Maximize

We hosted one of the most influential TECH summits in Michigan’s history and the kicker? It was female-led! Femology’s Female Founder Tech Summit brought the grit, the passion, and the ideas that are going to change the game. To every woman who pitched: you demonstrated what’s possible when women claim their opportunity to LEAD. Michigan’s history has always been about doing things differently. Women here aren’t waiting for permission, we’re creating, innovating, and leading the way. And the numbers? They don’t lie. Women now launch 49% of new businesses in the U.S., up from 29% just a few years ago. These businesses generate over $3.3 trillion in revenue and provide jobs to nearly 13 million people. In Michigan, women owned represents 44.2% (over 900,000 companies). The reality: even though women are doing the work, they’re still receiving 50% less in loans compared to their male counterparts and despite making up half of the entrepreneurial landscape, women-led startups still get only 2.3% of venture capital. A huge congratulations to our winners:
🏆 Investor’s Choice: Bailey Morgan of @nudena.co 
🏆 Femology Founder’s Choice: April Olson of @ollivate 
🏆 Femology Founder’s Choice: Chelsea Cooper of @kidink.world You’ve set the bar high, and your vision will undoubtedly inspire the next wave of female founders. This shift is happening because of leaders like Hilary Doe @hilarydoe , Michigan’s Chief Growth Officer, and investors like Shalanda Armstrong @shortyball24 and Monica Wheat @mwheat14 , who are using their platforms to ensure women have access to the capital and resources they need to thrive. The road to equity in venture capital isn’t easy, but it’s one we’re paving together. And with the women leading the charge, Michigan is going to be at the center of that change. Thank you to our amazing flagship partner @michigancentraldetroit @newlab , our design partner 7+ years @modernlyevents and @amazon for leading the global charge of innovation and supporting Femology. Video recap coming Monday ✨💎 Photos: @maximizehq @888creative_ #Femology #WomenInBusiness #VentureCapital #MichiganInnovation #FemaleFounders #TechLeaders #BreakingBarriers

🎓🚀 Michigan Tech Week 2024 College Day: Empowering the Next Generation of Innovators This year’s College Day was nothing short of extraordinary! 40 Students from 10 colleges across Michigan came together to compete, collaborate, and showcase their innovative spirit. Here’s what went down: 💡 Hackathon Highlights: 8 teams tackled real-world Michigan challenges, from transportation to sustainability, and had just 10 days to fully prototype solutions. Shoutout to Pathwayze, the winning team, for their incredible work on personalized career pathing blueprints. 🎤 Pitch Competition: 8 of the top student startups competed for a share of $15K in prizes, with Alivio Medical taking the crown for their groundbreaking reusable hospital bed attachment to prevent bedsores. Michigan’s future is bright, and it starts with the passion and creativity of these incredible student entrepreneurs. 💪✨ Drop a like, comment about your experience and a share with your friends! . . #MITechWeek24 #CollegeDay #Innovation #StudentEntrepreneurs #FutureLeaders #VentureCapital

We look forward to hosting A2 New Tech each month and the anticipation of seeing emerging entrepreneurs pitch their ideas to an engaged and supportive community! Shout out to @maximizehq and @annarborspark for the support of this community! 💫 We like this third space we are continuing to build to serve our community and we continue to cultivate Venue as a space to gather. 🌆 You can learn more about A2 New Tech at the link in our bio 🔗 Featured here, Alison Zaluski of #Valy #annarbor #annarbormichigan #annarborcommunity #annarbormi #michigan #michigannetworking #detroit #detroitnetworking #entrepreneur #entrepreneurship #community #networking

College Day would not be possible without our sponsors. Together, we created the largest prize pool this annual event has ever seen, $25,000+ in cash and in-kind prizes! Thank you to these generous leaders and their incredible organizations. Because of your support, the future of Michigan is brighter and better than ever. . . . #MITechWeek #CollegeDay #Sponsors #ThankYou

Huge shoutout to the amazing judges who will be selecting the winners for the Student Pitch Competition and Hackathon! Thank you for supporting our brightest and most talented student entrepreneurs. . . . #MITechWeek #CollegeDay #StudentPitchCompetition #Hackathon #Entrepreneur #Investor #Michigan

Still feeling inspired by last week’s @midwest_house at @michigantechweek in Detroit. There was so much love and support in the room for Michigan founders and for Crystal Brown and CircNova in particular. Shout out to @a2xlabs for allowing us to preview their film. Shout out to @venture313 @idventuresvc @techtowndetroit and @cibc for the food and drink and vibes. Shout out to our partners at @worldbusinesschicago @cooley_llp and @activecampaign for helping us bring founders from@around the region to Detroit for the week as part of the Midwest Founder Exchange. Shout out to @dugsong and @milestonesgci for participating in the fireside chat. Shout out to @maximizehq for shooting the event. And shout out to the nearly 300 folks who showed out to support our ecosystem. It was a very special night all the way around.

The Michigan Tech Week Student Hackathon is a prototype creation challenge. Students have 10 days before Michigan Tech Week to use technology to solve a unique challenge facing Michigan. Finalist teams must discuss the challenge they’re solving for (1/8) and then demonstrate the technology they’ve built. The teams are matched with one of the following expert mentors in their category. Thank you mentors for your amazing contribution to shaping the future of Michigan through our student entrepreneurs.

On Friday October 4th, 2024, 40 entrepreneurial students from across Michigan compete for $25,000+ in cash and in-kind prizes during the Student Pitch Competition & Hackathon at Michigan Tech Week. . . . #MITechWeek #CollegeDay #Entrepreneur #Investor #PitchCompetition #Hackathon #Michigan

On Sunday, over 30 students from across Michigan's top colleges, universities and post-secondary training programs met during the Student Hackathon Info Session for the first time. Participants have 48 hours to form a team and select 1/8 Michigan-centric challenge categories they want to solve. On Septemeber 25, the judging criteria will be released, and the teams will have 10 days to flush out their idea, build a prototype solution and compete for $10k in prizes. Presentations and results will be shared on October 4 at Michigan Central during Michigan Tech Week. . . . #MITechWeek #Hackathon #CollegeDay #Entrepreneur #Investor

We are hosting a Q/A to discuss how the 10 day virtual student hackathon event is going to work. Teams and criteria will be announced on September 25, 2024. Q/A Session -- 🗓️ Date: Sunday, September 22, 2024 ⏰ Time: 12:00PM EST 📍 Location: Zoom Follow along for live announcements, updates and progress on LinkedIn/Twitter: @maximizehq

🆘 We need your help! Submit a project for the students to tackle by September 23rd... The Michigan Tech Week Student Hackathon is designed to foster collaboration among students from Michigan's universities, colleges, and technical training programs to tackle real-world problems that address Michigan-specific challenges in tech-driven, scalable ways. Sponsored by Maximize, students will team up across campuses and have 10 days to create prototypes that solve for Michigan’s unique challenges. 🦋 💰On October 4th, the teams will present their solutions and compete for $10,000 in non-dilutive funding. ✅ Submit your idea here: https://bit.ly/3TuBTeo (Link in bio) 👇 . . . #MITechWeek #StudentEntrepreneur #Hackathon

📢 Last chance to apply to compete for a chance to win from $25,000 in prizes. ✅ Submit your application by 11:59PM EST TONIGHT! 👉 Learn more and apply here: https://bit.ly/4eqZYLk (Link to application in bio). . . . #MichiganStartups #Entrepreneurship #MITechWeek #Founders