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The campus field guide

University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign

Champaign, Illinois·University
Explore 15 programs ↓Campus website ↗

At a glance

Indexed programs

15

All currently active

Top direct funding

No direct cash prizes indexed

Equity

Mixed equity terms

Program mix

10

Student Club · Accelerator · Pitch Competition

Programs to explore

Compare funding, equity, and timing before you apply.

15 programs indexed

Startups

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  • Auvi Labs

    Wearable kidney-disease monitor; TE 598 deep-tech accelerator team that advanced to mHUB Chicago (UIUC).

  • EarthSense

    Autonomous agricultural robots (TerraSentia); Illinois Ventures portfolio company and UIUC research spinout.

  • Excelsior Sciences

    Small-molecule therapeutics company that raised a $70M Series A; Illinois Ventures portfolio company (UIUC).

  • Mesh++

    Solar-powered mesh broadband nodes; Cozad New Venture Challenge winner and Illinois Ventures portfolio company (UIUC).

  • Phraze

    AI education translation venture; BuildIllinois founder community alumnus (UIUC).

  • Revolution Medicines

    Cancer therapeutics company; Illinois Ventures portfolio company (UIUC), now publicly traded.

  • Sun King

    Off-grid solar energy products for emerging markets ($2.5B valuation); Cozad New Venture Challenge alumnus (UIUC).

  • Trala

    Grand prize and 1st place at the 2017 Cozad New Venture Challenge ($15,000); later raised a $1.29 million seed from Origin Ventures and Techstars.

  • UncertIA

    AI-powered energy management; $125,000 winner at Cozad New Venture Challenge 2026, with a SAFE from Pear VC (UIUC).

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Known Startups and Winners

  • Sun King — Solar energy products for off-grid communities ($2.5B valuation, Cozad NVC alum)
  • Trala — 2017 Cozad grand prize, 1st place ($15,000); later raised a $1.29M seed (Origin Ventures, Techstars)
  • Mesh++ — Solar-powered broadband nodes (Cozad NVC winner, Illinois Ventures portfolio)
  • UncertIA — AI-powered energy management ($125K Cozad 2026 winner, SAFE from Pear VC)
  • Revolution Medicines — Cancer therapeutics (Illinois Ventures portfolio)
  • EarthSense — Autonomous agricultural robots (Illinois Ventures portfolio)
  • Excelsior Sciences — Small-molecule therapeutics ($70M Series A, Illinois Ventures)
  • Auvi Labs — Wearable kidney disease monitor (TE 598 → mHub Chicago)
  • Phraze — AI education translation (BuildIllinois alum)
  • C16 Biosciences — 2026 Startup World Cup: Agriculture and Food Regional winner
More about this ecosystem

University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign

UIUC is a public land-grant research university in Champaign-Urbana, Illinois, with approximately 56,000 students. Its entrepreneurship ecosystem is one of the most comprehensive among public universities, featuring dual central hubs — the Landuyt Center for Entrepreneurship (Grainger Engineering, $20M endowment) and the Origin Ventures Office of Entrepreneurship (Gies College of Business) — plus a top-5 university venture capital firm, a major incubator, and exceptionally strong student programming.

Ecosystem Overview

  • Central hubs: Landuyt Center for Entrepreneurship (Engineering) + Origin Ventures Office of Entrepreneurship (Business)
  • Student accelerator: iVenture Accelerator (up to $20K non-dilutive, 164 ventures, $1B+ EV)
  • Pitch competition: Cozad New Venture Challenge ($700K+ prizes, $100K grand prize, 350+ teams)
  • Incubator: EnterpriseWorks (350+ companies since 2003, $1.4B raised, $3M state grant for expansion)
  • Venture fund: Illinois Ventures (125+ companies, $2.7B raised, $100K-$750K investments)
  • Student VC fund: Orange & Blue Ventures (launching Fall 2026, first at UIUC)
  • Student organizations: BuildIllinois (1,000+ members), Zero2One VC (student-run incubator)
  • Innovation district: Research Park (120+ companies, 2,100+ employees, $1.4B VC raised)
  • Tech transfer: Office of Technology Management (60+ active startups, IP-Linc, Proof of Concept up to $50K)

News & articles

10 articles

News & articles

News & articles

2017 Cozad New Venture Challenge winners

University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign

2017-05-01
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign logo

University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign

2017 Cozad New Venture Challenge winners

Landuyt Center (then the Technology Entrepreneur Center) announcement of the 2017 Cozad New Venture Competition winners, published May 1, 2017. Trala won 1st place and the $15,000 grand prize in the Non-University Resourced Track. This note replaces the 2026 Cozad program page as Trala's source.

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