Craig Smith Speaks to Student Entrepreneurs Participating in Cozad New Venture Challenge

On March 5th Partner Craig R. Smith spoke to students participating in the Cozad New Venture Challenge at the University of Illinois. Craig’s program focused on Intellectual Property for Entrepreneurs and he discussed IP issues to be aware of when launching a new business venture.

“It was great meeting with the students participating in the Cozad New Ventures Challenge,” said Craig. “These entrepreneurs are working on innovative solutions to a wide range of health care and artificial intelligence challenges.”

The Cozad New Venture Challenge, held annually since 2000, gives University of Illinois student entrepreneurs the opportunity to connect with mentors who are industry experts, venture capitalists, alums, and other entrepreneurs. Throughout the program there are workshops on idea validation, financials, pitching skills, and customer development. At the culmination of the Challenge, student entrepreneurs get the chance to pitch their startups for over $400K in funding and in-kind prizes.