UW students’ high-tech business plan a winner

Four University of Washington students earned $25,000
and an opportunity to walk the walk when their idea for a
high-tech company won the UW business school’s
entrepreneurial business plan competition Tuesday.

By Lisa Heyamoto
Seattle Times business reporter

The grand prize is intended as seed money for winners Dennis Luo, Mark Laliberte, David Craig
and Paul Mathew to launch their business after graduation. Their company, Cogelix, would
distribute an injectable gel that attacks cancer cells by surrounding them with radiation.

Students from five Washington universities attended workshops to learn what it takes to start a
business and then pitched their plan to a group of mock investors, who distributed fake dollars
among the 52 teams. The top 16 advanced to the final round, where they were judged on their
business idea and the feasibility of putting it into practice.

"We’re completely thrilled," said Craig, a Ph.D. candidate in bioengineering. "There is an
incredible network in the community and for someone at this stage to have a reason to talk to
people interested definitely looks promising."

A total of $75,000 in prize money was split among the eight finalists, with Cogelix reaping the
lion’s share. The substantial prize money and high-caliber judges make UW’s annual competition
one of the best in the country, according to Michael Song, executive director of the UW’s Center for
Technology Entrepreneurship, which puts on the event.

Song said the students benefit from learning the elements and challenges inherent to starting a
business, while having access to the resources and guidance provided by those involved. Of the
businesses generated by the competition since it started five years ago, 13 are still operating along
the West Coast, he said.

"This is not an academic exercise," he said. "We treat this as a real-world experience."

Lisa Heyamoto can be reached at [email protected].

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/134459629_compete23.html