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• Letter of Intent (LOI) Window: October 1, 2025– February 1, 2026
• Mandatory Competition Kickoff Meeting: Friday, December 5 | 12–1:30 PM | Room TBD | Lunch provided → You must attend this meeting to stay eligible to compete.
• Get Matched with a Mentor: Mentors are assigned Oct, 2025–Jan, 2026
• Business Plan Due: Friday, March 20, 2026 (send to innovate@csulb.edu)
  • All submissions must indicate the specific track for competition
  • Document

    Track One vs Track Two.pdf
• Final Presentations: April 21, 2026 | 4 PM | LBS Financial Credit Union Pyramid

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 Joe Platnick (Chair)

Joe is an active Southern California angel investor and Director Emeritus of the Pasadena Angels, one of the nation's largest angel groups. His extensive leadership background spans roles as a corporate board member, CEO of an educational game developer, and Partner at an international venture capital firm. A frequent speaker on entrepreneurship, Joe has held executive and marketing roles across both Fortune 500 companies and agile startups.

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Walter Larkins

Walter is an accomplished entrepreneur, inventor, and US Army veteran. He is the founder of Sapphire CMS, a system optimizing hospital-insurance contract negotiations, and previously founded Endosurgical Development Corporation, where he pioneered advancements in minimally invasive heart surgery. A West Point and UCLA alumnus, Walter actively supports the startup ecosystem as a board member for the Long Beach Accelerator and Chair of the Economic Commission, and he inspires the next generation of founders through his nonprofit, E=O2.

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Alan Pullman, AIA

Alan is the Founding Partner of Studio One Eleven, where he has spent over 25 years leading architecture and urban design projects focused on making cities more sustainable, inclusive, and resilient. A registered architect in California with over 30 years of experience, Alan is a member of the American Institute of Architects and the Urban Land Institute’s Urban Revitalization Council. He has served as the Board Chair for the Downtown Long Beach Alliance and holds degrees from Syracuse University and the London School of Economics.

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A.K. Venus Jenkins 

Venus is the CEO and Co-Founder of ChargeNet Stations, a multi-million dollar infrastructure and software company she founded in 2020 to bring EV charging to underserved communities. Prior to ChargeNet, she led transmission and distribution data analytics teams at Southern California Edison, building a $2B utility asset optimization strategy. An expert in scaling complex operations, Venus holds a Chemical Engineering degree from UC Santa Barbara and an MBA from MIT.

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Brenda Wunsch (Chair)

Brenda is a seasoned entrepreneur and business leader with over 35 years of experience launching and scaling companies across technology, healthcare, and marketing. Currently the Co-CEO of Sapphire Healthcare AI, her previous executive roles include Chief Revenue Officer at Scoutbee and CEO of Sandpiper Marketing. Deeply invested in the local ecosystem, Brenda serves as Co-Chair of the Long Beach Accelerator and is a Commissioner on the Long Beach Economic Development Commission.

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David M. Ochi 

David is a seasoned entrepreneur who has founded over two dozen companies globally and currently serves as Managing Partner of V1 Ventures, an international startup acceleration firm. He is the Executive Director of the Innovation Incubator at CSU Dominguez Hills, where he leads an initiative to help students graduate debt-free by launching profitable side hustles. A UCI and Keller alumnus with multiple degrees, David is also an adjunct faculty member and board member at UCI's Beall Center for Innovation & Entrepreneurship.

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Ebony A. Utley, Ph.D. 

Dr. Utley is a "professorpreneur" who serves as a Professor of Communication Studies at California State University Long Beach, where she specializes in interpersonal communication and entrepreneurship. As an entrepreneur and emerging investor, she is the Co-Founder and Managing Director of the venture studio Ensemble Innovation, which subsidizes AI software development for companies in exchange for outcome-based equity. Dr. Utley actively manages Ensemble's portfolio and is responsible for sourcing and structuring strategic investments.

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Tony Crisp

Tony  is a veteran brand strategist, marketing consultant, and the Founder and Chief Strategist of CRISPx. He has helped build high-growth brands for a wide range of clients, from early-stage tech startups to Fortune 500 companies like CyberpowerPC and UC Irvine. A UCI and UCLA Anderson alumnus, Tony is a frequent judge for top-tier tech competitions and brings a unique, human-centric "DOSE" method to brand building to ensure startups truly resonate.