YES is an innovative global competition developed to raise awareness among Master and PhD students, postdoctoral researchers, research fellows and technicians how ideas can be commercialised. This is the 28th year of the competition and in that time over 6,375 have taken part.
Participants, working in a team of four or five, are given the task of developing a hypothetical business, and in the exercise, they will pitch to demonstrate that the business could be viable, investable and ultimately successful.
By taking part, participants will have the opportunity to hear from leading industry experts, and the related financial and legal sectors, about the basic principles that make a business work. This competition has been devised to further understand the processes involved in bringing a service/product to market.
YES23 will be delivered in three parts starting this September and concludes with a showcase event in January 2024.
In September, online training sessions will give participants the know-how on all aspects of starting a new business. Mentors will be online to answer questions, give advice and provide a focus for ideas throughout October with oral business plan pitches being delivered in November and December. Participants can opt to deliver their pitch online or face to face at an industry innovation centre.
The best pitches from each session will be invited to showcase at the Royal Society in London on 31 January and compete for a prize fund of £10k.
Applications to join #YES23 are now open until Friday 28 July.
For further details please click here.