Red Raider Startup Fall 2026
Want to be your own boss? Have you ever wanted to be an entrepreneur? Unlock you entrepreneurial potential, grow your network, and create new ideas all in 72-hours!
October 2 - 4, 2026
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Innovation Hub
Unleash Your Inner Entrepreneur in Just 72 Hours!
Red Raider Startup is your fast track to understanding the entrepreneurial mindset. In one exciting weekend, you’ll pitch ideas, form a team, validate your concept through customer discovery, develop a presentation, and pitch to a panel of Sharks for a chance to win $1,000.
Over the course of 72 hours, you’ll gain startup experience that would normally take months to acquire. Whether you’re brand new to entrepreneurship or looking to sharpen your skills, this is your chance to network, innovate, and collaborate with diverse participants from across Texas Tech and beyond.
No business idea? No problem.
On Friday night, you’ll hear pitches from participants, then choose a team to join. Have an idea already? Pitch it, build your team, and bring it to life with expert mentorship.
Event Perks
- 100% FREE to attend
- All meals included
- Exclusive event swag (register by September 25 to guarantee your t-shirt!)
- Open to the public – everyone is welcome, no TTU affiliation required
Important Dates
- Registration Closes: October 1
- Event Dates: October 2-4, 2026
- Location: Texas Tech Innovation Hub
Come with a friend, leave with a team, and start your entrepreneurial journey at Red Raider Startup!
Agenda
Friday, October 2
2:00 PM - 2:30 PM
2:00 PM - 2:30 PM
Welcome to Red Raider Startup! Check in through the EventLeaf Guide App, grab your welcome materials, popcorn, and LEGO pieces, and meet some of your fellow participants. Complete the LEGO CEO questionnaire in your welcome packet before doors open.
2:30 PM - 2:45 PM
2:30 PM - 2:45 PM
We're starting RRS with a little chaos. Put your creativity to the test in Wacky Inventions, our rapid-fire ideation competition. Think fast, pitch hard, and you might walk away with the first prize of the weekend.
2:45 PM - 3:00 PM
2:45 PM - 3:00 PM
Meet the RRS Leadership Team and get the rundown on the weekend ahead—including Startup Labs, Challenges, Golden Tickets, prizes, meals, mentors, and Sunday's final showcase.
3:00 PM - 4:00 PM
3:00 PM - 4:00 PM
Have an idea? This is your chance to put it out there. Participants have 45 seconds or less to introduce themselves and share an early-stage idea with the room. No slides. No research presentation. Just you + your idea.
4:00 PM - 4:10 PM
4:00 PM - 4:10 PM
Vote for the ideas you would most like to work on this weekend, then take a quick break. The top ideas will become our RRS teams.
4:10 PM - 4:30 PM
4:10 PM - 4:30 PM
The ideas are in. Now build the teams. Selected idea leads will recruit participants based on interests, skills, and the LEGO CEO “superpowers” identified at check-in.
4:30 PM - 4:45 PM
4:30 PM - 4:45 PM
Your first team competition. Teams will battle for their home base for the weekend—with Wild Card holders receiving an advantage.
4:45 PM - 5:00 PM
4:45 PM - 5:00 PM
Before you build a solution, prove you understand what needs solving.
5:00 PM - 5:15 PM
5:00 PM - 5:15 PM
First, think independently. Then challenge your teammates' assumptions and agree on one clear problem statement. Submit your team's final Challenge Card to Ryan for approval.
5:15 PM - 5:35 PM
5:15 PM - 5:35 PM
ou've defined the problem you think exists. Now: does anyone else actually have it? Narrow your target market and learn how customer discovery helps teams test assumptions without pitching their solution.
5:35 PM - 5:55 PM
5:35 PM - 5:55 PM
Develop five customer discovery questions designed to uncover real experiences—not compliments about your idea. No pitching. No leading the witness. Submit your Challenge Card to Lena for approval.
5:55 PM - 6:30 PM
5:55 PM - 6:30 PM
Time to explore your home for the weekend. Work with your team to solve your 4 clues, explore the Hub, and turn in your cards to Kathryn.
6:30 PM - 7:10 PM
6:30 PM - 7:10 PM
Enjoy dinner with your team in your huddle space! Share what you've learned so far and discuss what your idea looks like.
7:10 PM - 8:00 PM
7:10 PM - 8:00 PM
Give your startup an identity. Design a logo and create a startup/product name! Then submit it to Kathryn for a chance to win.
Can you explain what you're working on without giving a TED Talk? Record a short 1-minute team video explaining your problem and early-stage idea. Submit the video to Ryan for a chance to win.
Work with your team on refining your problem statement and target market and/or completing some customer discovery interviews!
8:00 PM - 8:15 PM
8:00 PM - 8:15 PM
Enjoy some treats on us! We'll celebrate the first Golden Ticket winners and our Day 01 Changemaker before getting you ready for the evening challenges.
8:15 PM - 10:15 PM
8:15 PM - 10:15 PM
Official programming is done for the night. Stick around, keep working with your team, grab some movie snacks, or hang out while The Social Network plays in the background.
Saturday, October 3
9:00 AM - 9:30 AM
9:00 AM - 9:30 AM
Good morning, founders! Grab breakfast, reconnect with your team, and check the EventLeaf Guide for morning announcements. Be ready to jump back in at 9:30 AM.
9:30 AM - 9:50 AM
9:30 AM - 9:50 AM
Knowing your idea isn't enough—you need to know what already exists. Explore competitors, alternatives, and how customers solve the problem today, then start identifying what could make your approach different.
