Santa Cruz Launchpad Celebrates 9 Years of Student Innovation and Career Opportunities

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASEContact:: Marina Glagolev – mglagole@ucsc.edu

Santa Cruz, CA – May 2026 – The 9th Annual Santa Cruz Launchpad returns to the Grove at the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk on Wednesday, May 13, 2026, bringing together the region’s most promising student innovators, entrepreneurs, employers, and community leaders for a dynamic afternoon celebrating innovation, talent, and opportunity.

Co-hosted by Santa Cruz Works, the UCSC Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurial Development (CIED), and Cabrillo College, the Launchpad has become one of the region’s premier innovation events. It connects students with mentors, employers, and investors while showcasing the creativity and ambition emerging from local campuses—and now, high schools.

This year’s event features two signature programs: the Student Startup Pitch Competition and the Santa Cruz Launchpad Job Fair. In an exciting expansion, Launchpad will welcome high school teams into the pitch competition for the first time, broadening access and inspiring the next generation of innovators.

Student Startup Competition  12:00 PM – 4:00 PM

The afternoon begins with a live startup competition featuring twelve standout student teams from UC Santa Cruz and Cabrillo College, alongside teams from local high schools. Participants will pitch their ventures to a panel of expert judges and a live audience, competing for significant cash prizes.

The competition provides invaluable real-world experience—helping students refine their ideas, strengthen communication skills, and engage directly with entrepreneurs and investors. Each team was paired with at least one mentor—an experienced entrepreneur or industry professional—who provided guidance, feedback, and coaching throughout the preparation process, further strengthening the program’s hands-on, experiential learning model.

This year, the program received 40 applications, narrowed to 24 semi-finalists, and ultimately selected a final cohort of 12 college teams and four high school teams—including participants from Diamond Technology Institute and Scotts Valley High School.

Check out last year’s winners 2025 here. 

Eligibility: Open to college and high school students across Santa Cruz County and the Pajaro Valley Unified School District.

Judges for the 2026 competition include:

• Ed (Richard) Green – Cofounder Claret Bioscience, Astrea Forensics and Dovetail Genomics, LLC, UCSC Professor. Co-director of UCSC Paleogenomics Institute, and Scientific Director of QB3-UCSC 

• Aims McGuinness –Provost of UCSC”s Merrill College,  Higher education leader focused on interdisciplinary innovation

• Viil Lid – Director of Research & Strategy at Adobe focusing on AI transition and product strategy Entrepreneur and startup advisor supporting early-stage ventures

• Bindu Gakhar – Cofounder and CPO Paywhere,  Leader in entrepreneurship education and student venture development

• Vidya Phake – CEO - Social Alpha Innovation Foundation; Chief Technology Advisor - Social Alpha

  
  

During the judging process, CIED will also recognize the first cohort of students who have earned UCSC’s Innovation and Entrepreneurship Certificate. This certificate, which was provisionally approved by the UCSC academic senate last year, acknowledges comprehensive training in entrepreneurship. 

Santa Cruz Launchpad Job Fair - 5:00 PM – 7:00 PM

Following the competition, the event transitions into the Santa Cruz Launchpad Job Fair, organized by Santa Cruz Works. The Job Fair will feature 25+ local companies offering more than 300 opportunities, including internships, part-time roles, and full-time positions.

Attendees will have the opportunity to connect directly with employers across engineering, healthcare, marketing, technology, and other fast-growing sectors. Past participating companies include Joby Aviation, Capstan Medical, and Paystand.

Businesses can register to participate here: https://bit.ly/sclaunch2026

Doug Erickson, co-founder of Santa Cruz Works, emphasized the event’s role in strengthening the regional innovation ecosystem:

“Launchpad brings together talent, ideas, and opportunity in one room. It is both a student startup pitch competition and the largest job fair in Santa Cruz County, where bold young founders share what they are building and local employers connect with the next generation of innovators and their next super employee.”

Manel Camps, Director of UC Santa Cruz’s Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurial Development, highlighted the importance of experiential learning:

“Launchpad is a signature event that reflects the culmination of our student venture team’s work through the year. Having judges, mentors and an audience from the community reflects the integration of the Santa Cruz entrepreneurship community with our educational institutions..

EVENT DETAILS

Date: Wednesday, May 13, 2026

Location: The Grove at the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk 400 Beach St, Santa Cruz, CA

Cost: FREE (registration required)

Register: https://bit.ly/sclaunch26

About the Organizers

Santa Cruz Works is a nonprofit dedicated to growing and supporting the regional innovation ecosystem through events, networking, and programs that connect talent with opportunity.

The Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurial Development (CIED) supports students in developing entrepreneurial skills through experiential learning programs, mentorship, startup competitions, and community partnerships helping cultivate the next generation of innovators and changemakers.

SPONSORS & PARTNERS

This year’s event is hosted by Santa Cruz Works, UCSC’s Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurial Development (CIED), and Cabrillo College.

A very special thank you to our Platinum Sponsors — QB3-UCSC and the Juei-Ming Ong Computer Center Endowment / Merrill College — whose extraordinary support helps make Launchpad 2026 possible. Their commitment to innovation, entrepreneurship, and student opportunity plays a vital role in empowering the next generation of founders and creative problem-solvers in our community.

This year’s event is proudly sponsored by the following organizations:

• QB3-UCSC

• Juei-Ming Ong Computer Center Endowment / Merrill College

• Pajaro Valley Unified School District (PVUSD)

• Santa Cruz County Office of Education (SCCOE)

• Bay Federal Credit Union

• UC Santa Cruz Innovation & Business Engagement Hub

• UCSC Career Success

• Pleasure Pizza (PiFie)

This event is FREE and open to the public. Advanced registration is required.

###