Innovate. Pitch. Impact.

Join the CAST-GNY Startup Pitch Competition on October 4, 2026, in the heart of Manhattan! This event brings together aspiring founders, entrepreneurs, investors, and industry professionals for a morning of pitching, feedback, networking, and practical insights into building and growing a startup.

This is an opportunity to showcase your idea, learn from experienced professionals, and connect with the Greater New York innovation community.

🏆 Grand Prize

📅 Tentative Agenda

9:30 – 9:45 AM Check-in & Networking
9:45 – 9:50 AM Welcome Remarks
9:50 – 10:10 AM Lightning Pitch Workshop — How to deliver a compelling startup pitch
10:10 – 10:20 AM Introduction to the Startup Pitch Competition — Rules, format & judging criteria
10:20 – 11:30 AM Startup Pitch Competition — Startup pitches & judges’ Q&A
11:30 – 11:40 AM Judges’ Deliberation
11:40 AM – 12:25 PM Entrepreneurship & Innovation Discussion— Insights from founders, investors, scientists & technology leaders
12:25 – 12:30 PM Award Ceremony & Grand Prize Presentation 🏆

(Agenda is subject to change.)

• Customer Problem and Importance
  Evaluates whether the team identifies a specific target customer and uses evidence to establish the seriousness, frequency, or consequences of an unmet need.
• Customer and Market Research

  Evaluates the relevance, credibility, and rigor of the research used to understand customers, market conditions, and existing alternatives, including how customers currently manage the problem.
• Insight and Opportunity Identification
  Evaluates whether the team derives a compelling, non-obvious insight from its research that explains an unmet need or reveals an overlooked business opportunity.
• Originality and Value Proposition
  Evaluates whether the proposed offering or business model provides a distinctive, meaningful benefit and a convincing reason for customers to choose it over existing alternatives.
• Business Model and Economic Logic
  Evaluates whether the proposed model credibly connects customer value, adoption, revenue or funding, and costs using explicit, evidence-supported assumptions.
• Market Validation and Learning
  Evaluates whether the team tests its central assumptions about customer demand and behavior and uses the findings to improve the offering or business model.
• Implementation and Growth Feasibility
  Evaluates whether the team presents a credible path to launch and sustain the venture, with realistic consideration of resources, operations, risks, and opportunities for growth.
• Clarity and Organization
  Evaluates whether the team communicates the problem, research, idea, and findings in a clear, coherent structure supported by understandable visuals where useful.
• Command of the Work and Responses to Questions
  Evaluates whether team members explain their decisions, answer questions directly with relevant evidence, and acknowledge the limitations of their work.