9:50 AM - 10:05 AM
9:50 AM - 10:05 AM
Time to size up the competition. Work with your team to identify relevant competitors and alternatives, then define what could make your solution uniquely valuable.
10:05 AM - 10:25 AM
10:05 AM - 10:25 AM
A cool idea still needs a way to make money. Explore B2B vs. B2C, common revenue models, pricing strategies, and how competitors can help you make an educated first guess about what customers might pay.
10:25 AM - 11:00 AM
10:25 AM - 11:00 AM
Put a price on it. Determine whether your initial model is B2B or B2C, choose a primary revenue stream, and make an educated first estimate of your pricing.
11:00 AM - 12:00 PM
11:00 AM - 12:00 PM
Ask the Experts
It's time to pressure-test your thinking. Industry experts and mentors will meet with teams to challenge assumptions and provide feedback on your problem, target customer, competitive advantage, and initial business model.
12:00 PM - 1:00 PM
12:00 PM - 1:00 PM
Grab lunch and hear from an entrepreneur about taking an idea from early sketches and concepts to a real prototype.
The goal: get inspired before spending the afternoon making your own idea tangible.
1:00 PM - 1:20 PM
1:00 PM - 1:20 PM
Enough talking about the idea. Make something we can see.
Learn how to turn your concept into a low-fidelity prototype using anything from paper and cardboard to wireframes, storyboards, mockups, CAD, AI tools, or digital prototypes.
1:20 PM - 3:20 PM
1:20 PM - 3:20 PM
This is your biggest build sprint yet.
Divide and conquer, get creative, and create a low-fidelity prototype that makes your solution tangible. Your team will demo what you've built at 3:30 PM, so make something you can show, not just explain.
3:20 PM - 3:30 PM
3:20 PM - 3:30 PM
Setup your prototype outside! Enjoy the fresh air and practice explaining your idea to fellow participants and leadership.
3:30 PM - 4:05 PM
3:30 PM - 4:05 PM
Show us what you built!
Teams will demo their first prototypes to one another, ask questions, and collect feedback while enjoying afternoon refreshments.
4:05 PM - 4:30 PM
4:05 PM - 4:30 PM
Your first prototype shouldn't be your last.
We'll unpack what teams learned during the demos, talk about why iteration matters, and challenge you to decide which feedback is worth acting on before Sunday's showcase.
4:30 PM - 4:50 PM
4:30 PM - 4:50 PM
Time to give your brain a break and your competitive side a workout.
It's a room-wide Rock Paper Scissors Tournament. Win your matchup, keep moving, and survive long enough to claim prizes—and a shot at a Golden Ticket.
4:50 PM - 5:20 PM
4:50 PM - 5:20 PM
Remember those customer discovery questions from Friday? Time to use them.
Teams have 30 minutes to collect as many real customer discovery responses as possible. Call. Text. Ask. Listen. No AI-generated responses, and no making up your data.
5:20 PM - 6:30 PM
5:20 PM - 6:30 PM
Grab dinner and hear an entrepreneurial story about moving through the Innovation Hub's programs and continuing to build beyond Red Raider Startup.
We'll close with Day 02 Awards, Golden Tickets, and more prizes.
6:30 PM - 7:30 PM
6:30 PM - 7:30 PM
Cornhole Tournament + Ice Cream Bar + Football Watch Party
Official programming is wrapping up, but you're welcome to stick around.
Keep working on your prototype and pitch, compete in the cornhole tournament, grab some ice cream, or hang out and watch the game.
Sunday, October 4
9:00 AM - 9:30 AM
9:00 AM - 9:30 AM
Breakfast + Morning Announcements
Final day!
Grab breakfast, check the EventLeaf Guide for announcements, and reconnect with your team. Today is all about turning the work you've done this weekend into a story you can confidently share.
9:30 AM - 10:00 AM
9:30 AM - 10:00 AM
You've built, tested, and refined a prototype. Now you have to make someone else understand it.
10:00 AM - 11:30 AM
10:00 AM - 11:30 AM
Finalize your presentation and demo, assign speaking roles, and run through your complete showcase presentation with an RRS Leadership Team member or mentor.
11:30 AM - 12:00 PM
11:30 AM - 12:00 PM
Time to get showcase-ready.
Clean out your Huddle Space, set up your demo area, test your technology, make final presentation adjustments, and make sure your team is ready for guests and judges.
12:00 PM - 1:00 PM
12:00 PM - 1:00 PM
Welcome mentors, judges, family, friends, and guests for our final lunch together.
Hear from our final keynote speaker about navigating rejection, overcoming setbacks, and continuing to move forward when building something new.
1:00 PM - 1:10 PM
1:00 PM - 1:10 PM
Final reset.
Teams head to their showcase areas while judges and guests get situated. Presenters should be at their demo booths and ready to go.
1:10 PM - 2:10 PM
1:10 PM - 2:10 PM
It's showtime.
Teams will compete within their assigned showcase zones. Each team will deliver its pitch and demo to a panel of judges while other participants and guests explore the showcase.
2:10 PM - 2:40 PM
2:10 PM - 2:40 PM
Three teams remain.
The finalists will deliver their pitch + demo one final time for the final judging panel and compete for the Red Raider Startup Grand Prize.
2:40 PM - 2:50 PM
2:40 PM - 2:50 PM
Judge Deliberation
Judges will make their final selections while participants and guests reset for the Closing Ceremony.
2:50 PM - 3:30 PM
2:50 PM - 3:30 PM
We'll look back at the weekend, celebrate the people and teams who made it memorable, recognize our award recipients, and announce the People's Choice Award and Red Raider Startup Grand Prize.
