In the seventh annual
Minnesota Cup competition, the top winner of $50,000 in seed capital was
AUM Cardiovascular, a Northfield-based startup that developed a handheld device that can detect coronary artery disease.
The company's founder and CEO, Dr. Marie Johnson, started the firm after her husband died suddenly at age 41 while she was still a Ph.D. candidate the University of Minnesota.
Although he'd seemed to be in perfect health, Johnson's husband had suffered a heart attack, and it moved her to focus on creating a system that could identify symptoms of coronary artery disease.
Johnson estimates that she'll need about $3 million to accomplish the goal of preparing her device for market, and she believes that the award's seed money, combined with the presentation skills she learned through the award process, will help her to reach a new level of entrepreneurship.
Launched in 2005, the Minnesota Cup has become a high-profile and competitive event among entrepreneurs. Companies compete in six divisions, including biosciences, clean technology, high tech, and social entrepreneurship. There's also a student division.
This year, more than 1,000 participated, and in addition to AUM's win, several semi-finalists also received seed funding to grow their businesses. Other winners are
Energy Max Panel,
Naiku,
Anser Innovation, Tesgen, and
HOURCAR.
According to the Minnesota Cup, past participants have many notable success stories to tell. For example, the 2009 grand prize winner,
8th Bridge, raised $5 million in series A funding soon after the competition, and another $10 million in series B in 2011.
Other winners have been acquired, secured new capital, or garnered major distribution agreements as a result of their awards.
So, for entrepreneurs looking to fatten up their funding: start thinking ahead, because Minnesota Cup 2012 is likely to be even livelier.
Source: Minnesota Cup
Writer: Elizabeth Millard