EyeVerify CEO Toby Rush celebrates his startup’s Get in the Ring victory with event host James Digby.
Two Silicon Prairie startups entered the Get in the Ring finals Monday night along with six other U.S. companies. They ended the night tops in the country.
EyeVerify CEO Toby Rush, presenting in the biometrics startup’s hometown of Kansas City, had the crowd behind him from the first bell, winning the overall competition and fan favorite as chosen by the crowd and live stream viewers. With the win, Rush will fly to Rotterdam, Netherlands, today to prepare for the international final Friday against startup winners from seven other countries—$1.3 million in funding is at stake. EyeVerify also was awarded $10,000 cash for its U.S. win and a $1,000 Apple gift card for being the fan favorite. Lincoln-based Travefy, which helps groups plan trips easily, swung a second-place finish through the pitching skills of CEO David Chait, winning $5,000 in cash.
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The pitch competition—its first time running a U.S. version—narrowed down 283 startup entrants to 40 semi-finalists, then finally the eight that presented Monday. The night was broken down to two sections. First, two entrepreneurs were pitted against each other and given 25 seconds per “round” to articulate different aspects of the business—its model, team, potential, etc. Second, now narrowed down to four—then adding one back through crowd voting—each company’s “boxer” fought for why their company would best represent the U.S. in the Netherlands. Rush said he was thrilled by the prospect.
“It’s really cool that I get to be a kind of ambassador for American startups,” he told Silicon Prairie News. “This is a lot of great visibility, which is one of the hardest things to get as a startup.”
He said pitching in his hometown was fun, but it came with some anxiety.
“My wife and son were there, along with a lot of friends, mentors and others,” he said. “So, yeah, there was a little bit of pressure involved. Twenty-five seconds is tight, so I had to get into it quickly.”
Chait said it was much more about the experience and advice then any cash prize.
“To have a former Priceline CEO confirm and challenge aspects of our customer acquisition strategy is invaluable,” he told SPN. “It was validation for what we’re doing.”
And as much, he said the two days of programming—run by Kauffman—leading up to the competition were an incredible learning and networking opportunity. The eight finalists went through workshops, toured KC mainstays and bonded over meals and drinks.
“We all shared our war stories,” he said. “Everyone must have walked away with at least 10 new important connections.”
Credits: Photo by Jeff Slobotski.
