Watch the top teams from each track compete live in front of judges at the New York Business Plan Competition Finals! The NYBPC awards up to $100,000 in cash prizes to top teams from 60+ colleges and universities across New York.
Grow connections in the business and investment community
Hear from experts on early-stage investing and entrepreneurship
Startup Resource Expo with 15+ organizations that provide funding, support, and services for entrepreneurs
Location EMPAC @ Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) 50 8th St, Troy, NY 12180
Interested in hosting the NYBPC Finals on your campus? Connect with us.
Volunteer @ the NYBPC The NYBPC is actively recruiting judges and mentors for the NYBPC. It’s a good opportunity to see top teams from across New York pitch new innovative ideas and early-stage ventures, meet emerging entrepreneurs, and demonstrate your commitment to supporting entrepreneurship and innovation in New York. Learn more >>
Support the next generation of entrepreneurs as an event guide or track room proctor. Email us for more information, or sign up here.
Registration
April 24, 2025 Location: RPI – Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
9:00 AM
NYBPC Round Two 60 student teams from across the state compete in Round Two of the NYBPC State Finals.
9:00 AM – Registration + Breakfast 10 AM – 12:30 PM – Track Rooms
12:30 PM
General Attendee Registration Lunch + Open Networking
12:30 PM
Entrepreneurs’ Expo The expo is for entrepreneurs, capital providers, entrepreneurship program managers and those interested in the evolution of business. Interested in hosting a table? Connect with us.
1:30 PM
NYBPC 1st place winners announcement The 1st place teams from each track will be announced. These teams will compete for the NYBPC Grand Prize. Learn more about the NYBPC.
2:00 PM
Keynote Conversation: Vikash + Vikram Agrawal
Introduction by Jonathan Dordick, Vice President, Strategic Alliances and Translation at RPI
Jonathan Dordick
Vice President, Strategic Alliances and Translation, Institute Professor, Departments of Chemical and Biological Engineering and Biological Sciences
Jonathan S. Dordick, Ph.D., is Institute Professor of Chemical and Biological Engineering at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, with joint appointments in the Departments of Biomedical Engineering and Biological Sciences.
He received his B.A. degree in Biochemistry and Chemistry from Brandeis University and his Ph.D. in Biochemical Engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. At Rensselaer, he served as the Vice President for Research, the Director of the Center for Biotechnology and Interdisciplinary Studies, and Department Chair. He was the founding Co-Director of the Rensselaer-Mount Sinai Center for Engineering and Precision Medicine. Prior to joining Rensselaer, he was Professor of Chemical and Biochemical Engineering at the University of Iowa, where he also served as the founding Associate Director of the Center for Biocatalysis and Bioprocessing. He has served the biochemical engineering community as a previous chairman of the Biotechnology Division of the American Chemical Society and as an editor of Biotechnology & Bioengineering.
Dr. Dordick has made foundational contributions to enzyme technology, microscale cell culture engineering, drug discovery and human toxicology, and biomanufacturing. He pioneered the development of enzymatic and chemoenzymatic methods for new materials synthesis, initiated the field of molecular bioprocessing, which combines biocatalytic molecular diversity and in vitro metabolic pathway engineering with high-throughput and high-content microfluidic- and microarray-based tools to generate biologically active compounds, and greatly expanded a fundamental understanding of enzymatic catalysis in abiotic environments critical for chemical and pharmaceutical processing. Finally, he has used biomolecular discovery and engineering to address clinical translation in areas of infectious and neurological diseases, anticoagulant therapy, and highly sensitive point-of-care biosensors based on CRISPR technology.
Dr. Dordick has received numerous awards and honors, including election to the National Academy of Engineering and National Academy of Inventors, and receipt of the DIC Award for Excellence in Biochemical Engineering and James E. Bailey Award, both of the Society of Biological Engineering, Amgen Award in Biochemical and Molecular Engineering, AIChE Food, Pharmaceutical and Bioengineering Award, ACS-BIOT Marvin J. Johnson Award, ACS-BIOT Elmer Gaden Award, and International Enzyme Engineering Award. He is Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, American Chemical Society and the American Institute of Medical and Biological Engineers.
