EPIC recently concluded a project with faculty and students from the Tuck School of Business of Dartmouth College. Tuck is ranked as one of the top business schools in the world. For five months, a team of MBA students from Tuck together with a team of AUA undergraduate students worked to assess the feasibility of creating a crowdfunding platform in Armenia.
On June 11, 2020 EPIC held its first virtual Demo Day for the Spring 2020 Incubation Program participants. The event gave EPIC startup teams the opportunity to pitch their business ideas online to investors, mentors, accelerators, as well as to AUA community members and supporters.
This spring, EPIC organized Entrepreneurship Hack Nights for its residents and alumni to hear stories from successful entrepreneurs from around the world. The EHNs serve to create an opportunity for startup teams to expand their network and connect with experienced business people who share with them their wisdom and secrets for success, as well as discuss the challenges and experiences that they have had on their entrepreneurial journey.
Samson Avetian teaches macro- and micro-economics to undergraduate students at AUA. He has been mentoring EPIC startup teams for two years helping them to find solutions to their many challenges, motivating and inspiring them to achieve their goals. AUA EPIC has recently interviewed Avetian about his thoughts and motivations.
As one of the most crucial components of the startups’ 12-week incubator journey, EPIC holds two-hour workshops twice a week to give startups multiple opportunities to learn, plan, and apply the key elements necessary for developing their ventures. The workshops serve as the primary channels for providing the teams with a roadmap for building their companies.
Moving Forward Despite Adversity
YEREVAN, Armenia – As would be expected from ambitious entrepreneurs, the Spring batch teams of the Entrepreneurship and Product Innovation Center (EPIC) of the American University of Armenia (AUA) are moving forward in executing their startup ideas – all despite the very challenging situation that the world is facing these days. On March 11, 2020, EPIC organized a kick-off event of the EPIC Spring 2020 Incubator Program.
On March 1, 2020, the Entrepreneurship and Product Innovation Center (EPIC) of the American University of Armenia (AUA) organized a team-building and communication workshop for the Spring 2020 cohort of its Incubation Program. The workshop was facilitated by Adjunct Assistant Professor at the AUA College of Business and Economics (CBE), Dr. Hilda Grigorian, who has over 25 years of professional experience in the private sector in the U.S. and over 16 years of experience in the International Development arena.
LearnY, graduate startup of the Entrepreneurship and Product Innovation Center’s (EPIC) incubator program of the American University of Armenia, creates educational games that help school students enhance practical knowledge from various subjects.The startup was founded by Aram Serobyan and Mariam Israelyan. Aram received his master’s degree in the American University of Armenia and later studied game development in Portugal.
YEREVAN, Armenia – On January 31, 2020, the Entrepreneurship and Product Innovation Center (EPIC) of the American University of Armenia (AUA) started the new academic semester by organizing the first-ever EPIC Hunt, Student Quest 1.0. Students with various backgrounds from AUA and other universities participated in this exciting entrepreneurship challenge designed as a quest in the AUA campus.
On February 7, 2020, the Entrepreneurship and Product Innovation Center (EPIC) of the American University of Armenia (AUA) held the biannual Demo Day for its incubation program participants. The Demo Day provided a platform for EPIC startup teams to present their ventures to investors, mentors, accelerators, as well as AUA faculty, students, alumni, and supporters who filled the AUA small auditorium to capacity.
