LaunchPad Announces 2026 Afropreneurship Competition Winners
Six student entrepreneurs took home cash prizes ranging from $250 to $2,500 at the annual pitch competition in Bird Library.
Íø±¬ÃÅ Libraries’ LaunchPad awarded prizes to several student entrepreneur teams as part of its annual Afropreneurship Celebration and Pitch Competition held in Bird Library on Feb. 6.
The event included a panel discussion featuring student and alumni entrepreneurs, followed by a pitch competition open to student teams across campus. Students pitched in either the Concept/Idea Track, where participants delivered a 90-second pitch on their idea for a chance to win $250-$500, or the Proof of Concept/Prototype/In-Market Track, where participants delivered a 4-minute business pitch and question and answer for a chance to win $1,000-$2,500.
Winning teams in the Concept Track were:
- Yuqian Di ’26 (School of Architecture), founder of ReBoot, won 1st place ($500). ReBoot is a specialized on-campus service to save students’ winter boots from salt damage through professional restoration, extending the lifespan of expensive footwear.
- Yuxin Chen ’26 (School of Architecture), founder of PlateMap, placed 2nd and was awarded $250. PlateMap is a visual meal-mapping system that eliminates decision fatigue by aligning food planning with a user’s actual schedule to make healthy, cost-effective eating effortless.
Winning teams in the In-Market Track were:
- Edouard Agbor G’26 (School of Information Studies), founder of GritGateway won 1st place ($2500). is an ethical human-centered AI-powered global opportunity platform with active users across 20+ African countries that helps ambitious African students turn their life stories into verified profiles of grit, resilience and potential that universities can trust.
- Imaad Maqsood ’29 (College of Arts & Sciences), founder of Upstate Pressure won 2nd place ($1500). Upstate Pressure is a residential and commercial pressure washing service that restores and protects exterior surfaces such as concrete walkways, driveways, decks, siding, fences, patios and more.
- Dylan Bardsley ’26 (Martin J. Whitman School of Management), founder of Clarity won 3rd Place ($750). Clarity is a transparent, AI-powered platform that instantly gives students clear, hyper-personalized credit card recommendations.
- Naheem Cadiz III ’28 (Martin J. Whitman School of Management), founder of Coveted won 4th place ($250). Coveted is a mobile fashion marketplace app designed for independent and emerging clothing brands and the consumers who discover them.
