For the first time in almost two years the student business ideas comperitionm Kaleidoskoop pre-selection was held in person again. The student teams presented their business ideas during the 3-minute pitch. The jury selected five teams that will present their ideas at the international business festival sTARTUp Day on August 26.

To participate in Kaleidoskoop pre-selection, the teams had to prepare a 3-minute pitch where they explained the problem they were solving, introduced their product and its market potential. Most of the teams had participated in the business develoment programme Starter and had now an opportunity to present their idea development and prototype. Top 5 teams selected by the jury will present their business idea at sTARTUp Day together with the Kaleidoskoop finalists from the previous semester’s programme. The finalists will present their ideas on August 26.

According to Maret Ahonen, Startup Lab Manager, spring semester Starter had 11 teams who were extraordinary knowledge driven and motivated to contribute their time and skills into their idea development. “Enthusiasm and eagerness to show work done was also visible in competitive situation. Jury gave the pass to Kaleidoskoop Finals to the teams that they saw potential”, said Maret Ahonen.

Teams, who will be presenting their idea on sTARTUp Day

Bankery – a fintech company, that brings together loan applicants and banks to enable private individuals to get loans faster, cheaper, and with higher probability.

Longevity – a service, aimed to help people concerned about their biological age by providing analysis of their DNA and personalized recommendations.

Shiftsy – a service that automates Estonian healthcare shift planning while taking into account employee preferences.

StoryBox Games - StoryBox Games is developing an AudioCat app where video games become interactive audiobooks for the visually impaired

Wooden Houses - is developing robot-built wooden houses to help working-class people to build stylish garden houses easily and quickly in remote locations.

Join - an application that helps users achieve their goals by supporting each other

Urumarja Saunalaager - sauna center that promotes Estonian sauna culture'

Longevity’s team leader Ance Gailuma shared her experience in the programme. “This programme is designed to support all stages, starting from a vision until creating a  product. The best part is that there are no "bad" or "good" ideas - everybody gets a chance to learn about ways to build a company, earn valuable contacts and test it in real life. In addition to knowledge, the community is supportive and uplifting - after each workshop, I felt motivated to go home and apply the theory in practice. The experience that I gained during the last couple of months is my greatest asset that I could have not gotten anywhere else.” Ance felt that she most improved her public speaking skills and each week got more and more comfortable to get in front of a crowd and talk about her idea.

The Starter programme is financed by the European Social Fund.

Additional information: Kristian Kutsar, Startup Lab Communications and Marketing Specialist, 5628 6536, kristian.kutsar@ut.ee