The Accelerator competition: develop a business idea
Do you have an idea to explore a market opportunity? Or an exciting new way to solve a problem? Bring your idea to The Accelerator and we’ll support you to develop it and test how it could work in the real world. If you didn’t enter The Idea, or if your idea wasn’t selected to receive a prize, you can (and should!) get involved.
2022 Finalists announced
A diverse range of compelling ideas from students across our academic disciplines are excitingly progressing through to the X Challenge 2022 grand final in November.
How to enter The Accelerator
AUT X Challenge entries have closed for 2022.
If you are keen to get involved in 2023 sign up to our newsletter and be the first to know when the programme launches.
All startups will put together a pitch deck as a way of presenting their idea to potential investors. We want you to assemble an awesome pitch deck to show our judges what your idea is all about. We've made your job easier by providing a brief to let you know what to include and we’ve organised a range of support options to help.
Why enter The Accelerator?
The Accelerator is an opportunity to take part in a programme that not only develops your business idea, but connects you to the support of other entrepreneurs and guest experts, helpful resources, and of course the X Challenge team.
It is more than just a competition – although you could win awesome prizes and up to $10,000 of a total cash prize pool of $20,000! You’ll get heaps out of entering The Accelerator even if you don’t win a cash prize. Find out about the prizes in the 'competition details' section below.
Dates for The Accelerator 2022
- Programme launch: Tuesday 7 June
- Information session: Thursday 9 June
- Entries close: Tuesday 23 August
- Finalists announced: Tuesday 6 September
- The Final Pitch: Tuesday 29 November
Competition details
You can enter as many ideas (or be in as many entering teams) as you like – and win multiple prizes.
Both X Challenge competitions (The Idea and The Accelerator) are open to all current AUT students or recent alumni who were enrolled at AUT for a minimum of 1 semester during the competition year. A team can include non-students as long as the main contact is a currently enrolled AUT student or recent alumni as described.
You can enter as an individual, or part of a team. If you enter a team, the key member and main contact must be a currently enrolled AUT student or recent alumni who was enrolled at AUT for a minimum of 1 semester during the competition year.
The information you disclose in your entry and the inherent intellectual property (IP) should belong to you or your team and should be the product of your own work. Ensure you have the rights to disclose the IP or confidential information of another party before you disclose it.
The Final Pitch night is a gazetted event. Gazetting opens up a six month window of opportunity to file a New Zealand patent or design application after an idea has been displayed at a gazetted event.
AUT will not have a benefit share or shareholding in your idea or business.
- 30 x Logitech MX Keys Mini and MX Anywhere 3 Mouse prize packs worth $349 RRP.
One pack will be given away at each workshop in The Accelerator series so attend a session to go in the spot prize draw. A further 20 packs will be given away in a random draw from all eligible entries to The Accelerator. - USD$10K AWS CREDIT for every eligible entry
Get support from our sponsors, Amazon Web Services (AWS) just for entering The Accelerator! Eligible entries get great benefits like USD$10k AWS credit, access to support engineers and credit for labs.
If your idea is selected as a finalist there is a total cash prize pool of $20,000 as well as a selection of awesome prizes up for grabs. You must use your prize money to further your winning business idea – perhaps for marketing, prototyping, research or similar.
Cash prizes are as follows:
- Overall winner: $10,000
- Overall runner-up: $5,000
- Third place: $2,500
- Plus a $2,500 discretionary judges’ prize
If you didn’t enter The Idea at all – or if you did enter it, and weren’t a winner – it doesn’t matter. The Idea and The Accelerator are separate competitions. We can also support you to develop and pivot the idea you entered into The Idea competition.
If your pitch deck is selected by the judges as one of the 8 finalists, you’ll present your idea to the judging panel at a Dragons’ Den-style night – The Final Pitch. If you’re part of a team chosen for the finals, at least one member of your team needs to present your idea.
The X Challenge team will help you prepare for The Final Pitch by giving you professional pitch coaching and pairing you with a mentor.
The judging panel will include entrepreneurs, industry experts and investors. Judges for the pitch night will be announced ahead of the final.
Make sure you read the terms and conditions for X Challenge The Accelerator.
Events, resources and support
Get expert advice, join weekly workshops and take advantage of 1:1 sessions and online resources – the X Challenge team is here to support you on your journey.
USD$10k AWS credit!
Get support from our sponsors, Amazon Web Services (AWS) just for entering The Accelerator! Eligible entries get great benefits like USD$10k AWS credit, access to support engineers and credit for labs.
X Challenge
The Accelerator is part of the X Challenge competition. Find out more about what competitions are run by X Challenge annually.