Myriads of student entrepreneurs gathered at Arizona State’s Tempe campus this past weekend for seminars and one-on one-mentor sessions and the ultimate chance to network at Changemaker Central’s ASU Startup Summit.
The event was centered around those who work on social-based startups, with the goals to bring local entrepreneurs and startups together as a community, Mark Huerta, an Arizona State student and Management Intern at Changemaker Central said.
The event was originally designed to be a summit for the finalists of Changemaker Challenge’s yearly seed funding competition, but was opened up to ASU students and the community.
Students were able learn first-hand from local leaders on how to successfully manage a startup or an entrepreneurial venture and accelerate an idea into success, Huerta said. At the end of the day students were able to network and meetup with mentors to ask for free legal advice and other industry tips.
One startup who presented their business plan was Feel Free, a localized messaging system that promotes collaboration.
“(We) use tech to bring people back together,” John Johnson, co-founder Feel Free said.
Feel Free, a Seed Spot alumnae, returned to the Startup Summit again after last fall’s successful prototype pitch. They received such a great response from the students they were here once again to promote and obtain feedback on their product. Johnson said.
RELATED: The graduates of Seed Spot
Throughout the day, there was a growing sense of the community that filled the room as students, co-founders and mentors helped each other build their business.
“This is a way to get everybody together,” Huerta said. “It’s a great way to learn from successful people who have already done it.”
For more information about AZ startups, visit AZ Tech Beat.
