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As the business landscape is rapidly reshaped by technological advances, take comfort in knowing Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship (NFTE) students are already embracing new frontiers of technology and entrepreneurship!
The latest example occurred on August 9 in the Southeast region, which hosted NFTE’s first-ever business pitch competition in the Metaverse, a live virtual environment.
The Startup Summer Investment Panel Competition was generously supported by Link Logistics. NFTE Southeast Executive Director Chris Brignolle described it as a “game changer” for today’s digital natives. Six aspiring young entrepreneurs, who had just completed a 6-week NFTE BizCamp, entered augmented reality (AR) to compete for $10,000 in Startup Summer prizes. The $5,000 top prize went to ShoeCentrix, the idea of Christopher Romero, Jr., a student at Fort Lauderdale High School in Broward County, Florida. Piwich Pro by Demi McKinley came in second, and Better Eats Vending by Layla Richardson took third place!
Illuminating the entrepreneurial mindset’s potential in the Metaverse dovetails with how NFTE learners have long used emerging technologies. This past school year, NFTE’s global pitch competitors used AR to interact with each other in the virtual world. At regional youth entrepreneurship challenges across the United States, students have also used artificial Intelligence (AI) to modify, define, or support business ideas. For example:
▪️ In the Southeast regional challenge, founders Felipe Escobar and Juan Varela pitched Bright, a pioneering platform revolutionizing mental health treatment using AI-driven chatbots, personal support, and a resource library.
▪️ Misbah Sifat of the Mid-Atlantic region created Mentor Fitness, a tech solution that taps AI models to provide personalized workout routines from real mentors and trainers.
▪️ Saket Pathak, a visionary in the West, founded InclusifyIQ, which leverages machine learning to help organizations foster more inclusive workplaces by using data-driven diversity, equity, and inclusion solutions.
See the boundless potential of youth entrepreneurship for yourself by attending a NFTE event!
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