Some of Aotearoa New Zealand’s most promising student-founded ventures will take centre stage as Te Whare Wānanga o Waitaha | University of Canterbury’s Centre for Entrepreneurship (UCE) hosts its 2026 Summer Startup Showcase in Christchurch next month.
The event on Wednesday 4 February at The Piano is open to the public and will feature the top 10 ventures selected from this year’s University of Canterbury (UC) Summer Startup Programme. The students will pitch their ideas, ambitions and potential business impact to a panel of judges.
The showcase marks the culmination of UCE’s flagship Summer Startup Programme, an intensive 10-week accelerator designed to help UC students turn their ideas into action, whether that is launching commercial ventures, social enterprises or impact-driven startups.
The new cohort includes 23 participants across 18 ventures, spanning industries as diverse as sustainable materials, fashion, fintech, education, AI automation, skincare, sports equipment and climate resilience.
This year’s ventures reflect both creativity and a strong sense of purpose, including seaweed-based alternatives to single-use plastics, an AI tool to optimise manufacturing floors, a blockchain education platform that bridges theory and practice, a regenerative tourism model, wildfire suppression technology, and financial literacy tools for rangatahi.
During the Summer Startup Programme students are supported to explore, validate and launch their ventures, while developing an entrepreneurial mindset grounded in problem-solving, collaboration and impact.
Now in its 13th year, the programme has built a strong track record of alumni who have gone on to create successful ventures, including Indigo & Iris, VXT, Komodo Wellbeing, Kiwifibre, Endosoothe, Teiny, Sterineedle and FROTH.
This year’s cohort has learned directly from more than 80 guest speakers, facilitators and mentors, including founders, investors and industry leaders, alongside site visits to innovative New Zealand companies and organisations. “These real-world insights help students test their ideas, sharpen their business models and build confidence as founders,” says Pete Howard, Student Innovation Lead, UC Centre for Entrepreneurship.
Attend the UCE Summer Startup Showcase
The Summer Startup Showcase is open to the public. Attendees will hear live pitches from the top 10 ventures selected from this year’s cohort, meet the founders, and celebrate the innovation emerging from UC’s student community.
Event details
Date: Wednesday, 4 February 2026
Time: 5.30pm–8.30pm
Location: The Piano, 156 Armagh Street, Christchurch
Get Tickets Here
Come along, be inspired and support the next generation of UC entrepreneurs as student curiosity meets capability, mentorship and momentum to launch ideas with the potential to shape industries and communities.
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