SCAD Start-up Celebration concludes 2020 competition

By Perrin Smith

Start-up 2020 has been in full swing for a while now, but Friday, Feb. 14, the competition came to a close. 

For competitors, Valentine’s Day began with a science fair style showroom in the upper levels of the SCAD Museum of Art. There, competitors pitched their ideas for a final time to colleagues, students, professors and even industry insiders.

From there, the event transitioned to the SCAD Museum auditorium, where a crowd of competitors and volunteers gathered to hear the announcement of the four finalist teams. 

After the four teams were announced, they took to the stage to pitch their idea to the crowd. In the final round, judges assessed the teams for a chance at a cash prize. 

 The finalist teams were “Pitchin’ Kitchen,” “Vox,” “Platform” and “Patties.” Each team had five minutes to share the details of their unique start-up ideas which included cost projections and potential revenue earnings. 

One team proposed a smartphone application to help abuse victims find safety or communicate with law enforcement in an emergency situation. Another team came up with a dog collar for hard of hearing pets that comes with sound activated vibration modules that allows an animal to understand the voice of their owner.

In the end, team “Pitchin’ Kitchen” took home first prize for an app that would alert those hard of hearing by sending notifications to their phone when important information is announced such as when a bus stops.