Students evaluated real startups and put their judgement to the test in the 2026 Venture Capital Case Competition

On Friday, October 2, 2026, five teams of aspiring venture capital professionals attended the second annual Ilitch School Venture Capital Case Competition, hosted by the Mike Ilitch School of Business, and the Belinsky Entrepreneurial Learning Laboratory (BELL Lab).

"This remarkable competition offers students a unique opportunity to experience the venture capital process firsthand through experiential learning," said Dr. Virginia Franke Kleist, Dean of the Mike Ilitch School of Business. "By analyzing real startups, conducting due diligence, and defending their investment decisions before experienced venture capital professionals, students are developing the analytical thinking, judgment, and communication skills that are essential in this field. We are delighted that Professor Ketels was able to bring together aspiring investors from across Michigan and provide them with an experience that connects classroom learning with the realities of the venture capital industry."

Teams from five universities-including Wayne State University, Oakland University, Michigan State University, Grand Valley State University and Central Michigan University-competed to present a panel of judges with their plan to invest in one of three real startups. Following presentations from the startup founders, students were given access to real data from these startups to analyze and conduct due diligence reporting to defend their investments.

The founders included Dara Girel-Mats, CEO and Founder of Sttchr, an app that projects sewing patterns onto fabric, Nicole Norton, Founder and Product Lead of FlareIQ, and Bailey Morgan, CEO and Founder of Nudena, which facilitates manufacturing for creators of physical products. A panel of judges assessed the student presentation, including Lindsey Kilbride, Principle at Detroit Venture Partners, Taunya A. Philips, Assistant Vice President for Tech Commercialization at Wayne State University, and Dr. Desnor Chigumba, a Venture Analyst and Chemical Biologist at the University of Michigan, Innovation Partnerships.

At the end of the student presentations, the judges awarded first place to the team from Central Michigan University, second place to the team from Grand Valley State University and third place to the team from Oakland University.

"Venture capital is learned by doing, and this competition puts students in the investor's seat," said Kevin Ketels, associate professor of teaching in global supply chain management and director of the Entrepreneurship and Innovation Programs. "Over three days, teams did real diligence on three early-stage startups. They questioned the founders directly, decided where to put their money and defended their terms to working investors. Bringing this level of talent and rigor to the Ilitch School for the second year shows what Michigan's next generation of investors and entrepreneurs can do, and it builds the kind of connections our startup ecosystem depends on."

Learn more about the Entrepreneurship and Innovation Programs, and the BELL Lab on our website.