Dr. Dordick has cofounded several companies, including EnzyMed, Solidus Biosciences, Inc., Redpin Therapeutics, SynAppBio, and Lavaage, Inc. He has also served on multiple White House-sponsored panels and committees in biomanufacturing. Dr. Dordick has published over 430 papers and is an inventor/co-inventor on over 50 patents and patent applications.
Vikram Agrawal serves as President, CEO, & Co-Founder of Levrx. In his role, Vikram is responsible for the vision, product strategy, and business development. Vikram’s previous experience in business and information technology fields are critical to the success of Levrx.
Prior to Levrx, Vikram served as President and CEO of Etransmedia, a software company that provided solutions for electronic health records, patient engagement, practice management, and revenue cycles. Previous to Etransmedia, Vikram worked as Program Manager at Indian Telephone Industries and Groupe Bull, India. He served as Director of Business Development for R.K. Enterprises in Cochin, India.
Vikram earned his Master’s degree in Computer Science from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) and he holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Engineering from the University of Bangalore in India.
Vikash Agrawal Executive Chairman & Co-Founder < Back to Leadership Vikash Agrawal serves as Executive Chairman & Co-Founder of Levrx. In his role, Vikash is responsible for the strategic direction of the company, where his experience in digital health is essential to the execution of the Levrx mission.
Prior to Levrx, Vikash served as Chairman & Co-Founder of Etransmedia, a software company that provided solutions for electronic health records, patient engagement, practice management, and revenue cycle. Vikash has served as a Principal at FreeMarkets/Ariba in Pittsburgh, where he was responsible for Sales and Business Development for healthcare, manufacturing, and retail organizations. Prior to that, Vikash worked at Symantec, GE, Keystone Corp., and Super Aluminum Co.
Vikash earned his MBA degree from Harvard Business School and holds dual Masters Degrees in Management & Technology and Chemical Engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI). He also earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Chemical Engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology.
NYBPC Grand Prize Pitches The top teams from across the state pitch to a panel of judges to win the top prize: $25,000.
Nicholas Querques
Vice President of Industry and External Affairs at SUNY Research Foundation
Nicholas Querques is the Vice President of Industry and External Affairs at SUNY Research Foundation (RF), the largest comprehensive university-connected research foundation in the country, administering over $1.1 billion in research expenditures annually across the SUNY campus system. In his role, Nick leads initiatives and services aimed at promoting technology translation, commercialization, and entrepreneurship throughout SUNY’s extensive research enterprise, supporting SUNY affiliated companies in their growth, telling and selling the story of SUNY, and fostering partnerships and joint ventures with industry and government to bring SUNY technology to market. He is responsible for overseeing RF’s business units that handle intellectual property and licensing, new ventures, marketing, communications, and external relations and partnerships.
Nick has over 16 years of experience building, scaling, and leading strategic initiatives and programs that serve inventors, entrepreneurs, and companies at the intersection of academia, government, and industry. Previously, Nick was Director of New Ventures at RF, where he managed a portfolio of initiatives focused on promoting entrepreneurship and commercialization across SUNY’s billion-dollar annual research enterprise. Before that, he was Program Manager for Technology to Market at NYSERDA, the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority, overseeing a $130 million portfolio focused on innovation and technology development for early-stage companies in the energy sector.
Nick also held the position of Assistant Vice President for Clean Energy Programs at the University at Albany’s College of Nanotechnology, Science, and Engineering. In 2010, he co-founded MICROrganic Technologies, a biotechnology startup that is commercializing microbial fuel cell technologies for wastewater treatment applications.
Nick is actively involved in New York’s innovation ecosystem, serving on the board of directors for the Upstate Capital Association of New York and the Long Island High Technology Incubator, as well as on the advisory boards of the Central New York Biotech Accelerator and New York Small Business Development Center. Nick also serves on the investment committee of Upstate Biotech Ventures, a first of its kind venture capital fund for SUNY that invests in life sciences and health tech startups affiliated with Upstate Medical University. He holds a BS in finance and management, magna cum laude, and an MBA in information technology and nanotechnology from the University at Albany.
