
Solve Challenge Finals 2018
Apella | New York CitySolve Challenge Finals 2018
Innovators from around the world traveled to New York City to pitch their solutions. If you were unable to attend, watch the pitch and plenary session videos here.
Solve Challenge Finals in New York City is the premier social impact live pitch event to kick off UN General Assembly week. The event will bring together the Solve community with a diverse group of innovators who will pitch their solutions to a panel of expert judges and a live audience on Solve’s 2018 Global Challenges: (1) Coastal Communities, (2) Frontlines of Health, (3) Teachers & Educators, and (4) Work of the Future.
Those entrepreneurs chosen by our judges become part of the next Solver class, joining the Solve community to build partnerships with cross-sector leaders—including Solve members such as BNP Paribas, Google, Ford Foundation, GE Ventures, MasterCard Foundation, and Save the Children—that help pilot, scale, and implement their tech-based solutions and take action on specific, actionable Global Challenges.
This year, Solve received more than 1,150 solutions from 110 countries—and there is nearly $1 million in potential funding available for the selected Solver teams with the most promising human-centered innovations.
During the event, Solve will connect Solver teams with established social impact leaders and recipients of the following Challenge Prizes will be announced:
The General Motors Prize for Advanced Technologies
The Artificial Intelligence for the Betterment of Humanity Prize
The Blockchain for Social Impact Prize
RISE investment funding for resilient infrastructure solutions
UN Women She Innovates Prize for Gender-Responsive Innovation
Program participants at past Solve events include:
The Right Honourable Justin Trudeau, Prime Minister, Canada
Her Majesty Queen Rania Al Abdullah, Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan
Eric Schmidt, Technical Advisor and Board Member, Alphabet Inc.
Indra Nooyi, Chairman and CEO, PepsiCo
Yo-Yo Ma, Cellist and Curator of the MIT Solve Arts and Culture Mentorship Prize
Ursula Burns, Chairman of the Supervisory Board, VEON
If you’re interested in attending this premier social impact event—and joining the Solve community to partner with innovators who are moving the needle on Global Challenges—find out how you can become a member of Solve, or reach out to us at membership@solve.mit.edu.
Big Bold Optimism for Progress
Headlines portray a world of ever-increasing disaster, war, poverty, and division. Yet, the trendlines tell a different story—the world has made tremendous progress in the last decades, whether that is lifting billions out of poverty, significantly reducing infant mortality, or bringing primary education to millions of girls and boys. As Steven Pinker notes, we are now living in the most peaceful era in the history of our species. This is not to say that there is nothing more to be done; we must mitigate and adapt to climate change, reverse increasing income inequality, and address many other big, complex challenges. But we must approach these issues with optimism and a strong-held belief that talented social entrepreneurs can—and will—solve these problems. Optimism is more than a state of mind—optimistic people live longer, are healthier, and are more productive. Optimism also enables social entrepreneurs to approach problems with the motivation and risk-taking needed to drive innovation and change.
Join Solve to hear from global leaders on the importance of optimism and innovation for social and environmental impact.
Featured Speakers
Cynthia Barnhart
Provost, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
David Moinina Sengeh
Chief Innovation Officer, Government of Sierra LeoneHow can communities invest in frontline health workers and services to improve their access to effective and affordable care? Read more about our Frontlines of Health Challenge.
Finalists

Wendy Leonard
Executive Director, The Ihangane ProjectNic Klopper
CEO, hearX Group
Sujay Santra
Founder & CEO, iKure Techsoft Pvt. Ltd.
Hila Azadzoy
Managing Director, Global Health, Ada; Co-founder, Kiron.ngo
Sumeet Maniar
CEO, WellBrain, Inc.
Sona Shah
CEO and Co-Founder, Neopenda
Frances Hughes
Executive Director , Cutting Edge Oceania
Chrispinus Onyancha
CEO, clinicPesa LimitedSandeep Ahuja
Cofounder and CEO, Operation ASHAKaren Naimer
Director, Program on Sexual Violence in Conflict Zones, Physicians for Human RightsNicolas Acosta
Founder, Dondoctor
Shrutika Girdhar
Co-Founder and CTO - Bodhi Health Education, Bodhi Health Education
Temie Giwa-Tubosun
Founder and CEO, LifeBankBenjamin Fels
CEO, macro-eyes
Melissa Menke
Founder, Access AfyaHow can teachers and educators provide accessible, personalized, and creative learning experiences for all? Read more about our Teachers & Educators Challenge.
Finalists

