Slidejoy, app that pays you to look at ads, wins $30K Wharton Business Plan Competition

Slidejoy, an Android mobile app that pays users to look at ads on their lock screen, won the Wharton Business Plan Competition‘s $30,000 grand prize, according to a release. It beat out 181 submissions, the highest the annual competition has ever seen.

Launched three months ago, Slidejoy has seen more than 20,000 downloads and more than 26 million ad impressions, according to the release. It’s gotten national press hits in CNet and CNBC.

Of the three cofounders, only one – Mike Kwak – is a Wharton MBA candidate. He will graduate this year. CEO Robert Seo got his MBA from Wharton in 2012 and Jay Chung dropped out of Wharton to pursue Slidejoy full time, Seo said.

The startup is currently headquartered in New York City and has some of its development team in Korea. Still, Seo said Slidejoy is considering Philadelphia for its headquarters.

Some of this year’s winners, listed below, are leaving Philadelphia to grow their business elsewhere, like past winners fashion analytics company Stylitics and eyeglasses retailer Warby Parker, who both left for New York City. RightCare Solutions, the 2012 winner, remained in the region, opening an office in Horsham.

Frank Brodie runs PhaseOptics, the second-prize winning company that’s developing technology to identify the causes of blindness. He’ll be relocating to Los Angeles because PhaseOptics’ technology was developed as a collaboration between California universities, he said.

Senvol, a 3D printing startup, recently won a New York City venture competition and plans to relocate there because of the city’s “strong 3D printing community.”

On the other hand, VeryApt, an online apartment guide, said they plan to remain in Philadelphia to cultivate its first market and to stay involved with Penn and Wharton’s entrepreneurship efforts.

Though the competition received submissions from Penn’s nine schools, the Wharton MBAs had a strong showing, winning at least four categories, including the top three prizes.

Perlman Grand Prize: $30,000 to Slidejoy
Second Prize: $15,000 to PhaseOptics
Third Prize: $10,000 to VeryApt
Wharton Social Impact Prize: $10,000 to Dana Cita
Gloeckner Undergraduate Award: $10,000 for the highest ranking Wharton undergraduate team to Black Box Denim
Michelson People’s Choice Award: $3,000 to PhaseOptics
Committee Award for Most Disruptive Company: $1,000 to Senvol
Committee Award for Best Use of Technology: $1,000 to Identified Technologies
Committee Award for Committee’s Choice: $1,000 to Command Health