Hosted by the Center for Leadership Education, HopStart is an annual startup competition that challenges Johns Hopkins students to develop a business plan around a novel idea and pitch their plan to industry leaders.
Throughout two stages of competition held during the spring of each year, students build an understanding of their target market and competitors, craft an effective market entry strategy, and present their plans to industry professionals on competition day.
Learn more about the history of the competition.
HopStart 2027 registration opens in November
Read more about HopStart's eligibility requirements and registration guidelines at the link below.
Compete in HopStart
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Eligibility and Registration
Please read our eligibility requirements and registration guidelines before registering for the competition.
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Competition Timeline
Stay informed on important dates and deadlines in the competition. Get the competition timeline.
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Competition Instructions
Learn more about successfully completing each stage of the competition. Get the competition instructions.
Sponsor the HopStart Competition
Support Hopkins entrepreneurs as they grow their startups and get involved in the Hopkins entrepreneurial ecosystem. Learn more at the link below.
Become a Judge or Mentor
Join us as a HopStart judge or mentor and share your expertise with students who are innovating to solve some of today’s most pressing problems. Mentors help student teams perfect their business plans and pitches in advance of competition day, while judges evaluate pitches, provide feedback, and network with teams in person on competition day.
“ The extensive feedback and conversations with mentors really forces competitors to do a deeper dive on all the subsections of the business plan, and because of that, [HopStart] is ideal for startups at all stages. ”
Ronak Mahatme
'21 Competitor
HopStart News
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2023 winners Somnair close $4.3M oversubscribed seed round supporting clinical trials
Somnair, a non-invasive neurostimulation device for the treatment of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), advance alternative to CPAP and surgery for 1 billion OSA sufferers world-wide. Read more here.
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1st Place winners IRIS receive Media Spotlight Award at Design Day
IRIS, who won first place in the Healthcare Ventures category at HopStart 2026 for their multiplex diagnostic tool for use in remote areas of conflict, won the Media Spotlight Award at the Whiting School of Engineering’s Design Day. Read more about their device here.
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Computer Science undergrads design novel memory cataloging and sharing tool
2026 HopStart competitors Remi design app for cataloging and sharing memories. Read more about their product here.