BOISE ENTREPRENEUR WEEK MARKS 10 YEARS WITH MORE THAN 80 EVENTS AND OVER $100,000 IN CASH PRIZES FOR IDAHO STARTUPS
September 23, 2026Editor’s Note: CCDC is proud to serve as the presenting sponsor of this event, supporting opportunities that strengthen Boise’s local economy and business community. The sponsorship directly aligns with CCDC’s economic development strategy to foster a thriving, resilient economy, and create opportunities for businesses to connect, grow and invest in Boise. The following press release was published by Trailhead.
BOISE ENTREPRENEUR WEEK MARKS 10 YEARS WITH MORE THAN 80 EVENTS AND OVER $100,000 IN CASH PRIZES FOR IDAHO STARTUPS
Six morning keynotes, 15 tracks and 101 speakers fill JUMP in downtown Boise Sept. 28 through Oct. 2, and general admission is free
BOISE, Idaho, Sept. 24, 2026 – Boise Entrepreneur Week (BEW), Idaho’s largest entrepreneurial event, returns to Jack’s Urban Meeting Place (JUMP) in downtown Boise Sept. 28 through Oct. 2, 10 years after the first Boise Startup Week brought the city’s founders together in October 2016. This year’s program features more than 80 events across 15 topic tracks, 101 speakers, six morning keynotes and six pitch competitions awarding more than $100,000 in cash prizes to Idaho startups.
The first Boise Startup Week was organized locally and ran 56 sessions across four tracks, with Trailhead as its hub. The event took the name Boise Entrepreneur Week in 2021, and it has since drawn more than 15,000 attendees and awarded nearly $1.2 million in early-stage capital to Idaho founders.
“Ten years ago, Boiseans decided our entrepreneurs deserved a week of celebration and connection,” said Jacob Grinwis, executive director of Trailhead and chair of Boise Entrepreneur Week. “I am so proud of what BEW has evolved into over the years. We aren’t building another conference or networking event. We are building an accessible community of builders, innovators and creatives. Every prize and every free seat this week is there because this community chose to invest in the people building here. I hope everyone comes out to see what’s next for Idaho!” BEW 2026 Press Release / Grinwis / Page 2 of 5
A new morning keynote series
New for 2026, Tuesday through Thursday each open with Coffee and Connections at 8:30 a.m., followed by two back-to-back keynotes at 9 a.m. in JUMP’s Pioneer Room, the one time each day when founders, funders, students and community leaders are all in the same room:
• Tuesday, Sept. 29: Brad Stith, co-founder and CEO of Athletic Club Boise, the city’s new professional soccer club, and Robert Spendlove, senior economist at Zions Bank.
• Wednesday, Sept. 30: Matt Price, CEO of Teton Valley Brands, and Nathan Barry, founder and CEO of Kit, the creator email platform he started in Boise in 2013 as ConvertKit.
• Thursday, Oct. 1: Brittany Giudici, founder and president of Treasure Valley Women in Tech and executive communications director for Microsoft Security, and Lisa Zimowsky and Natalie Piccola, owners of downtown Boise jeweler The Diamond Girls.
“One of the key facets of Boise Entrepreneur Week is who is in the room. A student from a local university can spend an hour next to a founder and an investor, and that’s how people start to see that a successful career is possible right here in the Treasure Valley,” said Giudici, the executive communications director for Microsoft Security. “The week is so much more than an event; it’s a mission. I’m honored to support the continued efforts of driving innovation here in Idaho.”
Six pitch competitions, more than $100,000 in cash prizes
The BEW Main Pitch Competition Finals run Thursday, Oct. 1, at 5:30 p.m. Six finalists, selected from a record 43 applications, compete for a $50,000 grand prize alongside the $5,000 Creating Abundance Award from In Time Tec, the $5,000 Scoggin Impact Award from Scoggin Capital Investments and the $1,000 Driving Health Award presented by Health Tech Idaho. For the first time, the room will also vote on an Audience Choice Award.
Five more competitions run across the week:
• Military Pitch Competition: Tuesday, Sept. 29, at 3 p.m., awarding $10,000 to veteran and military-connected founders.
BEW 2026 Press Release / Grinwis / Page 3 of 5
• Boise Pitch Night: Tuesday, Sept. 29, at 5 p.m. Trailhead’s quarterly pitch night brings its fall edition to BEW, with early-stage Idaho founders pitching live and the audience helping pick the winner.