Shuvajit Payne
Head of Education, Barefoot CollegeKago Kagichiri
CEO, Eneza Education
Heather Beem
CEO & Founder, Practical Education NetworkMelissa Corto
CEO & Co-Founder, Education ModifiedLaura De Reynal
Product Design Lead, International Rescue CommitteePurvi Shah
Director of StoryWeaver, Pratham Books
Chanpil Jung
CEO, Future Class NetworkNik Kafka
Chief Executive Officer, Teach A Man To Fish
Priya Lakhani
Founder and CEO, CENTURY Tech
Audrey Cheng
Chief Executive Officer and Co-Founder, Moringa School
Dina Buchbinder
Founder and President, Education for Sharing
Samson Wambuzi
Co-founder & Chief Innovation Officer, Yiya SolutionsHeejae Lim
Founder and CEO, TalkingPoints
Carlos Pereira
Founder and CEO, LivoxHow can coastal communities mitigate and adapt to climate change while developing and prospering? Read more about our Coastal Communities Challenge.
Finalists

Dennis Yancey
Chief Executive Officer, Marauder Robotics
Evelyn Tickle
Inventor/Owner, Grow Oyster Reefs, llc
Olivier Ceberio
COO, Resolute Marine
Julia Kumari Drapkin
CEO, Founder, Team Lead, ISeeChangeJames Gray
President, Green Stream Technologies, Inc.
Allison Archambault
President, EarthSpark InternationalTheodore Wong
CTO, Bellwether Collaboratory
Shimrit Perkol-Finkel
CEO, ECOncrete Tech LtdSungjin Choe
CEO, Green and Seed Corporation
Tyler Ortego
Founder, ORA Technologies LLC
Deanna MacDonald
CEO, BLOC
Miho Mazereeuw
Director & Associate Professor, MIT Urban Risk LabNnaemeka Ikegwuonu
CEO, ColdHubs Ltd
Fohla Mouftaou
Managing Director, Green Keeper Africa
Katharine Leigh
Leader & Founder, GreenCatch; North America Marketing Executive Coordinator, The Nature ConservancyHow can those most affected by the technology-driven transformations of work create productive and prosperous livelihoods for themselves? Read more about our Work of the Future Challenge.
Finalists

Jakob Way
CEO, Gleechi
Guy Halfteck
CEO/Founder, Knack
Lilia Stoyanov, FCCA
CEO, Transformify
Joshua Haas
Founder, Bubble Group, Inc
Ram Dhan Yadav Katamaraja
Founder & CEO, Colaberry Inc
Usman Javaid
Founder and CEO, Ricult, Inc.
Sarah Krasley
CEO, Shimmy Technologies
Aneri Pradhan
Founder & CEO, ENVision mobile
Alice Freitas
Executive Director, Rede Asta
Rajesh Anandan
CEO, Ultranauts
Rachel Micah-Jones
Executive Director, Centro de los Derechos del Migrante, Inc.Tammy Singh
COO, Plastics for Change
Vera Makarov
Co-CEO, ApliFrancis Obirikorang
CEO, AgroCenter LLCAdam Grunewald
CEO, Lynk Jobs Ltd.Bridging the Pioneer Gap
To achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and solve the world’s most complex challenges, we need to close the vast funding gap we face—US $2.5 trillion according to the UN. For that, we must unlock more grant capital from governments and philanthropists, and more investment capital from the private sector. We also require far more innovation—both in terms of financing mechanisms and in terms of solutions to these global challenges. The latest innovation and technologies, be they around renewable energy, artificial intelligence and machine learning, or robots, hold the potential to significantly improve the lives of the billions of people who still live in poverty without affordable energy, sanitation, or proper nutrition. However, most early-stage world-changing ideas—particularly those addressing the needs of the poor—are stalled in their tracks due to capital starvation and lack of mentors, experts, and networks. Bridging this pioneer gap in capital and support is critical to building a promising pipeline of transformational innovations.
Join Solve to hear from impact investors, philanthropists, and social entrepreneurs on how we might invest in early-stage innovators developing solutions to the SDGs.
Featured Speakers

Noubar Afeyan
Co-Founder and Chairman, Moderna
Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala
Chair of the Board of Gavi, The Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunisations
Cheryl L. Dorsey
President, Echoing Green
Leslie Picker
Reporter, CNBC
Badr Al-Olama
Head of Organising Committee, Global Manufacturing and Industrialisation SummitFeatured Speakers
Cynthia Barnhart
Provost, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
David Moinina Sengeh
Chief Innovation Officer, Government of Sierra Leone
Noubar Afeyan
Co-Founder and Chairman, Moderna
Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala
Chair of the Board of Gavi, The Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunisations
Cheryl L. Dorsey
President, Echoing Green
Leslie Picker
Reporter, CNBC