No, applications are open November 1, 2024 – January 15, 2025.

AngelCon is seeking a diverse set of companies to be considered for funding. We are looking for innovators, risk takers and disruptors alike to compete for $100,000+ in angel funding. Applicants should fit with the following criteria:

•  Demonstrate a product and/or market traction via (a) completed proof of concept with third-party validation, (b) completed MVP with customer feedback or (c) early revenue.
• Have potential for scalability and high growth.
• Have a team with the ability to execute.
• Be based in Central CA or affiliated with the Cal Poly CIE Incubator or SBDC program.

The application deadline is only the start of preparing materials for review by the angels. There are three rounds in the application process, see “Startups” tab for full timeline.

Round 1: Online application – investors review and choose 12 Semi-finalists

Round 2: Top 12 Semi-finalists pitch to investors. Investors choose 6 finalists 

Round 3: Top 6 finalists pitch at a live event. Audience Choice and Investment winner will be chosen.

Following your Round 1 submission, the Cal Poly CIE SBDC will notify you via email if your startup was chosen and provide dates for Pitch Prep Bootcamp, a month-long intensive process led by SBDC consultants to enhance your profile and pitch before Round 2. 

The Pitch Prep Bootcamp program is a month-long intensive process led by a team of expert SBDC consultants. The program includes in-depth executive summary and pitch deck review, as well as weekly intensive coaching sessions for pitching. Consultants will help you prepare for Round 2: Pitch to Investors.

Pitch Prep Bootcamp is not mandatory, but highly recommended to improve your chances of moving forward in the process. 

The application fee covers the processing cost of the application and a ticket to the final event. All Semifinalist applicants are allowed but not required to attend the Pitch Prep Bootcamp. Application fee is $149. The application fee is nonrefundable.

All applicants can expect:

• Investors to review their application 
• A debrief if/when eliminated
• 1 ticket to the final event
  • *finalists receive 2 tickets

The $149 application fee is non-refundable.

All applicants who upload their information to Submittable will have their profiles shared with the investors. They will review before their first selection round. All but 12 applicants will get cut in this first round. If you don’t make the first round, the application fee includes a single ticket to the live event.

We welcome previous applicants to apply again unless we have previously invested in your company.

The type of investment is usually a convertible note or equity. In the other angel conferences that we are aware of, there is an even split between these two types of investments. The type of investment is negotiated between each of the finalists with the Fund Managers. 

The terms are negotiated between each of the finalists with the Fund Manager in the days before the conference. The goal is to get to a set of terms that are fair and mutually beneficial to both the companies, and the investors.

The terms are negotiated with the finalists in the last few weeks before the live event. Historically about 1/2 of the deals are straight equity and about 1/2 have been convertible notes. We have every reason to expect that the terms will be fair and reasonable for both the entrepreneurs and investors.

It is always good to discuss these kinds of issues with appropriate legal counsel, which you should do for a more definitive answer. Generally, this question applies narrowly to companies that are basing their IP strategy on patents, and that have not filed a provision, yet.

Disclosing a patentable idea, patent or any IP or potential IP is not a demand/requirement of any applicants participating in an angel conference or with angel investors in the early stages of an investment conversation. Startups should be somewhat cautious in what they present and we recommend you do not include anything that could be considered IP. Deeper discovery in the due diligence phase may require additional conversation about confidentiality or a non-disclosure agreement, which should be navigated using proper legal counsel or further consideration of potential consequences.

An angel investor is someone who invests money (capital) in a new business (start-up) in exchange for either debt (a loan that converts to shares of ownership in the future) or a piece of the company (shares of ownership/equity). When you invest with people you know or are related to that’s called a Friends and Family round. You will learn about rounds, and so much more, during the monthly AngelCon investor meetings. 

To be an “official” (accredited) angel investor, the SEC requires that you have a certain financial sophistication, whereby you understand the risks of investing in a start-up that may or may not succeed. (For more detail, see ‘Who can become an angel investor?’). An accredited investor is:

• An individual who has a net worth, either individually or upon a joint basis with a spouse, of at least $1,000,000, or has had an individual income in excess of $200,000 for each of the two most recent years, or a joint income with spouse, or spousal equivalent, in excess of $300,000 in each of those years, and has a reasonable expectation of reaching the same income level in the current year. -OR-
• An individual, who holds, in good standing, one of the following certifications or designations administered by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, Inc. (“FINRA”):
•  the Licensed General Securities Representative (Series 7), 
• Licensed Investment Adviser Representative (Series 65), or 
• Licensed Private Securities Offerings Representative (Series 82) -OR-
• An individual, who is a “knowledgeable employee” within the meaning prescribed under Rule 3c-5(a)(4) of the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “Investment Company Act”) of a private fund exempt from registration pursuant to Rule 3(c)(1) or Rule 3(c)(7) of the Investment Company Act.

 More details can be found here. 

Besides providing capital, angel investors can assist a start-up in one of several other ways. An investor may have expertise/knowledge in a particular area that is meaningful to a company’s success. An investor might tap into their existing network of contacts to help a company by introducing them to people with expertise they need. An investor may be called upon by a contact in their network to help another company that they want to succeed. Over time you will become part of a community that helps one another.

You must qualify as an Accredited Investor to invest in companies beyond just friends’ and family companies. Accredited Investors must meet one of the criteria:

To qualify as an accredited investor based on your net worth, you must have a net worth of $1 million or more (excluding your primary residence); or

To qualify as an accredited investor based on your annual income, you must have had an annual income of $200,000 or greater (or $300,000 or greater combined income with your spouse) for the prior two years and have a reasonable expectation of the same or greater income in the current year.

To qualify as an accredited investor based on your work experience, you can be considered a “knowledgeable employee” who has a good understanding of the risks involved in angel investing.

The SEC states that the definition of accredited investor is “intended to encompass those persons whose financial sophistication and ability to sustain the risk of loss of investment or ability to fend for themselves render the protections of the Securities Act’s registration process unnecessary”.

An angel network is an investment group made up of angel investors who pool their expertise to help select a group of early stage companies that are most likely to result in a successful return on investment.  This expertise may include providing feedback to companies that are presenting, participating in due diligence (researching the company team, market, financials, etc), and voting on the companies with the greatest likelihood of success. Investors invest independently from one another.

In order to operate the Fund must have a minimum of 20 units purchased (see ‘What is a unit?’). An individual investor can have more than one unit. As an example, the Fund could have 26 investors with 7 units each or 91 investors with 2 units each, etc.

There is one basic fee.

Service Fee of $1,500, which is part of the $6,500 per unit paid. This fee is earmarked to cover the cost of fund administration over the life of the Fund. Once all the units have been paid for, the Fund Manager establishes a budget for the maintenance for the lifetime of the Fund.

A unit is an investment of $5,000, plus a Service Fee of $1,500 ($6,500/unit total cost).  Investors can only invest by purchasing whole units (ie. One unit $6,500, two units $11,500, etc). The investment portion of the unit is what makes up the fund (see ‘What is a fund?’).