• Trailmix Pitch Competition: Wednesday, Sept. 30, at 5:30 p.m., following the Trailmix Food Expo. Idaho food and beverage makers compete for $25,000, including a $20,000 grand prize and shelf space at the Albertsons on Broadway in downtown Boise and the Boise Co-op.
• Scrap-to-Sculpture Design Challenge: On display Tuesday, Sept. 29, through Thursday, Oct. 1, in JUMP’s sixth-floor foyer, featuring sculptures built from reclaimed building materials by Idaho high school and college students, with cash prizes for the top three.
• Youth Innovation Challenge: Friday, Oct. 2, at 1:30 p.m., awarding $4,000 to aspiring high school entrepreneurs and their schools.
Winners are celebrated at the Block Party and Awards Ceremony on Thursday, Oct. 1, from 7 to 9 p.m. on The Deck at JUMP.
Built by the community, backed by local investment
The week’s programming is shaped by community Track Chairs across 15 topic tracks, from Start and Small Business to Capital, M&A, Health Innovation, Food and a new Sports Track built with Boise State University, and it closes Friday with a Youth Track for high school students.
Boise Entrepreneur Week is powered by the Capital City Development Corporation (CCDC), Boise’s urban renewal agency, which is the week’s presenting sponsor and has been a core Trailhead partner for over a decade.
“Our partnership with Trailhead, including our continued sponsorship of Boise Entrepreneur Week, reflects CCDC’s commitment to investing in the people, ideas and innovation that are shaping Boise’s future,” said John Brunelle, executive director of CCDC. “Trailhead has created a place where entrepreneurs can connect, learn, take risks and turn ideas into businesses, and Boise Entrepreneur Week has grown into an extraordinary showcase of that energy. Supporting entrepreneurship is economic development at its most fundamental level—it helps create jobs, BEW 2026 Press Release / Grinwis / Page 4 of 5
attracts talent and investment, and builds a stronger, more resilient local economy. CCDC is proud to have been part of that effort for a decade, and we’re excited about what comes next.”
Brunelle, CCDC’s longest-serving executive director, retires Sept. 30 after 13 years leading the agency, closing out his tenure in the middle of BEW week. Under his leadership, CCDC helped give Trailhead its first downtown home in 2014, the same space that served as the hub of the first Boise Startup Week two years later, and it has stood behind Boise’s entrepreneurs ever since.
Diamond sponsors Alturas Ventures and Ashurst Perkins Coie and Platinum sponsor Zions Bank each co-present the Main Pitch Competition, and Alturas Ventures also presents the morning keynote series.
Event details
Boise Entrepreneur Week runs Monday, Sept. 28, through Friday, Oct. 2, at JUMP, 1000 W. Myrtle St., in downtown Boise. General admission is free. VIP tickets are limited and include the VIP Kickoff Party at Hap Hap Lounge on Monday, Sept. 28, and VIP Lounge access all week. The full schedule and registration are at boiseentrepreneurweek.org.
Boise Entrepreneur Week is made possible by Presenting Sponsor the Capital City Development Corporation (CCDC); Diamond Sponsors Alturas Ventures and Ashurst Perkins Coie; Platinum Sponsor Zions Bank; and Gold Sponsors Albertsons Companies, Ataraxis, Boise Co-op, BoiseDev, Boise State University, Dorsey & Whitney, Espiritu Studios, Hawley Troxell, Holland & Hart, In Time Tec, the J.A. and Kathryn Albertson Family Foundation, the J.R. Simplot Company and Pink Robot Co., along with dozens of additional sponsors and community partners.
About Boise Entrepreneur Week
Boise Entrepreneur Week (BEW) is the largest community-driven entrepreneurial event in Idaho, bringing together founders, investors, educators, civic leaders and industry professionals for five days of programming. First held as Boise Startup Week in 2016, BEW has awarded nearly $1.2 million in early-stage capital to Idaho founders. BEW 2026 Press Release / Grinwis / Page 5 of 5
About Trailhead
Trailhead is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit at the center of Idaho’s entrepreneurial ecosystem. Our mission is to help entrepreneurs succeed by providing the knowledge, tools, resources, and networks they need to take their ideas and ventures to the next level. We believe entrepreneurship is for everyone, and we build our programs to reflect that. We are the home of Boise Entrepreneur Week, Idaho’s largest community-driven entrepreneurial event, and we operate programs including the Idaho Startup Lab, Boise Pitch Night, Tree City Trailblazers, Trail Guides Mentorship, the Startup World Cup Regional Qualifier, and Founders Roundup.
Located in downtown Boise, we are where business starts in Idaho.
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