>>venture>> The Starting Line

 
Six questions. Real jurors. Come find out if >>venture>> is the right competition for your startup.

Applications for the 2027 >>venture>> competition open October 1, and there's exactly one thing standing between you and the Top 200: six questions the jury will ask about your startup.

The Starting Line is where you find out how you'd answer them, before it counts. And "starting line" means exactly that — whether you've got a team, a prototype, and early traction, or just an idea you've been turning over in your head, this event is built for you.
Come learn how the competition works, how CHF 590,000 in non-dilutive funding gets distributed, and how you could walk away with up to CHF 150,000, mentoring, and a consulting package from McKinsey & Company. If it feels like the right fit, you can start your application that same evening; our team and expert mentors will be there to help you get going.

What happens on the night

Our jurors score alumni startups live, out loud, on the same six criteria that decide the 2027 competition: Innovation, Team, Technology & Product, Market, Sustainability & Impact, and Business. You'll watch real answers get real feedback: the good, the underprepared, and everything in between.
Then it's your turn:

• Writing room: sit down and draft your own answer to the most challenging of the six criteria, with structure and prompts to work from
• Clinics: small-group sessions with mentors who'll push back on your answers before you have to defend them for real
• Apéro: meet other founders, the >>venture>> team, and the people who'll be reading your application

• EPFL, MED Building, Lausanne
• 5 October 2026, doors open 6:00 PM
• Free to attend
• Bring: your idea (however far along), a notebook/laptop, and your toughest unanswered question