The competition is intended for students, inventors, entrepreneurs and early stage start-ups. The competition, which was held for the first time in 1998, attracted dozens of companies and over a thousand visits on the Competition site. Companies which took part in the program enjoyed consulting, brainstorms meetings, assistance from business mentors and exposure on the Forum web site. From its second year the 50k Competition offers even more benefits to young entrepreneurs. Leading, successful business mentors have committed to assist companies in developing their business strategy.
Participants enjoy the benefits of exposure to international venture capital funds.
Awards totaling NIS 50,000 are distributed to the top three teams. The competition is coordinated with the help of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, which in 1990 established the first of the prestigious MIT 50k competitions. In the academic year 2000 - 2001 the program will run in parallel in a number of academic Institutes.