Seven teams participated in the spring semester 2015 Financial Challenge Lab taught by Mehdi Maghsoodnia. The winning team, LoanCru was awarded $15,000 prize. “I never thought I’d really have a chance to start a startup this early in my life,” said Daniel Saeidi, a winning member.
IEOR 185, otherwise known as the Challenge Lab, is a 16-week undergraduate course that challenges students to form different startup teams to solve real world problems. At the end of each semester, students are expected to pitch their ideas to a panel of judges, demonstrating market opportunity, business strategy and a working prototype.
David Law, an instructor at Sutardja Center for Entrepreneurship & Technology said that the course welcomes students from a broad spectrum, ranging from engineering to natural sciences.
The program partners with various leading industries, government and non-profits organizations.
Here is a link to our video recap of the 2015 Challenge Lab Final.