Wharton Stories: Startup Challenge

man looking at phone in city hero
Félix founders Bernardo Garcia, WG’21, and Manuel Godoy, WG’21, cite trust as an integral factor for drawing in consumers for their “cross-border” platform.

AI for Business Invests in Wharton Startup, Félix

This year’s finalists tackled firefighter cancer, frontline medical devices, maternal nutrition, global healthcare access, and more.

4 Startup Challenge Finalists Share What Inspired Their Ventures

The winner of the 2020 Penn Wharton Entrepreneurship Startup Challenge is a timely telehealth platform for pet parents founded by Felicity Johnson, WG’20.

MBA Startup ‘My Virtual Veterinarian’ Delivers Remote Pet Care

Shanel Fields standing in front of a yellow firetruck
While getting her MBA, Shanel Fields, WG’19, founded MD Ally to ensure critical emergency resources are reserved for patients with true medical emergencies.

This MBA’s Telehealth Startup Saves Lives One Call at a Time

Three striped towels hanging on hooks on a wooden wall
Founder of Laguna Beach Textile Company, Danny Meurer, WG’17, is aiming to secure brand longevity by taking a different business approach to other fast-growing digital retail brands.

4 Key Differentiators in a Lean Approach to Founding a Digital Brand, from a Startup Challenge Semi-Finalist

Bianca Gonzalez and Janak Agarwal posing in front of a Wharton sign.
EMBA classmates Bianca Gonzalez, NU’08, WG’19, and Janak Agarwal, WG’19, pooled their experience and their resources and launched a venture to combat inefficiencies in the health care system.

Three Resources These Student Entrepreneurs Used to Accelerate Their Health Care Startup

Instahub Light Switch
Michael Wong, W’19, co-founder and CEO of Hult Prize Ivy winner InstaHub, talks about learning from setbacks and the future of a simple device that saves energy one light switch at a time.

How This Wharton/Penn Team Rebounded From a Loss to Win a Social Enterprise Competition

A young man with dark hair stands in front of a white sign reading,
The second year of the Penn Wharton Entrepreneurship Startup Challenge, a 2.0 version of the Wharton Business Plan Competition, brings together Penn entrepreneurs and alumni investors to help student startups break through.

What You Can Expect at the Penn Wharton Startup Showcase

InstaHub, the winner of the Hult Prize Ivy League competition, creates simple solutions to automate energy savings. The team of Wharton and Engineering students developed an occupancy sensor that snaps directly onto existing light switches, providing instant light automation without the logistical and financial bottlenecks involved in replacing and rewiring conventional light switches.

InstaHub: Automating Energy Savings

For women in the U.S. who want a better skincare routine, aavrani is a luxury skincare company inspired by India’s ancient beauty rituals.

aavrani: Luxury Skincare Inspired by Indian Beauty Rituals