On the occasion of the 10th year program of venture leaders, a 10-day entrepreneurial bootcamp in Boston for Swiss-based startups, you will have the chance to interact with 40 leading entrepreneurs, select the best pitches and mingle with other members of the local innovation community.
In two different rooms (biomed and IT), every entrepreneur will have 1 minute to pitch her or his idea and convince you to vote for them. The 5 finalists will compete for a chance to win the first “pitchfest” trophy and a ticket to Switzerland (courtesy of Swiss International Air Lines)!
Organizers: MassChallenge, swissnex Boston, Microsoft Research Center New England, NCIIA, TechStars Boston
Visit the following link for additional information on the entrepreneurs visiting from Switzerland: http://www.swissnexboston.org/activities/initiatives
For local startup teams: We are looking for 20 entrepreneurs who would like to take advantage of this opportunity to get visibility for their companies. If you are interested in joining the lineup of presenters, please contact Nina Ryser (nina@swissnexboston.org).
venture leaders: This year will be the 10th edition of venture leaders, an entrepreneurial "bootcamp" that will bring to the Boston area 20 entrepreneurs from Switzerland to visit local high tech companies, attend courses with Babson College professors, interact with experts and most importantly network with local entrepreneurs, investors and other members of the high-tech community. The program is a collaboration between CTI (Swiss innovation agency), venturelab (Swiss entrepreneurship training platform) and swissnex Boston, Consulate of Switzerland. 
MassChallenge is running the largest-ever global startup competition and accelerator to catalyze the launch and success of high-growth, high-impact new businesses. The first contest launched on April 14, 2010 with a total prize pool of $1 Million. The submission deadline is June 11, and winners will be announced in early October 2010. The competition is open to anyone in the world, with any idea, in any industry. Physical activities will be based in Massachusetts where innovation resources are heavily concentrated. Every entrant will receive training, feedback, PR and networking support via expert volunteers from partner organizations. Around 100 of the highest-potential entrants will receive intensive mentorship and other free resources, including office space and targeted introductions to customers and funding sources. The very best startups will be identified by expert judges to receive cash awards toward launching their businesses along with enhanced PR and privileged access to top investors seeking to place seed capital to work in high-growth firms. MassChallenge is a 501(c)(3) (non-profit) leveraging both public and private funding. 
Microsoft New England Research & Development Center: The Microsoft New England Research & Development Center is a research and software innovation campus located in the heart of Cambridge, Massachusetts. This campus is home to Microsoft Research New England, Microsoft Application Virtualization (App-V), Future Social Experiences (FUSE) Labs, Microsoft Technical Computing and other product teams from across Microsoft.Visit us at www.MicrosoftCambridge.com, follow us on Twitter or attend one of our upcoming events.
NCIIA: The National Collegiate Inventors & Innovators Alliance (NCIIA) works with faculty and universities throughout the United States to provide support and grant funding to student innovators developing technology-based solutions that have scalable commercial potential and positive social impact. NCIIA has recently launched a new initiative, VentureWell, to provide additional support and equity funding to select seed ventures addressing important issues of global health and the environment.
TechStars Boston: TechStars Boston is a mentorship-driven seed stage investment program. We run a three month long program in Boston for ten companies - these companies get up to $18,000 in seed funding, intensive top-notch mentorship, and the chance to pitch to angel investors and venture capitalists at the end of the program