Venture Forum – WooTank 2025 Worcester Intercollegiate Pitch Competition
April 8 @ 5:30 pm - 9:00 pm
WooTank is an intercollegiate pitch competition held in Worcester, MA, where student entrepreneurs from local colleges present their business ventures to a panel of investors, aiming to secure real-time funding and mentorship. The event is organized by The Venture Forum, a startup community dedicated to fostering economic growth and supporting entrepreneurs in Central MA.
The 2025 WooTank Intercollegiate Showdown is in the works!
● 2nd annual WooTank will take place on April 8, 2025 at Off the Rails, 90 Commercial Street, Worcester, MA
● Clark University, Holy Cross, Nichols and WPI will be competing.
● Student entrepreneur teams will pitch their innovative business ideas on the stage.
● Sharks will ask questions, evaluate pitches, and offer cash awards in real time.
Undergraduate students at a participating college are encouraged to reach out to their respective contact:
● Clark University: Paul Case, Director, Entrepreneurship & Innovation
● Holy Cross: Rob Murner, Director & EIR, Ciocca Center for Business, Ethics and Society
● Nichols College: Timothy Liptrap, Chair, Entrepreneurship
● Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI): Ardian Preci, Director of Innovation & Entrepreneurship Programs
The inaugural WooTank Intercollegiate Showdown was held in April 2024 and was a huge success. Over the course of the evening, eight student-run companies pitched their innovative business ideas to a panel of sharks to try to get one or more of them to allocate funding into their venture. Negotiations took place in real time on the stage, with over $20K of direct funding and in-kind services awarded to the competitors. Sponsors included Webster Five, Geisel Software, MassVentures, WorcLab, and Mike Mitchell Consulting.
