TechRise Season 3 kicks off in April 2023!

Chicago’s BIPOC and Woman/Trans/Non-Binary founders are invited to submit an application for the chance to be selected for an upcoming competition. Applications are accepted on a rolling basis, and we invite entrepreneurs to pitch 1-2 months in advance of their competition date. Pitch coaching and mentorship are provided in advance of your application date.

Every Friday at 12 CST, we host 5 founders on Zoom (unless otherwise noted), and competitions are livestreamed to YouTube. Founders have 4 minutes to pitch their business to a panel of VC judges, and at the end of the hour one startup is awarded a non-dilutive prize between $25-$50K. You can check out our Seasons 1 & 2 competitions here.

To participate as a sponsor, judge, or founder mentor, please fill out this form.

For BIPOC and Woman/Trans/Non-Binary founders, please fill out the following form to create a profile on our CommonApp platform. Doing so will give you access to an editable profile that we will use to consider you for a future pitch competition.