![\"ARise](\"https:\/\/startupjunkie.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/ARise-300x300.png\")
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FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. \u2013 Startup Junkie has announced the 10 finalists who will compete in the Arkansas Regional Qualifier of the Startup World Cup, taking place Thursday, August 14 at TheatreSquared in downtown Fayetteville.<\/p>\n
The 2025 finalists are:
\u2022 Auxigen
\u2022 B. Watts Collective
\u2022 Build-A-Way Inc.
\u2022 EdenNet
\u2022 Fidari
\u2022 Hidalga Technologies
\u2022 Humimic Biosystems
\u2022 NYX NoCode
\u2022 Swaply
\u2022 Tailored Financial Solutions<\/p>\n
These ventures were selected from a competitive pool of applicants by a panel of first-round judges, including Tiffany Henry, executive director of ACC Capital Foundation; Shan Pesaru, CEO of Sharp Hue; and Chandler Abbott, senior manager at Walmart.<\/p>\n
On August 14, the finalists will pitch live on stage to an in-person judging panel featuring Chris Seawood of TheatreSquared, Tanya Mims of First National Bank of NWA, and Serafina Lalany of StartupNWA. The winner will go on to represent Arkansas at the Startup World Cup Grand Finale in Silicon Valley, competing for a $1 million investment prize.<\/p>\n
Fayetteville Mayor Molly Rawn will deliver opening remarks for the evening\u2019s program. The Arkansas Regional Qualifier is made possible through the support of Sharp Hue, First National Bank of NWA, and TheatreSquared.<\/p>\n
As part of the event, Startup Junkie will host a special silent auction featuring contributions from the entrepreneurial community. Proceeds will help cover travel expenses for the winning team.<\/p>\n
Featured auction items include professional headshot sessions from B. Watts Collective, a business startup package from Venture Law Partners, artwork from Art deCentrale, a luxury houseplant from Pink Fern, and more.<\/p>\n
The Startup World Cup, organized by Pegasus Tech Ventures, is a global competition with over 70 regional events across six continents.<\/p>\n
Event details:
Date: Thursday, August 14, 2025
Time: 5:30 p.m. \u2013 8:00 p.m.
Location: Theatre Squared, Fayetteville, AR<\/p>\n
[\/et_pb_text][et_pb_button button_url=”https:\/\/lu.ma\/sj-swc” button_text=”Learn More & Register to Attend” button_alignment=”center” _builder_version=”4.27.4″ _module_preset=”default” custom_button=”on” button_text_color=”#FFFFFF” button_bg_color=”#014164″ custom_margin=”-29px|||||” global_colors_info=”{}”][\/et_pb_button][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. \u2013 Startup Junkie has announced the 10 finalists who will compete in the Arkansas Regional Qualifier of the Startup World Cup, taking place Thursday, August 14 at TheatreSquared in downtown Fayetteville. The 2025 finalists are:\u2022 Auxigen\u2022 B. Watts Collective\u2022 Build-A-Way Inc.\u2022 EdenNet\u2022 Fidari\u2022 Hidalga Technologies\u2022 Humimic Biosystems\u2022 NYX NoCode\u2022 Swaply\u2022 Tailored Financial Solutions […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":4673,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"on","_et_pb_old_content":"\r\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/startupjunkie.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/ARise-Startup-Junkie-Conductor-AECD-Tech-Program-1-300x200.jpg\")
\r\nARise is on a mission to empower tech ventures in Arkansas to scale up, create high-wage employment opportunities, and drive world-class technological innovation throughout the state. With a vision of becoming the driving force behind entrepreneurial economic growth in Arkansas, ARise aims to establish the state as a premier destination for tech companies worldwide to start and scale their businesses.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
ARise offers a comprehensive suite of services designed to support startups and entrepreneurs at every stage of their journey:<\/p>\r\n\r\n
ARise provides personalized consulting and coaching to guide tech ventures toward success, from concept validation to scaling strategies. Differentiating itself from other programs, ARise provides its startups with coaching on a continued basis and regular check-ins to ensure each venture has a customized plan to receive services and support.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
ARise helps startups navigate the capital landscape, connecting them with funding opportunities and providing the support they need to secure investment. Whether a startup is looking for venture capital or non-dilutive government support, ARise assists innovators with securing the best funding for the current stage of their company. The program also offers investor recruitment and education to support startups within Arkansas.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
ARise's network of SMEs and mentors offers invaluable guidance and support across industries, empowering entrepreneurs to overcome challenges and achieve their goals. This SME network provides a breadth of knowledge for new ventures, including the expertise of those who have grown their own companies and those who have proficiency in highly specialized fields like biotechnology, cybersecurity, artificial intelligence, and retail value chain management.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
As a collaboration between Startup Junkie, Conductor, and the Arkansas Economic Development Commission, ARise facilitates connections between startups and established companies to foster growth and expansion.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
