The Tim Draper High School Utah Entrepreneur Challenge named 20 finalist teams for 2025–26, advancing student entrepreneurs statewide to compete for $30,000 at the University of Utah.
Salt Lake City, Utah — February 10, 2026
Top student entrepreneurs from across Utah advance to final round, competing for $30,000 in cash and scholarships. Online voting starts today.
The Tim Draper High School Utah Entrepreneur Challenge (HSUEC) has announced the top 20 teams for the 2025–26 competition year. These teams will advance to the final stage of the statewide business-idea competition, which is open to all Utah high school students ages 14–18.
This year’s finalists were selected from a highly competitive pool of submissions and will compete for $30,000 in cash and scholarships.
About the Competition
The Tim Draper High School Utah Entrepreneur Challenge is managed by the Lassonde Entrepreneur Institute, a top-10 ranked, interdisciplinary division of the David Eccles School of Business at the University of Utah. The competition is sponsored by Tim Draper, a globally recognized venture capitalist and longtime supporter of entrepreneurship education.
“We are always impressed with the teams competing in this statewide business-idea competition,” said Anne Bastien, program director at the Lassonde Entrepreneur Institute. “The teams have great ideas, and we are very impressed with the students. We look forward to seeing them at the final event at the University of Utah.”
Each team was challenged to identify a real-world problem and propose a creative, viable solution. The resulting ideas span consumer products, healthcare, sustainability, AI, software, and services—reflecting both the diversity and ambition of Utah’s next generation of entrepreneurs.
Public Voting Now Open
The public is invited to vote online for the best overall idea in the Tim Draper High School Utah Entrepreneur Challenge.
Vote online here:
https://lassonde.utah.edu/hsuec/vote2026/
Final Event Details
All 20 finalist teams will advance to the final judging round, which will culminate in a public showcase and awards ceremony:
The event is free and open to the public.
“Everyone is encouraged to attend the public showcase and awards event,” Bastien said. “This is a great opportunity to see up-and-coming entrepreneurs and the ideas they are building. It’s also a great chance to experience the University of Utah campus and everything it offers.”
Top 20 Teams for 2025–26
The following teams were selected as finalists for the Tim Draper High School Utah Entrepreneur Challenge, listed in alphabetical order.
| Team Name | School | Idea Description |
|---|---|---|
| AIOS | Hillcrest High School | A shoe with interchangeable soles that let users switch between different styles and functions. |
| AloeFlex | Hillcrest High School | An orthopedic brace using cooling aloe-vera fabric, neoprene impact protection, and an app to track injury recovery, swelling, and care recommendations. |
| Computerpreter | Skyline High School | A system that supports in-person deaf–hearing conversations by recognizing ASL handshapes and motion using a Bi-LSTM model. |
| Crabtree Clinics | Tooele High School | Holistic mental-health clinics addressing biology, psychology, community, lifestyle, and meaning as an alternative to fragmented care. |
| Daybreak Alarm / Daybreak Sync | Park City High School | A light-sensitive alarm that requires users to turn on lights to stop it, paired with an app for schedules, alarms, and reminders. |
| Hike Hounds | Bingham High School | A mobile app for dog owners that provides dog-friendly trail recommendations based on breed, size, and energy level. |
| HydroCap | Karl G. Maeser Preparatory Academy | An affordable DIY smart-irrigation retrofit that installs at the sprinkler head to reduce water waste and prevent pipe damage. |
| Kalloo | Park City High School | A kids’ safety watch that lets children send location-based alerts to parents with the push of a button. |
| Kensington Apothecary | Olympus High School | A premium men’s grooming brand offering organic, small-batch aftershave with a refined British apothecary aesthetic. |
| Lab Safety Assistant | Skyline High School | A safety-focused LLM tool that analyzes text and images of lab setups to identify hazards using NIOSH data. |
| Little Sliders | Other | A children’s shoe with an integrated expansion mechanism that automatically adjusts as a child’s foot grows. |
| LockMate | Park City High School | A smart home security system that allows users to lock and unlock doors, monitor cameras, and detect intruders via an app. |
| Luke Clark Films | American Fork High School | A wedding videography business producing cinematic, story-driven films that capture the emotional narrative of each event. |
| MCAP | Hillcrest High School | A product designed to target and reduce the growing problem of microplastic consumption. |
| Natural Language Compression | Other | A natural-language text encoder that reduces transmission costs, particularly for satellite-based communications. |
| PathFinder | West High School | A school-verified job platform for high school students featuring safe listings, mentoring, and an AI resume assistant. |
| Priority Fencing | Other | An innovation-focused fencing equipment company, starting with a chest protector designed for female athletes. |
| REHEAT | Park City High School | A portable, heated food container with layered materials to keep meals hot, secure, and easy to clean. |
| Score It | Rowland Hall–St. Mark’s | An AI-powered gymnastics evaluation platform using video recognition to deliver real-time scoring and performance feedback. |
| Uptwn Vintage | Spanish Fork High School | An online vintage clothing shop offering affordable, high-quality apparel for high school and college students. |
Part of a Larger Entrepreneurial Ecosystem
The Tim Draper High School Utah Entrepreneur Challenge is the youth counterpart to the Tim Draper Utah Entrepreneur Challenge, a collegiate competition that awards $75,000 in cash and prizes each year.
Together, the programs help build Utah’s entrepreneurial pipeline—from high school through college and beyond.
Learn more about HSUEC at lassonde.utah.edu/hsuec
About the Lassonde Entrepreneur Institute
The Lassonde Entrepreneur Institute is a nationally ranked hub for student entrepreneurship and innovation at the University of Utah and an interdisciplinary division of the David Eccles School of Business.
Founded in 2001 through the vision and support of alumnus and entrepreneur Pierre Lassonde, the institute now serves thousands of students each year through workshops, networking events, startup support, competitions, scholarships, and community outreach. All programs are open to students from any academic major or background.
The institute also manages Lassonde Studios, a five-story innovation space and residential facility designed to bring student founders together under one roof.
Learn more at lassonde.utah.edu.