TechConnect and Sourcewell will invite up to ten (10) finalists to attend and pitch at the AscendRural National Summit, taking place in Minneapolis, MN on March 30, 2026.
Potential Audience Members Include:
- Startups and entrepreneurs
- Sourcewell leaders and relevant teams
- Public sector champions and leaders from both federal and local agencies
- Public-facing organizations such as:
- Cooperatives
- Non-profits
- Local economic development entities
- Venture capitalists and impact funds
- Academic research partners (universities, tech transfer offices)
- Media and communications partners from across the country.
Sourcewell and its panel of reviewers will name one winner from the finalist pool.
Finalists may be eligible for paid pilots up to $100K upon successful matching with community pilot partners post-Challenge. This funding would be paid in the form of a services agreement with pilot deliverables and timeline for execution. Successful pilots leading to sustained contracts may be subject to a small administrative fee.
Finalist Benefits Include:
- Direct access to decision-makers across city, county, school district, and public safety agencies.
- Ecosystem visibility and access:
- Exposure to a national network of up to 50,000+ agencies and 900+ suppliers from different markets (urban, rural, underserved etc.)
- Introductions to investors and ecosystem partners actively seeking GovTech solutions
- Data-driven validation:
- Resources and support to structure low-barrier pilots with real government agencies. Pilots are structured to generate measurable outcomes and case studies, which can be leveraged for marketing and future sales.
- Rapid validation and feedback with end users and frontline practitioners who understand the pain points and real needs.
- Guidance from Sourcewell innovation teams and judges
- Long-term partnership potential:
- Clear pathways to scale through repeatable use cases across similar agencies
- First step toward multi-year agreements and expansion into adjacent markets.
Applicants awarded a pilot service agreement are expected to pay to Sourcewell an administrative fee in exchange for Sourcewell facilitating the resulting agreements. The administrative fee is typically calculated as a percentage of total revenue received under the service agreement and generally ranges from one percent (1%) to two percent (2%). In some circumstances, a flat fee may be an acceptable alternative.