Some things that cross your path are destined for greatness -- but you may not know at first glance. When you were invited to see the new movie about a Mumbai teen growing up in the slums and becoming a contestant on the Indian "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?" you probably weren’t totally sold on seeing the Bollywood version of a show that fell out of favor in 2001. However, thanks to Roger Ebert, The New York Times, and the numerous Oscars it won, you knew Slumdog Millionaire was one of the best movies of 2008, and you got yourself to the theater!
The MITX Innovation Awards strive to serve this same function when it comes to innovations. We have a history of picking companies that are poised to skyrocket in terms of recognition, funding, and awareness. After winning an award in 2009, Seth Priebatsch, Chief Ninja at SCVNGR said, “It's been absolute madness over here at SCVNGR! Win a MITX award and suddenly the phones don't stop ringing!". For SCVNGR, one of those calls came within the first three months of winning an award when they found out they received a Series A round of funding from Highland Capital Partners!
So many of our past winners have gone on to do amazing things, and we’ve distilled some of the highlights from the 15 winners in 2010:
- Two have been acquired - congratulations Gotuit and Vertica
- Over 25% of last year's winners have received funding, collectively they’ve raised over $23 million
- 75% of winners have since received national press from the likes of the New York Times and CNBC as well as regional awards including Sproxil who was named a Finalist in the 2010 MassChallenge and Ratepoint's CEO being named a MassHighTech All Star.
