Hello LaunchX Community,
I’m Forest Richter, and I’m the new President of LaunchX. This introduction is a bit overdue, having started in the role last June, but I wanted to wait until I had a clearer understanding of where LaunchX is today and where I hope we can grow in the future. Taking on this role has been an amazing journey so far, and I can’t wait to connect with all of you — especially those who may have become disconnected from the program over the past few years. If that’s you, consider this your official invitation back into the LaunchX ecosystem. We’ve been up to some exciting things, and I think you’re going to love what’s next.
This past summer was incredible. We ran three online entrepreneurship cohorts, an online innovation cohort working directly with businesses, and two onsite programs at the University of Michigan and Cal Berkeley, respectively. We saw incredible student teams tackle real-world challenges, pushing the boundaries of creativity and entrepreneurship. From sustainable tech startups to social impact initiatives, our participants once again proved that young innovators are a force to be reckoned with.
One standout project? A team developed a software application to help fellow teenagers avoid online predation. Check out Hawkeye to see their product in action. Working directly with this team was eye opening for me regarding the frequency that teenage social media users encounter unwanted online interactions and how little the social media companies themselves are doing to prevent it.
In addition to our summer program, we've introduced some exciting new initiatives this year. We launched our AwardX pitch competition in the fall. This initiative saw over 200 young entrepreneurs from around the globe compete for a $5,000 cash prize. 10 finalists pitched live and our winner was Abbie Goddard, who founded Spikey. We just competed a regional AwardX competition supporting young founders from East Africa. Our next iteration, AwardX Social Impact, will be taking place on August 2nd. You can learn more at AwardX.com
We also created a public LaunchX Discord server to connect Launchies, Alumni, Mentors, and our Team. Whether you're looking for career advice, a co-founder for your next startup, or just some like-minded friends to brainstorm with, our public Discord is here for you.
We are just wrapping up a very successful application season. We finished with the most completed applications ever which has us on pace for our largest summer enrollment in LaunchX history. I am thrilled that through the collective effort of our team, we’re able to empower more young entrepreneurs. We’re bringing back all of our core summer programming. We’ll be going back to Berkeley for another year, and we’re also returning to Boston, the original home of LaunchX
In addition to our core programming, we’re introducing a new Entrepreneurship Bootcamp. This program is a smaller, condensed version of our LaunchX curriculum built to allow more students to access LaunchX. Our core programming is competitive and a significant commitment to be successful. It is not the right fit for everyone, but that doesn’t mean that the door to entrepreneurship needs to be closed. This bootcamp is a first step toward future entrepreneurial success. All students who successfully complete the bootcamp are granted admittance to a future LaunchX program, should they choose We are also making progress on BeyondX, our first youth entrepreneurship conference, taking place on August 2nd in San Francisco. With this conference, we hope to invite even more young entrepreneurs to gather, connect, and learn from each other.
Also, we will be launching our first ever Fall programs this year, including a brand new program. Stay tuned as we announce that that will look like in the coming weeks.
Contribute to the LaunchX Ecosystem
LaunchX is most powerful when operating as an ecosystem. An ecosystem supported by all of the people who have had an opportunity to participate, in any capacity, in strengthening youth entrepreneurship. We are only the best youth entrepreneurship program in the world when we have experienced adults supporting the development of our students. As we broaden our offerings, we have more ways to contribute. Even with minimal availability, there is a way for you to meaningfully help the next generation of entrepreneurs. Please complete the interest form so we can collaborate on the best way to integrate you into our programming.
Stay tuned for more updates, and don’t hesitate to reach out if you’d like to connect. Whether you're an old friend or a new face, we can’t wait to hear what you’ve been working on.
Here’s to an exciting year ahead!
Cheers, Forest
LaunchX
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