Future Founders Pitch Competition 2026
A one-day pitch bootcamp for high school students that culminated in a live pitch competition, an early introduction to entrepreneurship and idea validation for the next generation of African founders.
What happened
On 14 February 2026, AIS ran the Future Founders Pitch Competition at Carnegie Mellon University Africa, a one-day pitch bootcamp for high school students that culminated in a live pitch competition.
The day was designed to give young learners an early, structured introduction to entrepreneurship: how to spot a problem worth solving, shape it into an idea, and communicate it clearly under time pressure.
How the day ran
The day combined hands-on mentorship, group work, and a final pitch showdown:
- Morning bootcamp, AIS members and CMU-Africa graduate students facilitated small breakout groups, walking each team through problem discovery, customer thinking, and a simple business-model canvas
- Team work, Students worked in cross-school teams on real problems they see in their communities, from education to health to civic tech
- Pitch competition, In the afternoon, each team took the stage to pitch their idea to a panel, defending it under Q&A
- Awards ceremony, Winning teams walked away with certificates, CMU-Africa merchandise, and, most importantly, the confidence that comes from having pitched in front of a real room
Impact
Africa's next founders are still in high school today. Bringing them onto a university campus, into a room built for entrepreneurship, and letting them stand up and pitch their own ideas is one of the most direct ways AIS can invest in the long-term pipeline of African innovation.
It's also a reminder that entrepreneurship isn't something you switch on after graduation, it's a way of seeing the world that we can help train much earlier.