YJP 2026Convention 2026

Competition

YJP Shark Tank

Sunday, October 11, 2026 · 4:00 – 6:00 PM

A flagship convention showcase of entrepreneurship, creativity, and ambition. Pitch your venture to a panel of Jain investors and operators and walk away with visibility, feedback, mentorship, idea validation — and prize money.

Apply to Pitch

Applications close Wednesday, September 9, 2026

When

Sunday, Oct 11

4:00 – 6:00 PM

Teams

Up to 12

selected to pitch

Per Team

3 + 5 min

pitch + Q&A

Prize Pool

$10,005

in cash awards

Format

How the competition runs

Up to 12 teams are selected to pitch live in front of the judges and the full attendee audience.

12 teams maximum

Applications are scored by a screening committee; the top 12 teams (or fewer, at the committee’s discretion) are invited to compete.

3 minutes to pitch

Five slides, one story. Present the problem, your solution, the business, your team, and your ask.

5 minutes of Q&A

Judges and the audience drill down. Be ready to defend your vision, your numbers, and your path to market.

Pitch Format

Five slides

Every pitch follows the same structure, so judges can compare teams fairly and you can focus on the story.

01

The Problem

  • What problem are you solving?
  • Why does it matter?

02

The Solution

  • Product / service overview
  • Why is it different?

03

Business Model

  • Customers
  • Revenue model
  • Traction (if any)

04

Team

  • Founders
  • Relevant experience

05

The Ask

  • Funding
  • Mentorship
  • Strategic introductions
  • Customers
  • Technical resources

Scorecard

Judging criteria

How the judges will score each pitch on the night.

Coming soon

Judging criteria coming soon

The judges' scorecard is being finalized with the panel. We'll publish the full breakdown and its weightings here — and email every selected team — well before the mandatory competitor workshop, so nobody builds a deck against a moving target.

Prize Pool

$10,005 in awards

Cash prizes for the top three finishers, plus two more awards handed out on the night.

1st Place

$5,001

2nd Place

$2,501

3rd Place

$1,501

Audience Choice

$501·cash award

Voted by the room. Goes to the highest audience-scoring team not already receiving a top-three award.

Judges' Favorite

$501·cash award

For the team that impressed the judges beyond the scorecard — strongest founder grit, most creative concept, best personal story, or biggest future potential.

The Panel

Judges

Sahil Kothari

Sahil Kothari

Owner & Investor, Eternity Ventures / Jewelex Group

Second-generation entrepreneur who has spent 15+ years building the Jewelex Group into one of India's leading diamond jewelry exporters. Founded Eternity Ventures, a startup investment company funding entrepreneurs focused on Purpose + Profit, with investments spanning healthcare, accessibility, clean cookware, and more.

LinkedIn →
Deep Nishar

Deep Nishar

Managing Director, General Catalyst

Technologist and investor who served as a senior product executive at Google and chief product officer at LinkedIn. Former senior managing partner at SoftBank. Enterprise software investments include Anthropic, Figma, Glean, and Slack. Holds degrees from IIT Kharagpur, UIUC, and Harvard Business School (Baker Scholar).

LinkedIn →
Pranjal Daga

Pranjal Daga

Co-Founder & CEO, Accend (YC S23)

Co-Founder of Accend, a Y Combinator-backed startup accelerating manual reviews for fintech operations and compliance teams using AI and automation. Previously held product roles at Brex building AI-driven financial tools. Recognized as a Pear VC Builder Fellow and On Deck Founder Fellow.

LinkedIn →
Coming soon

Prize pool sponsors coming soon

The $10,005 prize pool is backed by sponsors who invest directly in Jain founders. We’ll credit them here once those partnerships are confirmed.

Applying

What we need from you

You and every team member must be registered for Convention to be eligible. Being registered does not guarantee a slot at YJP Shark Tank.

Your checklist

What to submit

Founder information

Name, contact, LinkedIn, profession, and where you are based.

Team information

Up to 4 people per team. Every team member must be registered for Convention.

Executive summary

Your idea in 250–500 words.

Pitch deck or demo

Any format is fine — something that showcases the essence of your idea.

Founder video

Optional: a 2-minute founder introduction video.

Coming soon

Screening criteria coming soon

Applications are reviewed by a Screening Committee of YJP Convention leadership and selected advisors. Each application is independently scored by multiple reviewers, and those scores are averaged to determine rankings. The exact scoring breakdown will be published here shortly — the committee may also weigh diversity of industries, business models, and stages of development when selecting finalists.

Timeline

Key dates

August 1

Applications open

September 9

Applications close

September 14

Competitors announced

September 19

Mandatory competitor workshop · Saturday, 1:00 PM ET

September 26

Virtual pitch workshop · Saturday, 1:00 PM ET

October 5

Final deck submission due

October 11

Competition

October 12

Winners announced during awards ceremony

Ready to Pitch?

Applications are open through Wednesday, September 9, 2026. You and every team member must be registered for Convention to be eligible.

Questions? Contact hello@yjpconvention.org.