PROGRAM COMPONENTS

Companies interested in Innovate Illinois should fill out applications by and submit them to application@innovateillinois.org by August 15.

Applications will be reviewed by the appropriate regional Entrepreneurship Center. After the review, companies selected for the semi-finals competition will be notified September 8.

The semi-finals competition will be held in downtown Chicago on September 26. Each company will have five minutes to present their businesses and innovations to a panel of judges in a fast pitch business presentation. The winners of the semi-finals will be announced at a cocktail reception following the competition. Six companies in each track will move on to the finals.

Companies selected for the finals will present for 10 minutes before a panel of judges representing both the entrepreneurial and investment community at a competition in Chicago on November 18. The winners will be announced the same afternoon at the closing cocktail reception. There will be one winner and one runner-up awarded for each track. The winners will each be awarded a $40,000 cash prize, while the runner-ups will each be awarded $10,000 cash prizes.

Travel stipends will be provided to cover the costs of getting to and from the semi-final and final competitions.