State Director of the NY Small Business Development Center (SBDC)
Sonya Smith- State Director of the NYSBDC, working with 20 regional centers that also provide mentoring, advisement and other technical support to student ventures. Having a network that focuses on the advisement, education and research for entrepreneurs and small businesses across NYS is a passion of mine to make sure we carry out our mission.
Vikram Agrawal serves as President, CEO, & Co-Founder of Levrx. In his role, Vikram is responsible for the vision, product strategy, and business development. Prior to Levrx, Vikram served as President and CEO of Etransmedia.Previous to Etransmedia, Vikram worked as Program Manager at Indian Telephone Industries and Groupe Bull, India. He served as Director of Business Development for R.K. Enterprises in Cochin, India.
Ben Verschueren is Executive Director of Empire State Development’s Division of Science, Technology, and Innovation (NYSTAR). In this role he oversees the cultivation of New York State’s innovation ecosystem, with over 80 funded assets across the state spanning universities, incubators, hot spots, accelerators, and manufacturing extension partnerships.
Ben spent most of his career in varying roles with General Electric, from hands on research through managing strategic innovation portfolios at corporate and business unit levels. He established multiple innovation platforms and an incubator lab focused on funding a portfolio of projects building hands-on prototypes of exponential technologies applied to industrial ecosystems. He developed and nurtured multiple university and business partnerships and collaborations, from startups to large corporations. He also established GE Research’s formal IRD portfolio, enabling deeper government collaboration and funding opportunities. Most recently, Ben was Director of Global Labs at Fluence, where he grew a global team and network of test facilities and labs responsible for finalizing next generation, grid-scale energy storage systems.
Ben graduated with bachelors’ degrees in computer science and electrical engineering from Brown University, and a master’s degree in computer science from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. He holds a black belt in Six Sigma.
Shelby Schneider is a passionate connector and leader known for her extensive work in fostering economic development and innovation. Her significant achievements include leading the expansion of a statewide semiconductor industry asset map and creating impactful programming as the Deputy Director of the New York State Economic Development Council. Shelby has also served as President and CEO of the Saratoga Prosperity Partnership, where she supported over 1,000 small businesses during critical times and spearheaded community development initiatives.
Committed to enhancing access to capital and strengthening community engagement, Shelby aims to propel Upstate New York’s investment ecosystem into a dynamic and prosperous future. She is dedicated to raising awareness of Upstate Capital’s mission, expanding membership opportunities, and promoting initiatives like the New York Business Plan Competition (NYBPC) and Invest NY to enrich the regional economic landscape.
Karthik, along with his brother are founders of Velan Studios (www.velanstudios.com), an award-winning indie game studio focused on discovery of breakthrough new game experiences. They are also founders of Velan Ventures, an innovation investment firm exploring game and game technologies that can transform other industries such as music & linear media, healthcare, education and more.
Karthik has been making video games for nearly 35 years on a wide range of platforms spanning indie original IP to blockbuster entertainment franchises. As part of Velan Studios, he has contributed to the groundbreaking mixed reality experiences Mario Kart Live: Home Circuit, and Hot Wheels Rift Rally, the online multiplayer “dodgebralwer” Knockout City, pinball reinvention in VR with Bounce Arcade and the innovative social party game of hide and seek and shoot…in the dark in Midnight Murder Club.
Previously, Karthik and Guha co-founded Vicarious Visions in 1991 while both were in high school. Over their 25-year leadership of the studio, VV grew to become an industry-leading game developer, with products generating over $4 Billion in sales, helping shape popular culture around the world. The brothers have built and led teams in the development of multi-billion-dollar franchises such as Skylanders, Guitar Hero, Crash Bandicoot, Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater and more. In 2021, Vicarious Visions became part of Blizzard Entertainment.
Karthik enjoys mentoring entrepreneurs and looking at how game technologies can transform the world. He is on the Board of Trustees of The Strong Museum of Play and holds bachelor’s degrees in computer science and psychology from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and an MBA from MIT Sloan.
