‘Team Visolis’ comprising four students from the ISB Class of 2013 and a student of MIT Sloan School of Management were invited to ring the closing bell at the NASDAQ OMX Stock Exchange in New York last week.
They were awarded this opportunity as the winning team of the prestigious ‘Global Venture Labs Investment Competition (GVLIC)’ organised by the McCombs School of Business, University of Texas, Austin.
Visolis is developing the next generation of biocatalysts that can convert renewable feed stocks into chemicals and fuels at a price point competitive with petroleum-based processes. The team from the ISB will offer a way to reduce the environmental impact with sustainable alternatives to petroleum-based products for a wide range of industries.
The members of the winning team, Akshat Pipersenia, Amrita Dutta, Aditya Jain, Ashish Kohli of the ISB, and Deepak Dugar of MIT Sloan School of Management were accompanied by Rob Warren Director of GVLIC along with several members from McCombs and alumni from the ISB.
They received a prize package worth $75,000 including: $25,000 in cash, one year of office space and $25,000 in consulting services. GVLIC is an annual, graduate student-centric event designed for new ventures from around the world to obtain funding and feedback from investors and successful entrepreneurs.
The competition simulates the real world process of raising venture capital.
This year, the competition witnessed participation from 40 teams from 11 countries across the world.
The Global Venture Labs Investment Competition, now in its 30th year is produced by Jon Brumley, Texas Venture Labs at the McCombs School of Business, The University of Texas at Austin.
The competition is the oldest operating inter-business school competition in the world and has been named “the Super Bowl of world business plan competitions.
