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The shape of it
Duration
18 months · Oct 2026 – April 2028
Team
3-6 students · 3+ disciplines
Approach
The challenge is defined. How you solve it is not.
You build
A private consumer tool that restores missing context to digital media without telling people what to think.
Why 3+ disciplines
Build a team that doesn't think like you.
Journalism & CommunicationsPsychologyPolicyInformation ScienceDesignComputer ScienceBusiness_______ ?
Your first 30 days
Understand the problem
01
Build the team
Find 3-6 people spanning at least three disciplines. Look for different ways of thinking, not six versions of yourself.
02
Pick your starting ground
Start small. Choose 2-3 media platforms to investigate. You don't need to tackle giants or solve the entire internet, yet.
03
De-risk your build
Create an actionable protocol and mission statement around building a non-partisan tool; affirming your own beliefs is not the goal.
04
Talk to people
Interview 20-30 students to better understand what they do when a clip, claim, or post makes them suspicious.
05
Map one journey
Follow the path from “I don't know if I trust this” to “I have enough context to decide for myself.” That path becomes your first product hypothesis.
06
Build the smallest useful thing
Prototype one experience that restores context for one piece of content.
Your goal after 30 days isn't to have the product. It's to know more about the problem than you did when you registered.
The road ahead
Five moments keep you moving.
Mar 2027
Discovery Gate
Show that you understand the problem and the people experiencing it.
Mar 2027
Thesis Lock
Commit to the product thesis you're going to test.
Mar 2027
Deployment Gate
Ship something people can actually use.
Mar 2027
Live Evaluation
Put it in the world. Watch what happens. Learn from real usage.
Mar 2027
Finals at NEXPLORE
Show what you built, what the evidence says, and what should happen next.
Upcoming events
You're not doing this alone.
Meet potential teammates, get feedback, ask questions, and learn alongside other teams throughout the competition.
The goal
Launch a company.
$1M SAFE
The winning team will have the opportunity to pitch to the Xponential Venture Fund for a proposed $1M SAFE, and move on to Xcelerate.
Win or not, you leave with a shipped product, real users, and 18 months of evidence that you know how to build something difficult.