$13k in prize money awarded in 12th New Wave showcase
In October, we celebrated the final New Wave showcase of the year, and our 12th cohort since the program’s commencement 5 years ago. With 8 teams pitching their startup ideas, two teams came out on top and took home $13k between them in prize money to further their entrepreneurial journey.
The Winners of New Wave Cohort 12 Showcase:
First Prize ($4000); UNSW Faculty of Medicine and Health Award ($2500); Doone Roisin Business Innovation Award ($2500)
🍞 Toastie, founded by alumni Vivian Shen (Science & Engineering) and Annabel Zhou (Engineering), is a platform helping individuals with chronic illnesses take control of their health. In a sweeping result, they received three prizes during the Showcase, bringing their winnings to a total of $9000 to put toward the development of their startup.
UNSW Faculty of Engineering Award ($2500); and People's Choice Award ($1500)
👫 BuddyUp, founded by students Jasmine Yip (Science & Engineering) and Fiola Edwina Asyifa (Business), is a platform that helps combat loneliness in students, connecting one buddy at a time. The team received two awards, rewarding them with $4000 from the prize pool.
Following their participation in a 2-week entrepreneurial incubator, supported iterations, and mentorship, the top 8 teams pitched to a panel of judges who evaluated the presentations based on innovation, feasibility, market potential, and impact.
Our esteemed judging panel featured:
Kristen Phillips, Senior Manager (Ideas Programs & Comms), UNSW Founders
Doone Roisin, Founder of Female Startup Club
Kristen Splinter, Associate Professor, Managing Director, Water Research Laboratory, Faculty of Engineering UNSW
Phoebe Phillips, Associate Dean (Partnerships and Engagement), Faculty of Medicine and Health, UNSW
The Doone Roisin Business Innovation Award was established by Doone herself, after she found out that the program had never received a philanthropic donation since its conception 5 years earlier. She changed that immediately, and in turn has influenced the trajectory for female founders in the program.
Among the brilliant pitches from the teams, Nikki Tugano, MAPPCP, CEO and Founder of SeenCulture, joined New Wave Program Manager, Victoria-Rose Tucker, for a fire-side chat on her journey, innovation pathways, and experiences in entrepreneurship.
Supporting women in entrepreneurship is critical in solving real world problems, and programs like New Wave try to rebalance the innovation landscape by providing opportunity, mentorship, and support. Our startups feature female founders at twice the industry average, and we look forward to continuing this trend in 2024.
We are always looking for new mentors to support our brilliant teams on their journey – if you are interested, please reach out to Program Manager Victoria-Rose Tucker for more information.
The New Wave finalist teams for Cohort 12 (in alphabetical order) 💫👏
🤖 Amigo – Safeguarding careers for the future through upskilling capabilities in AI
👫 BuddyUp – Combatting loneliness in young people, one ‘buddy up’ at a time
👩🏻💼 Execly – Turning young women’s leadership potential and ambition into reality
♻️ FoodWave – Creating waves in food consumption and waste through collaboration
🦽 Leva Care – Empowering caregivers to thrive whilst supporting others
🛋️ ShowApp – Revolutionising the home furnishing and shopping experience
✈️ Spontaneous – Giving people the freedom to plan less and experience more
🍞 Toastie - Helping individuals with chronic illnesses take control of their health
For more on New Wave, visit https://unswfounders.com/new-wave
