CHOOSE YOUR TRACK AND CREATE A +TECH SOLUTION TO A CAUSE YOU CARE ABOUT.
HealthTech Track FinTech Track EdTech Track GeneralTech Track
Designed to mimic a real-world tech team of product managers, developers, UX/UI designers, analysts, and generalists the competition is a 6-week program that takes teams of 4-5 multidisciplinary students through four phases:
Be apart of something big.
Registration for the 2026 Business+Tech Innovation Jam is now open!
Since 2021, the Business+Tech Innovation Jam has made a name for itself.
- $75,000 of prize money awarded to student startups
- 800+ students from all across campus have gained product innovation skills
- 164 teams have developed a tech startup
- 100+ U-M alumni, faculty, and industry recruited to mentor student teams
TOP REASONS YOU SHOULD JOIN
Get hands-on experience
Acquire resume building experience in roles such as product management, business analytics, or UX/UI design.
Receive 1:1 mentorship
Receive mentorship from alumni, startup founders, and industry experts to launch your idea.
Win up to $6,500
Secure the $1,000 Challenge Round prize and advance to the Finale to compete for the $4,000 Champion Award.
Team Formation and Idea Generation
The Business+Tech Innovation Jam is a competition for those with or without an idea and for those with or without a team. Come to one or all of the team formation events designed for you to identify a problem to solve and meet potential teammates.
Anyone who is unable to attend the events or doesn’t find a team, can attend the required +Tech Innovation Jam kickoff on Sunday, October 4th and be assigned a team then.
Program Schedule
Join one of the largest product innovation competitions on campus today! The competition runs from October 4th – November 18th and requires around 5 – 7 hours of work / week. Explore the program schedule below and visit our Business+Tech Innovation Jam Google Calendar for more information.
Application Due @ 11:59 p.m.
Register individually or as a team and RSVP for the team formation events.
11:00 - 4:30 PM
Team Formation Event: Hackathon (optional)
Brought to you by Business+Tech and sponsored by the Zell Lurie Institute for Entrepreneurship.
Join students across campus in a mini-AI hackathon that’ll walk you through how to identify the right problem to solve, how to build using AI, and give you a chance to meet cool people.
No technical experience is required. We’ll host a building with AI workshop from 11 to 12:30 p.m. for students to learn how to build before the Hackathon.
This event is for students who …
- Registered for the Business+Tech Innovation Jam
- Want to learn how to build using AI
- Want to meet cool people
**Registration for the Business+Tech Innovation Jam isn’t required to attend the event.
5:30 - 7:30 PM
Team Formation Event: Pitch Your Idea (optional)
Come pitch your idea! Share your idea with others looking to join the competition and find others who are passionate about your idea.
This event is for students who …
1. Have an idea they’d like to pursue in the Jam and want to find teammates
2. Are looking to join a team with an idea
6:00 - 7:30 PM
Team Formation Event: Find Your Team (optional)
Mingle with potential teammates looking to join the competition to find others who are interested in similar causes.
This event is for students who are still looking for teammates.
12:00 - 3:00 PM
Competition Kickoff (required)
Kickoff Agenda:
- 12:00 – 12:30 | Check-in and grab food
- 12:30 – 1:00 p.m. | Competition Details such as expectations, competition management tools, point system, opportunities for feedback, and curriculum
- 1:00 – 2:00 p.m. | Mini-Jam: A run-through of the competition so that you know exactly what deliverables and content you’ll be doing.
- 2:15 – 3:00 p.m. | Team Onboarding and Worktime
Phase 1: Ideation
Phase 2: Create
Fall Break (no programming)
Phase 3: Demonstrate
Challenge Round Pitches
+Tech Innovation Jam Finale (top 5 pitch)
2025 WINNERS
First Place
Team: Arjun Suri (CoE), Rishab Gupta (LSA)
Second Place
Team: Samantha Pui (SI), Zejun Li (SI), Julia Huth (LSA), Katelyn Abellera (LSA), Leanne Cheng (LSA)
Audience Choice Award
Team: Oluwakemi Orisile (BBA), Hao Liu (SI), Ashita Nichanametla (SI), Bao Vo (CoE), Linh Tran (LSA), Danika Lau (BBA)
2024 WINNERS
Champion Award
Cyberwright is a platform to help website and app creators prevent hacks before they happen.
Team: Pradham Kuchipudi (CSE), Jacob Chen (BBA & CSE), Luya Zhang (MSI), Lorenzo Lupano (CSE), Swapan Gudaru (CSE), Adrian Con (BSA & BBA)
Runner-up Award and Audience Choice Award
Nurturly is redefining support through the journey of motherood: A place where expecting, new, and expereinced mothers can go to learn and share tips and tricks during this beuatiful but scary time.
Team: Sammy Srinivasan (MBA), Mugdha Bhandari (MBAn), Reet Oberoi (MSI), Hyebin Park (MSI)
2023 WINNERS
First Place
AFFIRMATIVE leverages AI to offer cost-effective care navigation services, via subscription, directly to transgender patients.
Team: Matthew Liu (MBA), Zhenqi Wang (LSA), Seoyoon Chang (LSA), Irene Chung (SI), and Karishma Lunawat (OYM)
Second Place
NADA is a dating app with unique product features that are focused on making genuine connections and giving users in-time feedback on their profile.
Team: Michael Sheehan (MBA), Karen Chen (LSA), Jialan Ren (SI), Catherine Zhou (SI), Vaibhav Mittal (MBA), and Daniel Ryou (OYM)
Third Place
Be Well is a tool that helps patients choose a medication plan that is both affordable and suitable for them.
Team: Ashank Dubey (MBA), Dushyant Khanduja (MBA), Carleen Liu (SI), Kaixin Feng (CoE), Xuling Yang (CoE), and Ruijie Zhao (SI)
2022 Winners
First Place
CORE is a no code, customizable, and easy to deploy research kit.
Team: Akbar Arsiwala (MBA), Alyssa Ciapala (MBA), Ethan Marshall (CSE), Karthik Ramani (EMBA), Rithvik Vanga (CSE), Riya Dev (CSE)
Second Place (tied)
Energyapp is a home energy performance app that diagnoses hot and cold spots while connecting homeowners with a contractor.
Team: Claire McKenna (PhD), Shantonio Birch (PhD), Krishna Rao (MA), Mahalakshmi (MA), Cassie Zhang (BA)
Second Place (tied)
CliMates is a platform that allows people to discover impactful climate projects to invest in.
Team: Akhila Kosaraju (M.Des), Isha Goel (MA), Christopher Okumura (BA)
2021 Winners
First Place
Oudiois an ‘imperfect’ social media platformm, utilizing ‘voice’ as a medium, where honest dialogues will make each other’s life more relatable, form deeper connections, and further foster meaningful communities.
Team: Didsayachai Priungruag (MBA ‘22), Jihee Yoon (MSI ‘23), Zelda Hu (MSI ‘23), Akhila Kosaraju (M.Des ‘23)
Second Place
Cele (Sell-ee) is reimagining the gifting experience by using A.I. to identify gift recommendations that are curated and personalized to each specific user and each of their loved ones.
Team: Devlin McConnell (MBA ‘22), Cory Cooney (MBA ’23), Karon (KJ) Green (MSI/MBA ’24)
Third Place
Hand in Hand works to connect interested volunteers with the right organizations.
Team: Lilly Wu (B.A. & PiTE, ’23), April Tsai, (B.A. ’23)