The campus field guide
University of Colorado Boulder
Run this campus program? Claim school
Inside this ecosystem · 3 linked sources
The University of Colorado Boulder runs student startup funding through the New Venture Challenge and Catalyze CU, with the Deming Center for Entrepreneurship at the Leeds School of Business as a teaching and coaching hub. The New Venture Challenge page says teams can win a share of more than $200,000. Catalyze CU is a 12-week summer accelerator that does not take equity.
This page is a researched, unclaimed directory listing. It is not school-verified or director-verified.
Include. Flagship public research university with a large student pitch purse and an equity-free summer accelerator.
How we know this: the figures on this page come from the linked sources (last verified 2026-10-08); what those sources do not state is left unknown.
At a glance
Indexed programs
3
All currently active
Top direct funding
$200,000
New Venture Challenge
Equity
Mixed equity terms
Program mix
3
Accelerator · Entrepreneurship Center · Pitch Competition
Programs to explore
Compare funding, equity, and timing before you apply.
3 programs indexed
Pitch Competition
$200,000
funding range
- Last activity
- 2026-04-22
- Participants
- Undergraduate Students, Graduate Students +more
- Verification
- Partially Verified
Accelerator
Catalyze CU
Accelerator—
funding range
- Last activity
- —
- Participants
- Undergraduate Students, Graduate Students +more
- Verification
- Partially Verified
Entrepreneurship Center
Deming Center for Entrepreneurship
Entrepreneurship Center—
funding range
- Last activity
- —
- Participants
- Undergraduate Students, Graduate Students +more
- Verification
- Partially Verified
From students
Be the first student from University of Colorado Boulder to post a startup.
Post a startupFunding and Equity
The NVC compete page opens with more than $200,000. The same page's 2026 timeline also mentions $275,000 at registration and more than $270,000 at finals. Those figures are recorded as printed, not reconciled. Catalyze CU says it does not take equity. A stipend figure for Catalyze is not in the captured homepage text. NVC eligibility requires a current CU Boulder student or employee, a recent graduate after November 1, 2025, or a university IP license.
Recent Activity
The NVC page says 2026 registration opens November 18, with a February 6 deadline and finals April 22 at the Boulder Theater. Catalyze CU is described as a current summer program from mid-May to August.
Known Startups and Winners
The Catalyze CU page says Specdrums, founded in 2015 by Steven Dourmashkin with co-founders Jenna and Jack, won the 2018 New Venture Challenge after the accelerator and was later acquired by Sphero.
Research gaps & things to verify
Missing Information
Which of the three NVC dollar figures is the 2026 purse. Catalyze stipend amounts. University of Denver is a different institution and is not included.
More about this ecosystem
University of Colorado Boulder
News & articles
3 news articles and official sources documenting entrepreneurship programs, winners, and activity at University of Colorado Boulder.
3 sources
Official sources(3)
University of Colorado Boulder
Catalyze CU
Catalyze CU is a 12-week summer accelerator for CU Boulder ventures from students, faculty, and staff. The page says it combines mentorship, funding, and co-working, and that it does not take equity.
Read on University of Colorado Boulder
Deming Center for Entrepreneurship
University of Colorado Boulder
University of Colorado Boulder
Deming Center for Entrepreneurship
The Deming Center for Entrepreneurship at Leeds runs New Venture Launch, a one-semester application-based class for people who intend to start a company. The page says past cohorts have included undergraduates and that entry into the New Venture Challenge is required.
Read on University of Colorado Boulder
University of Colorado Boulder
New Venture Challenge
The New Venture Challenge is a multi-round competition. The page says teams can win a share of more than $200,000 and pitch at the Boulder Theater. It is open to CU Boulder students, faculty, and staff, with a narrow recent-alumni and IP-license path.
Read on University of Colorado Boulder
University of Colorado Boulder has a public page built from sources. If a detail is wrong, students still see it.
Claiming and editing stay free.