Purdue University Northwest announced 10 finalists for the 2026 PNW Big Sell.
The finalists will pitch their ideas during a competition at 1 p.m. May 2 at PNW’s Commercialization and Manufacturing Excellence Center in Hammond. The competition is hosted by the PNW College of Business.
The finalists will compete for seed funding of of $10,000 for first prize, $3,000 for second and $1,000 for third. A panelist of judges will determine the winners. Judges include: Allyson Straka, founder and CEO of Frozen Garden; Jason A. Williams, CEO of the Society of Innovators at Purdue Northwest; and Landon Young, vice president of pre-seed at Elevate Ventures.
The finalists include:
- Maggie Bowmar — LifeBandz
- Aaron Farrer — The ANT Tarp Strap / Practical Products
- Simrah Khan — GlucoCare
- Niko Kritikos — American Tallow
- Nathan O’Rourke — Lunhr (AuraTech)
- Kane Tilley — CryoCollar
- Felipe Trejo — Repairable Gaming Mouse
- Brandon Walker — Course Caddy
- Donna Webster — Breath’g Vegan
- Kenneth Webster — Low Angle
Learn more about the PNW Big Sell here.




