Verizon is looking for the brightest ideas on how to use its 5G technology

Haven’t we all, even just for a moment, daydreamed about coming up with a million dollar idea? A solution so spectacular that, if executed correctly, could change the world?

With its Built on 5G Challenge, Verizon wants to see what kind of revolutionary ideas your company has got cookin’.

The technically creative challenge is a call for innovative U.S. companies with 200 employees or less to find a transformative use for its new 5G technology.

“The CEO of Verizon is excited to see what today’s startups can do with the power of 5G and what leveraging it could mean for the immersive experience vertical,” said Julian Gompertz, manager of innovation and sports partnerships for Verizon’s 5G Labs.

In terms of what kinds of solutions Verizon is looking to see from applicants, the challenge territory is wide open. Loosely based around three areas, participants can present ideas for immersive new products, services or applications within the categories of:

• Industry — Helping businesses create new value for customers.
• Immersive experiences — Building next-generation media and entertainment.
• Moonshots — Solving big problems with radical new ideas for how we live, work and play.

What makes this challenge particularly significant is the prize money.

Motivated to find the most elegant, impressive uses for 5G, Verizon is offering a cool $1 million for first place, with $500,000 for second place and $250,000 for third. Additionally, the winners will get to work with closely with Verizon’s 5G Labs team — located in NYC, D.C., Cambridge, LA and Palo Alto — and have the opportunity to earn future venture funding from Verizon.

Furthermore, each of the winners will be invited to participate in the Built on 5G Challenge Entrepreneurial Support Program beginning in the fall of 2019 to further develop, test and potentially commercialize their ideas.

“We recognize the amount of work that goes into a challenge like this,” said Gompertz. “Building a successful product takes time and is labor intensive. We want the prize money to be a reflection of the work your company puts into building, testing and iterating upon that product. And, eventually, maybe even have something commercially viable to roll out across the county.”

Submissions for Verizon’s Built on 5G Challenge are due by Sept. 15. Companies that apply must demonstrate corporate social responsibility and sustainable business practices.

Finalists will be announced in late October.

Submit your Built on 5G application by Sept. 15