Calling all student innovators, entrepreneurs, and AI enthusiasts from across the Boston area! Join the AI Startup Design-a-Thon competition and bring your ideas to life. The competition runs from June to September 2025, culminating in a live pitch event on September 28th during Boston AI Week.
This is a different kind of competition:
• A collaborative, multi-school event, students focus on creating new products/services by teaming up with others from anywhere across the Boston ecosystem.
• Learn from each other's strengths and perspectives as well as from our innovative AI-enabled innovation platform, IdeaMentor.
Bring a team or create a team, then work though the new product design cycle: problem identification, idea generation, prototyping (your choice of business model, coding, storyboards, etc). It all culminates in a final pitch on September 28th 💡
Welcome to all majors! If you’re currently a college student, you’re eligible -- Suffolk, Northeastern, Boston University, Tufts, Boston College, Babson, MIT, Harvard, WPI, and more. Apply today!
Here's how it works:
(a) Student entrepreneurs post their AI startup ideas on our IdeaMentor platform by SEPTEMBER 10, 2025.
IdeaMentor is an AI-enabled ideation and innovation platform that empowers hackathon participants to submit ideas as 60-second videos, collaborate with an AI mentor to refine them, and engage with their peers by viewing, liking, ranking, and commenting. IdeaMentor streamlines the innovation process across geographic and organizational boundaries and uses AI to facilitate team formation around the most promising and groundbreaking ideas.
1. Register for IdeaMentor here.
2. View the training video here.
3. Post your pitch!
NOTE: If you already have a team, submit your team member names in the comments below your video. If you don’t have a team, you can build one through IdeaMentor.
(b) All interested parties vote on their favorite pitch(es) on IdeaMentor by SEPTEMBER 17, 2025.
(c) Parties create and build teams based on interests in the posted ideas (the AI algorithm will provide assistance). Then, further develop your idea and create a prototype. Chat with the MENTORS listed on the TopContenders website.
(d) The live pitch event is SEPTEMBER 28, 2025 at Suffolk University.
Suffolk x TopContenders AI Startup Pitch Competition -- IdeaMentor site: https://sawyer.ideamentor.ai/ideations.
Kenneth Mooney
o Financial Services Exec, Angel Investor, Adjunct Professor at Suffolk University
o Ask me about: Startups, financing, technology and innovation, mentoring students, networking, international travel, fast cars, and off roading
Rob Sarnie, MBA
o Retired; Fintech Professor at WPI; IT Exec; Fintech Leader, Collaborator, and Volunteer helping the fintech ecosystem grow.
o Ask me about: Retirement, Boston sports, basketball refereeing, and Disney. Oh, and also fintech, leadership, mentoring, and coaching.
Dmitri Tcherevik
o Serial Entrepreneur, Executive-in-Residence, CTO
o Ask me about: AI strategy, AI tech, startups
Shari Worthington, PhD
o Serial Entrepreneur; Associate Professor, Entrepreneurship & Innovation at Suffolk University
o Ask me about: Design thinking, business models, pitching, marketing
Mark Zheng
o Founder, Community Builder, and Startup Advisor passionate about AI, biotech, and innovation-driven collaboration. Actively organizing events across Boston to connect ideas with impact.
o Ask me about: AI ecosystems, startup strategy, cross-border innovation, LinkedIn networking, and meaningful community building
