Stories & Updates

Horn Entrepreneurship and the Lerner College of Business and Economics are thrilled to announce the prestigious recipients of the 2023 Blue Hen 17&43 Awards. Recognizing that economic growth depends on the creation of new businesses, this year’s Blue Hen 17&43 Awards focused strictly on the most promising new businesses. This annual accolade, which was established in 2017, celebrates the University of Delaware’s rich history of leadership, innovation, and entrepreneurship by recognizing exceptional early-stage startups led by Blue Hen entrepreneurs. The 17 ventures honored in this year's awards exemplify the spirit of innovation and entrepreneurial excellence within our community.

After careful consideration, Horn Entrepreneurship has selected the finalists for Hen Hatch, the University of Delaware’s premier startup competition held annually.  The entries this year show a wide array of students passionate about entrepreneurship, coming from a variety of colleges, majors, and interests. As difficult as the teams made it for our judges to come to a decision, we have successfully narrowed it down to a few especially promising innovators that we are excited to highlight in the final round. Students, alumni, and other community members interested in watching the Hen Hatch final round can register for the event to reserve a seat or watch from home via a live stream.

When it comes to nurturing the entrepreneurial spirit, few programs can rival Horn Entrepreneurship’s prestigious startup funding competition known as Hen Hatch. For years, Hen Hatch has been the launchpad for countless innovative ideas and fledgling businesses, transforming them into thriving ventures. With the Hen Hatch application period open from now until September 20th, if you're a UD student with entrepreneurial aspirations, here's why you should consider applying for this remarkable opportunity.

With the approach of Summer Founders Demo Day, take the opportunity to delve deeper into the profiles of our exceptional cohort members and their innovative ventures. Samantha McGhee and Heather Stroili have worked diligently throughout the summer to find a niche that they can service in their respective industries, human resources and fashion. Read on to discover their narratives, the significance their startups offer, and their focal points set for the past and future.

As Summer Founders Demo Day gets closer and closer, get to know a little more about our amazing cohort members and their ventures. Ahmad, Saviour, and Tom are all about growing the impact they can have on other people, individually helping others through marketing, education, and cars. Read on to learn about their stories, the value their startups bring, and their focuses for this summer.

Delaware’s research scientists, graduate students and innovators now have an exceptional opportunity to learn about, and gain first-hand experience with the process of translating their ideas, discoveries and inventions from the laboratory to the marketplace – the Innovation Delaware (InDE) Fellowship program.

Cute and personalized cookie cutters, hands-free door openers, and an “impossible floating” table are all imaginative ideas brought to life by the wonders of the 3D printing world. More specifically brought to life by the innovative mind of Richard Hayburn and his business Burn Social LLC., who have made it a mission to bring everyone’s imagination to life, whether it's the imagination of an established engineer or an artistic 8-year-old.

University of Delaware students showed their passion for the environment on Monday, May 8, at the 3rd Annual Ratcliffe Eco Entrepreneurship Fellows Pitch Day, hosted by Horn Entrepreneurship at the Venture Development Center. This year’s six teams of eco-entrepreneurs pitched their innovative and creative business ideas persuasively, addressing unique environmental issues to a panel of expert judges for a prize pool of $6,000. 

Horn Entrepreneurship and E-Club once again hosted the Spring Pitch Party on April 12 at the Venture Development Center, bringing exciting ideas and ventures to the spotlight in a Hollywood-themed exhibition. The evening featured 15 innovative pitches from University of Delaware students of varying majors and experience levels, each with their own unique startup ideas to share with the packed audience.