ARise strengthens the entrepreneurial ecosystem in Arkansas through a comprehensive digital resource library, targeted events, and collaborations with other entrepreneurial support organizations.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
The ARise program is open to tech and tech-enabled ventures that are Arkansas-based and scalable. All services are offered at no charge to entrepreneurs across the state. To enroll in the program, visit\u00a0www.ARiseArkansas.org<\/a>\u00a0to (1) complete an onboarding application and (2) schedule an initial consultation with a program representative.<\/p>\r\n\r\n \u201cGrowing technology companies is critical for Arkansas\u2019 long-term economic success. The ARise program is a key element of our strategy for providing support and resources for tech ventures as they scale up in the Natural State.\u201d - Clint O\u2019Neal, Executive Director, Arkansas Economic Development Commission<\/p>\r\n \u201cLaunching a tech venture is a challenging endeavor \u2013 and entrepreneurs do not always have the resources they need to succeed. Through the ARise program, we aim to provide tech entrepreneurs with the resources and expertise they need to grow and scale their businesses. We are excited to collaborate with Startup Junkie Consulting on the management of the ARise program to help tech entrepreneurs create high-tech business growth in the Natural State.\u201d - Esperanza Massana Crane, Director, AEDC\u2019s Small Business and Entrepreneurship Development Division<\/p>\r\n \u201cARise reflects our vision and brand promise to help AEDC drive an increasingly bright future for Arkansas-based tech and tech-enabled ventures.\u00a0 We could not be more excited to be partnered with AEDC for this critical statewide program.\u201d\u00a0- Jeff Amerine, Co-Director at ARise & Founder and Managing Director at Startup Junkie Consulting<\/p>\r\n \u201cWe\u2019ve built the ARise program and services to fill gaps for tech and tech-enabled entrepreneurs looking to scale within our state and to open doors for those entrepreneurs within our state - we want entrepreneurs to have access to all our state has to offer including SMEs, industry partners, and other resources.\u201d - Grace Rains, Co-Director at ARise & Executive Director at Conductor<\/p>\r\n ARise - Arkansas Innovators, Startups, and Entrepreneurs is on a mission to empower tech ventures in Arkansas to scale up, create high-wage employment opportunities, and drive world-class technological innovation throughout the state. This is a collaborative initiative funded by the Arkansas Economic Development Organization and led by Startup Junkie. ARise is dedicated to empowering tech ventures in Arkansas through consulting and coaching, capital access, a subject matter expert network, industry connections, and ecosystem resources.<\/p>\r\n For media inquiries, please contact:<\/p>\r\n Kristopher Adams, ARise Program Manager<\/p>\r\n kris@arisearkansas.org<\/a><\/p>\r\n 479-402-0036<\/p>\r\n Tyler Hale, Communications Officer<\/p>\r\n tyler.hale@arkansasedc.com<\/a><\/p>\r\n 501-410-7883<\/p>\r\n For more information about ARise, visit\u00a0arisearkansas.org<\/a>.<\/p>\r\n Follow ARise on\u00a0Facebook<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0LinkedIn<\/a> for updates and announcements.<\/p>\r\n About Arkansas Economic Development Commission<\/p>\r\n At AEDC, we know economic advancement doesn\u2019t happen by accident. We work strategically with businesses and communities to create strong economic opportunities, making Arkansas the natural choice for success. AEDC is a division of the Arkansas Department of Commerce. To learn more, visit ArkansasEDC.com.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<\/div>","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[25,12,14,50,13,63],"tags":[38,44,24,61,34,64,76,77,23,75,66],"class_list":["post-4633","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-business","category-news","category-press-release","category-startup","category-startup-junkie","category-startup-junkie-news","tag-business","tag-community","tag-entrepreneur","tag-entrepreneurship","tag-innovation","tag-news","tag-pitch","tag-pitchcompetition","tag-small-business","tag-smallbusiness","tag-startup-junkie"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/startupjunkie.org\/ko\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4633","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/startupjunkie.org\/ko\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/startupjunkie.org\/ko\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/startupjunkie.org\/ko\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/startupjunkie.org\/ko\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4633"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"https:\/\/startupjunkie.org\/ko\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4633\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4678,"href":"https:\/\/startupjunkie.org\/ko\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4633\/revisions\/4678"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/startupjunkie.org\/ko\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4673"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/startupjunkie.org\/ko\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4633"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/startupjunkie.org\/ko\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4633"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/startupjunkie.org\/ko\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4633"}],"curies":[{"name":"\uc6cc\ub4dc\ud504\ub808\uc2a4","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}Quotes<\/h3>\r\n