Fairfield University teams GreenIRR and quantifyAI pitched at Yale’s Tsai Center for Innovative Thinking against teams from Yale, Trinity College, and Quinnipiac.
I was incredibly excited to compete again because pitching has started to feel like a sport.
— Celine King ’23 of GreenIRR
Following a successful Fairfield StartUp Showcase last April where student teams pitched their business ideas in front of a live audience for seed money, teams GreenIRR and quantifyAI have been hard at work as they continue to fine-tune their business ideas. Both teams were invited to compete at the 2022 Connecticut Pitchoff held last week at the Tsai Center for Innovative Thinking at Yale. The Fairfield University teams went head-to-head in five-minute ptiches against nine student teams from Yale, Trinity College, and Quinnipiac.
“I was incredibly excited to compete again because pitching has started to feel like a sport,” said Celine King ’23 who pitched for GreenIRR. “I was particularly excited to participate in a competition taking place at an Ivy League college against other universities. During the competition, I had a wonderful support system there including my partner Richard Hyman and market analyst Wilson Alexi ’21, MSBA’23 along with Chris Huntley. We are now beginning to build our software and have formed an LLC. Winning the competition was incredible exposure to an incredible audience.”
GreenIRR is a SaaS offering that provides portfolio managers access to low-latency environmental data on their portfolio companies. Mariana Antaya ’23 pitched for team quantifAI, an AI-based cryptocurrency portfolio selection, recommendation, and optimization software for financial advisors.
“The Connecticut Pitchoff competition is part of a long-planned transition for the StartUp program,” said StartUp Program Director Chris Huntley, PhD. “We started as a one-night business pitch show in 2012. As the program grew, we added more programming and have now taken the pitches on the road with teams traveling to national competitions after appearing in the StartUp Showcase as underclassmen. Celine’s and Mariana’s performances at the CT PitchOff showed they are ready for whatever comes next.”
Teams GreenIRR and quantifAI will pursue additional top-tier national competitions in the spring while the Fairfield StartUp Program prepares a group of new students to participate in the next Fairfield StartUp Showcase on Tuesday, April 18, 2023.
“I was incredibly excited to compete again because pitching has started to feel like a sport,” said Celine King ’23 who pitched for GreenIRR. “I was particularly excited to participate in a competition taking place at an Ivy League college against other universities. During the competition, I had a wonderful support system there including my partner Richard Hyman and market analyst Wilson Alexi ’21, MSBA’23 along with Chris Huntley. We are now beginning to build our software and have formed an LLC. Winning the competition was incredible exposure to an incredible audience.”
GreenIRR is a SaaS offering that provides portfolio managers access to low-latency environmental data on their portfolio companies. Mariana Antaya ’23 pitched for team quantifAI, an AI-based cryptocurrency portfolio selection, recommendation, and optimization software for financial advisors.
“The Connecticut Pitchoff competition is part of a long-planned transition for the StartUp program,” said StartUp Program Director Chris Huntley, PhD. “We started as a one-night business pitch show in 2012. As the program grew, we added more programming and have now taken the pitches on the road with teams traveling to national competitions after appearing in the StartUp Showcase as underclassmen. Celine’s and Mariana’s performances at the CT PitchOff showed they are ready for whatever comes next.”
Teams GreenIRR and quantifAI will pursue additional top-tier national competitions in the spring while the Fairfield StartUp Program prepares a group of new students to participate in the next Fairfield StartUp Showcase on Tuesday, April 18, 2023.
