, and the government, can benefit from that type of thinking.”

That form of entrepreneurship resonates with the Aeroelectric Flight Academy team. Although they are meeting with potential investors and looking to scale their business, all three plan to pursue their first passions: Jagani hopes to be an astronaut, Shaw would like to be an executive at one of the “big dog” aerospace companies, and Gonzalez wants to work for the Mexican Space Agency.

Gonzalez, who is on track to earn her certificate in 2025, says she is especially grateful for the people she met through the program.

“I didn’t know an aerospace entrepreneurship community even existed when I began the program,” Gonzalez says. “It’s here and it’s filled with very dedicated and generous people who have shared insights with me that I don’t think I would have learned anywhere else.”

[hotnew-pt]

HR Technology Conference & Exposition® anuncia os participantes do Pitchfest de 2024 #ÚltimasNotícias

Hot News Conferência e Exposição de Tecnologia de RH (R) Trinta e uma startups selecionadas para competição anual com a chance de ganhar mais de US$ 30.000 em prêmios WEST PALM BEACH, Flórida, 20 de agosto de 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — O Executivo de Recursos Humanos® Conferência e Exposição de Tecnologia de RH® anunciou hoje os participantes do seu Pitchfest 2024. A popular competição de startups…

[blockchainfeed]

Forty Web3 startups from 12 different countries and territories are heading to Consensus to pitch. #Blockchain #Crypto

[internutter]

I'm going to pitch four books! News at eleven.

[graysongoal]

Support King Arthur Baking Company

image description for the screenshot above: I borrowed this screenshot from the Libs of T i k T o k account. This screenshot is of the Baking Pitchfest page, where LoT has circled that King Arthur is specifically only allowing "Person of Color led business" to enter into the Product Competition and "Person of Color led bakery" to enter the Bakery Edition.

The Libs of T i k T o k and other white supremacist assholes have forced King Arthur Baking off of Twitter for specifically focusing on uplifting bakeries and businesses owned and led by Black, brown, Indigenous, Asian, Middle Eastern, African, Latinx, and other people of color.

Don't know about King Arthur? Well, they are an incredible 100% employee-owned company with high quality ingredients and a ton of gluten-free options.

They focus heavily on food access and justice, climate change, and underrepresented and forcibly oppressed folks. Plus, they're one of a few businesses who practices what they preach. Their DEI page really highlights a lot of work they've done, both internally and externally, to make the word a better place.

They also have a baking school with virtual options, a ton of recipes, and other tips and tricks. And, of course, their shop has many flours and baking mixes. They also sell other ingredients, kitchen tools, and bakeware.

I have a lot of love personally for King Arthur Baking because they were one of the early companies that started selling gluten-free mixes and flours in mainstream stores. I had to ditch gluten in 2012 and I thought I'd never enjoy breads or pastries again. The supply of gluten-free items was sparse in those days, y'all. Phew! Thankfully, I found them through the amazing Chef Brad, and learned SO much from the tips and tricks they shared.

It sounds like hyperbole, but they changed my life. I only hope that we can help support them so that they make it through this ridiculous LoT issue unscathed.

PS: I also borrowed the below screenshot from an upset asshole on Twitter, and I really like the way KA replied:

image description: an email reply from King Arthur Baking Company (written by Amy) to an upset asshole. The email reads:

Hi Cathy, We're sorry to hear that this doesn't sit well with you and you feel compelled to go elsewhere. Helping build joyful, equitable communities that celebrate diversity is an important part of who we are as a company. Please know that we'll be here and hope there'll come a day when you feel ready to rejoin our community. We love baking with anyone and everyone. Our simple expectation is that everyone show respect for one another. Kind Regards, Amy

[justiceheartwatcher]

White Bakers Banned From Competition - Todd Starnes

In other words – white bakers must be excluded to achieve maximum inclusivity. Chocolate cake good. Classic white cake is bad. And whatever you do, don’t do Martha White or White Lily Flour. Organizers say Baking Pitchfest is more than just a competition; it’s a platform to empower bakers of color and to “increase racial and ethnic diversity in the field.” I wonder if Aunt Jemima would be eligible?

[felixer-of-life]

King Arthur also does cool shit like teaming up with Project Potluck to support the POC baking community! This one was in January, but I'm sure there are other things in their lineup.

There's a lot to like about the King Arthur Baking Company -- I like their flours and a lot of their recipes, and I like that they're employee-owned. One of the products I especially like as a frequent bread baker is their Bread And Cake Enhancer, which at least in the breads I bake makes for a softer crust and tighter crumb, and keeps it from molding as fast as home-baked bread tends to.

But it's one of those things you just can't get in stores because it's a specialized product, and if I'm going to order it from the site I might as well order a few other things, so the last time I bought from them I bought enhancer, pizza flour, and bread flour.

I didn't even remember I'd bought enhancer until today, two days after it arrived, and realized I didn't have any. I checked the order and sure enough there it was, and it said it shipped with the flours, so I sighed and went to the customer service page...

Where in literally two minutes they answered my chat request, checked the order, and reshipped the enhancer to me. I said exactly two things -- a sentence explaining the issue, and then "Thank you, that would be great" when they offered to reship it to me.

I know paying upwards of $5 for a bag of flour feels ridiculous but between the quality of the product and the customer service, holy shit. Job well done, do recommend.

[omorales81]

It’s an honor to see #MajorThomás included among many great #KidsLit projects in the #KCUpitchfest showcase! #MakeComics #YASciFi #WritingCommunity #ComicArt @KidsComicsUnite https://kidscomicsunite.com/kcu-pitchfest-showcase-2023/

[weexploreanddiscover]

Startup Finalist Coindesk Consensus

We have some incredible news to share! P360, our fan engagement platform startup has just been announced as a finalist for this year's highly-anticipated Coindesk Consensus Conference. This is a massive achievement for us, especially after spending the last quarter of 2022 in Outlier Ventures' top-notch accelerator program. Being selected as one of the WEB3 startups to watch is a testament to our teams forward-thinking approach and ambition.

We are humbled and honored to be among such a talented group of innovators and disruptors. Congrats to all the other selected applicants! As we gear up for this exciting event in Austin next week, we can't wait to connect with fellow founders, builders, and enthusiasts in the space. If you're going to be at Consensus, please don't hesitate to reach out to us at zeshan@p360.hockey. The future of WEB3 is looking bright, and we're thrilled to be a part of it!

[earningpill]

Consensus Pitchfest 2023: Finance for the Unbanked

The Consensus Pitchfest 2023 gives a platform to firms that are leading game-changing innovations in crypto, creating more space for financial inclusion and empowerment globally. #Consensus #Pitchfest #Finance #Unbanked