Tony Stark, the entrepreneur-turned-superhero from the Iron Man movies and comics may be fictional, but the Tony Stark Innovation Challenge, an award for young entrepreneurs, is quite real. Earlier this month, MIT graduate student Nathan Linder flew off with the $15,000 top prize for his invention of a digital bulb to project Web content onto any surface. The prize was furnished by Audi of America.
The Stark Challenge is only the latest (and most opportunistic) of a booming trend in innovation and entrepreneurship competitions that is helping to bring new ideas to the attention of investors, customers and a public hungry for some good economic news. In the U.S., where entrepreneurial culture and infrastructure are already well-developed, this is an incremental increase in opportunities for the mad scientists and dreamers among us. But in the rest of the world, it's a revolution that's kicking up a new wave of business creation with the potential to uplift billions.
To read the full, original article click on this link: Innovation Contests: A Super Idea for Global Entrepreneurs | Fast Company
Author: Rob Salkowitz
