Participate in 2015 Wharton India Economic Forum’s (WIEF) Startup Competition!

By asha chaudhry on December 12, 2014 18 Comments / 4286 views

We are very pleased to announce that 2015 Wharton India Economic Forum (WIEF) has associated with TheRodinhoods!! As Media Partner, TheRodinhoods will reach out to startups, speakers and audiences in India for active participation in the entire event.

Which means, YOU are part of the excitement!! And this is YOUR CHANCE to go to Philly!

As a part of its endeavour to recognize emerging and established startups creating positive impact in the Indian entrepreneurial ecosystem, the 19th Wharton India Economic Forum (WIEF) is hosting the prestigious Startup Competition for the second year in a row to promote entrepreneurship in India. This will be held at Philadelphia on Feb 20-21, 2015.

Last year, Alok was a judge on the Startup Competition Panel and has been invited again this time :). Quoting him: “Being at the Wharton Startup competition is as big as it gets. The audience, jury members and contestants represent the world’s best, all working together to make entrepreneurial magic happen.”

Would YOU like to be at WIEF?!

Are you an entrepreneur focused on the Indian market? Do you want a unique opportunity to showcase your product/service in front of a high profile global audience comprising angel investors, VCs, corporate leaders and serial entrepreneurs? You can! Just apply!!

So, who can apply?

The Startup Competition is open to any individual(s) with a business idea or model incorporating products or services targeting the Indian market OR Indian products or services targeting the US market.

The Prize + Offers!

– Cash prizes worth up to US$10,000

– One member from each team of finalists will receive a subsidized return ticket to attend the WIEF conference (where the Finals of the Startup Competition will be held) in Philadelphia, USA.

Still not convinced? Well listen to what Rodinhooder Vivek Kumar (Qlicket) has to say – he was a finalist at the Startup Competition last year!

IMPORTANT!

Please check out all the competition & eligibility details here.

LAST DATE TO APPLY: JAN 3, 2015

Not applying? Don’t feel sad. You can still WIN A FREE TICKET!!

All you have to do is nominate someone else as a candidate for the competition! If you know a fellow Rodinhooder or an amazing startup that fulfill the criteria, YELL & TELL! Actually, even better – just fill out this 2-minute survey and stand a chance to win a free ticket to attend the 2015 WIEF conference in Philadelphia if your nominated startup gets selected as a finalist!!

think.do.be.at.wief.

Comments

asha chaudhry

18 Comments

Mohul Ghosh December 12, 2014, 8:52 am

Wow! Brilliant chance for budding start-ups.. Thank Rodinhoods for creating this awesome opportunity..

May the most hard working entrepreneur win!
Vivek Kumar December 12, 2014, 9:39 am

This was such a wonderful event and was so honored to be one of the finalists.

Would encourage you to get involved and APPLY!!

happy to answer any questions 🙂
Priyadeep Sinha December 12, 2014, 2:40 pm

A great opportunity for all Rodinhooders! I, for one, am definitely going to try and make the most of it. All the best to all the applicants 🙂
Alok Rodinhood Kejriwal December 21, 2014, 1:12 pm

Yeah!!!
Indranil Sarkar December 31, 2014, 11:09 am

Only three days to go to the deadline (January 3rd) – Hurry! Apply now at
https://www.whartonindia.com/startup-competition.php
asha chaudhry January 3, 2015, 4:06 pm

hey indranil,

i realise today is the last date for applying, but would midnight be the deadline or have you closed it already?

one saleel joshi says the online submission isn’t working right now?

pls check alok’s fb link – https://www.facebook.com/rodinhood/posts/10155189943365495?comment_id=10155200584050495&notif_t=comment_mention

request for you to kindly look into this.

many many thanks!
Semil Shah '@semshah143' January 3, 2015, 5:17 pm

hi vivek,

why am I not able to find apply now button

i check the links its not seen on wharton India site
asha chaudhry January 3, 2015, 5:23 pm

semil,

indranil sarkar from wharton is online on trhs right now. if you have any issues u can ask him. he’s just replied to a query on alok’s fb

“there was some technical issue with our website today due to high traffic but we fixed it earlier today. If it still doesn’t work, please email us your application and attachments to wharton.india.startup@gmail.com. “
Indranil Sarkar January 3, 2015, 5:49 pm

Hi Vivek, on the website, please
Indranil Sarkar January 3, 2015, 5:51 pm

https://www.whartonindia.com/startup-competition.php?display=6-submission Semil, please use the above link to apply
asha chaudhry January 5, 2015, 5:47 am

hey indranil,

how has the response been??!!
Vivek Kejriwal January 10, 2015, 7:57 pm

Sorry. I missed it. Lost opportunity as just saw this today 🙁
asha chaudhry January 11, 2015, 4:05 am

:((( vivek, pls read the weekly newsletter we send out every friday. you won’t miss anything important!

you can find all of them here – https://www.therodinhoods.com/forum/categories/weekly-newsletter/listForCategory
Karthik M Sundaram January 20, 2015, 8:35 am

Any update on whether the first round shortlisting has been completed?

Will the participants be informed individually alone or will a list be published?

Thanks!
Vasudevan Uppili January 21, 2015, 5:15 am

Hello Indranil,

Hope the response was great. I have also submitted our participation under the name “Gyannext”. Quite eagerly waiting to hear the status of our participation. How do we get to know the results? I tried to browse through the website and couldnt find any information regarding the next round shortlisted teams/ideas.

Thanks in advance.
asha chaudhry February 1, 2015, 1:52 pm

hey all,

a lot of folks have been pinging me for updates!

i believe the shortlisting of semi-finalists and thereafter finalists has been done.

team wharton will be sending us an official update soon.
Siddhant Jain August 19, 2015, 12:07 pm

Hi Vivek, what stage was Qlicket at when you applied last year?
Vivek Kumar August 19, 2015, 11:35 pm

Hi Siddhant

When we were in the program two years ago, there were two categories: i) idea stage, and ii) post proof of concept stage. We applied to the post proof of concept stage, having raised some angel capital, and having some initial paying customers, but not having conducted a formal institutional round. Most of the other finalists in the post proof of concept category were at a similar stage. (Interestingly though, we ended up pivoting since then in terms of our business model and our technology emphasis and are doing better than we’ve ever done before.) You may want to have a look at the exact requirements for this year’s 2016 application though to ensure specific criteria are met.

You should definitely apply if you’re eligible to do so. The experience is *phenomenal* The finalist startups from the post proof of concept category have done pretty well, having now collectively raised funding from Tiger Global, Sequoia, 500 Startups and more. You also get to network with folks in the U.S. and from India. And, you’re presenting at a Wharton conference in front of your peers and the media with the chance to earn even more press and money.

In short, it’s awesome. Feel free to post any more questions or ping me directly if you’d like any additional advice. Wish all the Rodinhooders the best, and honored to be among some many great folks.

Vivek