Rice opens applications for world’s richest student start-up competition
Deadline to apply is January 31 for the three-day event that begin April 9 in Houston.
It is described as the world’s largest, richest intercollegiate student start-up competition, and the event has opened a call for graduate founders to compete for more than $1 million in prizes.
We’re talking about the Rice Business Plan Competition (RBPC), now in its 26th year.
Hosted and organized by the Rice Alliance for Technology and Entrepreneurship, the RBPC is widely regarded as the world’s largest and richest intercollegiate graduate student start-up competition. Over the course of three days, teams pitch to investors, receive mentorship, and compete for more than $1 million in prizes. Since its inception, RBPC alumni have raised more than $6 billion in funding, transforming ideas presented early at Rice into thriving ventures making global impact.
Details are as follows:
- Application deadline: Jan. 31, 2026.
- Competition dates: April 9-11, 2026, at Rice University in Houston, TX.
Teams, which can come from any university, are initially eligible for the 2026 RBPC if their start-up:
- Includes at least two current students with at least one graduate student in any field of study.
- Is fundraising or seeking investment within the next 12 months.
- Is developing a start-up in one of the following sectors: energy; clean tech and sustainability; life science and healthcare solutions; hard tech; digital enterprise; and consumer products and services.
Rice will host a webinar on December 11. To attend, register at this link.
To apply, click on this link.
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