MN Cup 2026 · Semifinal Round · Carlson School

Deliverable
Planner

Four required deliverables. Sixty-two days. This tracker organizes the MN Cup 2026 Semifinal submission — executive summary, investor deck, marketing video, and financial projections — due noon Monday July 20 via YouNoodle.

62
Days remaining
Jul 20 noon
Deadline
YouNoodle
Platform
4 required
Deliverables
$400K+
Prize pool
None
Equity taken
Campaign progress — May 19 → Jul 20
0of 16 tasks complete
0% complete
62 days remaining
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SHARED STATE
01

Required Deliverables

4 required
01

Executive Summary Business Plan

PDF · 2 pages
2 pages · PDF · Include page numbers · Accessible to non-expert readers

Concise narrative covering the problem, solution, market opportunity, business model, team, and traction. Template and prior winner examples (Telo, BKB Floral Foam, Nanodropper) are available from MN Cup.

Lead with the fall detection and isolation problem in senior care
Use Ella Memory as the flagship product — reference live demo at ellamemory.com
Reference UMN IRB approval, $248K grant, and gener8tor backing
TAM: $48.2B US senior care market; SAM: LTPAC facilities with 50+ residents
Not started
/carlson
02

Investor Presentation

Slides · 15 max
15 slides maximum · Appendices permitted (not required reading) · Include page numbers

Visual deck covering the same topics as the business plan. Build from the Carlson Founder's Day pitch structure — problem, solution demo, market, technology, clinical evidence, team, financials, ask.

Reuse and refine the Carlson pitch architecture
Slide 1: Problem · Slide 2: Solution (Ella demo) · Slide 3: Market
Include financial summary table on slide ~12
Keep to 15 slides — move clinical details and IRB protocol to appendix
03

1-Minute Marketing Video

Video · YouTube/Vimeo
Exactly 1 minute (shorter OK · longer rejected) · Host externally · Submit link only

Demo-forward marketing video showcasing the product in action — nurse dashboard, alert feed, Ella AI response — with team personality and real caregiver context.

Open on a real nurse or caregiver scenario (night shift, missed alert)
Show the live ellamemory.com dashboard with Ella AI interaction
Include a 5-second team credibility shot — names and roles on screen
Host on YouTube (unlisted) and submit the URL — no file uploads accepted
04

Financial Summary & Projections

Finance · EisnerAmper
Supplemental context material · EisnerAmper template available · 3–5 year horizon

Revenue model, cost structure, burn rate, and growth projections tied to the pilot-to-commercial milestone roadmap. Use Money Matrix to build the model, then export to the EisnerAmper template.

Use Money Matrix at /moneymatrix to model the 24-month runway scenario
Include 3-year P&L, cash flow, and headcount plan
Tie revenue projections to pilot milestones (10-resident → 40 facilities)
Show path to break-even — approximately 40 active facility contracts
Not started
/moneymatrix
02

Timeline

May 19 → Jul 20
May 19Jul 20 noon
Foundation
May 19 – Jun 1
Narrative framing
Problem / solution brief
Financial model draft
Team bios
Current
First Drafts
Jun 2 – Jun 15
Exec summary v1
Investor deck v1
Video script
Financial model v1
Review & Iterate
Jun 16 – Jun 29
Mentor feedback sessions
Exec summary v2
Deck revisions
Video production
Polish
Jun 30 – Jul 13
Final deck frozen
Video edit + upload
Financials finalized
Package review
Submit
Jul 14 – Jul 20
Submission rehearsal
YouNoodle upload
Noon Jul 20 deadline
Key dates
May 19, 2026Semifinal period opens — campaign starts today
Jun 1, 2026Foundation complete — source material assembled, narrative locked
Jun 15, 2026All first drafts complete — exec summary, deck, financial model v1
Jun 29, 2026Mentor review sessions complete — all revisions incorporated
Jul 13, 2026All materials final — video live on YouTube, deck frozen
Jul 20, 2026DEADLINE — Submit by noon via YouNoodle
04

Competition Context

MN Cup is the largest statewide startup competition in the United States, hosted by the Carlson School of Management at the University of Minnesota. The 2026 cohort of 92 semifinalists was selected from 1,262 total applications across nine divisions.

Semifinalists access free mentorship, educational programming, and publicity opportunities through July. Winners receive a share of $400K+ in cash prizes with no equity taken in exchange.

MN Cup alumni have raised over $1.1 billion in capital since the program launched in 2005, with $6.2 million in seed funding distributed across 22 years of programming.

Total 2026 applications1,262
Semifinalists selected92
Total prize pool$400K+
Alumni capital raised$1.1B
Seed funding distributed$6.2M
Equity takenNone
Program founded2005
Submission platformYouNoodle
MN Cup 2026 · Semifinal · Noon Jul 20 · YouNoodle
MN Cup ↗ellamemory.com ↗Archive →