Finals 2025
Virtual format
August 12th, 2025
Follow the broadcast on this page
Experts
TIC Americas relies on a network of specialists from around the world, who share their knowledge and experience with the entrepreneurial youth of the Americas.
Get to know them!
Resources
Connecting young entrepreneurs and national organizations within a vibrant community of global actors who support youth development and exchange opportunities, fostering a new generation of responsible business leaders.
Expo
Virtual Finalists
The Start-Up Challenge promotes and supports youth-led ventures across the Americas that integrate new technologies and social impact to help build a resilient future with this new generation at the forefront.
A total of 10 Finalist teams are participating in the Finals of the Start-Up Challenge, a special category of this edition of the Talent and Innovation Competitions of the Americas (TIC Americas).
TIC Americas serves as the Entrepreneurship for Action component leading up to the VII Young Americas Forum, part of the X Summit of the Americas: “Building a secure, sustainable and shared-prosperity hemisphere”, through innovative solutions that address the four fundamental pillars of human security: citizen, food, energy, and water security.
Winners
Agenda
(Washington, D.C. time) | Virtual Format | In Spanish
Welcome Remarks:
- Luis A. Viguria, Chief Executive Officer, Young Americas Business Trust
- H.E. Mayerlyn Cordero Díaz, Ambassador, Permanent Representative of the Dominican Republic to the Organization of American States
- Linda Valette, Vice President of Strategic Business Programs, Banreservas
Introduction:
- Helen Larrecq, Policy Analyst at the OECD Centre for Entrepreneurship, SMEs, Regions & Cities
- Federico Arellano, CEO & Co-Founder, Pitch Jams
- Vanessa Montserrat Bernal, BeeBag (Paraguay)
- Adolfo Martin Vidal, CeluNova (Mexico)
- Keila Saraí Cáceres, mi-BiomarK (Mexico)
- Jonny Alexander Umaña, Nebulon Engineering (Colombia)
- Jesús Enrique García, SEPOC (Mexico)
Keynote Speaker:
- Amb. Laura Gil, Assistant Secretary General of the Organization of American States
- Luis A. Viguria, Chief Executive Officer, Young Americas Business Trust
Introduction:
- Carlos Ruíz, Technical Specialist, Gender Equity and Youth Program, Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture
- Claudia Magdaleno, Digital economy entrepreneur, recognized as a success story by Meta, Shopify, and Forbes 2023 “30 Promises”
- Sebastián Muena Cortés, Candel Medical Company (Chile)
- Oscar Encarnacion, FiscalEmpire (Dominican Republic)
- Sofya Tokhomirova, GG (Peru)
- Cristina Alfaro, LIRA (El Salvador)
- Camilo Ramos Salazar, SiembrAI (Colombia)
- María Celina Conte, Director, Summits of the Americas Secretariat, Organization of American States
- Josefina Stubbs, Director of Regional Integration and Head of the Forums of the X Summit of the Americas process, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Dominican Republic
- Valerie Lorena, Executive Director, Young Americas Business Trust
Closing Remarks:
- Valerie Lorena, Executive Director, Young Americas Business Trust
Winners Announcement:
- Linda Valette, Vice President of Strategic Business Programs, Banreservas
About YABT
Young Americas Business Trust (YABT) is an international non-profit organization that works in cooperation with the Organization of American States (OAS) to promote the social and economic development of young people around the world. While building entrepreneurship and creating opportunities for future business leaders, the YABT community advances global goals and strengthens youth-led initiatives for sustainable development.
BUSINESS SKILLS AND TRAININGS
We emphasize practical experience to generate an entrepreneurial and innovative spirit in young people, motivating and guiding them through real business experiences.
LEADERSHIP
We connect young entrepreneurs and organizations creating a vibrant community of local actors, who support youth development, citizen participation, learning opportunities and exchanges, in order to train a new generation of responsible leaders.
COMPETITIONS
Our skills are based on providing business acceleration platforms where young people develop their business ideas and startups, through hemispheric programs that connect with the private sector, investors, and governments that support business proposals with scalable innovations in various sectors.
PARTNERSHIPS & RESOURCES
We work through national and international alliances that provide financial support to programs and initiatives for young entrepreneurs.
Become
a Partner
YABT works with companies from various sectors, multilateral organizations, OAS Member States, and Permanent Observers, building deep and scalable relationships to invest in programs and initiatives that support the talent and capacity of young people, preparing them for the future of work and business.
To discuss partnership opportunities, contact us at edgar.maestre@yabt.net
