Entrepreneurs Join Amazing Race Across China

MBA students from the Smith School joined peers from China and Israel in a business plan competition May 25 to June 1, 2014, in Beijing.

Overall, participants vied for $2,750 in cash prizes during the China Business Model Competition, organized by Smith’s Dingman Center for Entrepreneurship and host partner, Peking University’s Guanghua School of Management.

Other participants came from Zhejiang University in China and the Technion Israeli Institute of Technology.

An international team of students — two from Smith and two from Peking University — won the competition’s $1,000 top prize with a pitch for Wireless ISP, a telecommunications business that would bring better Internet access to rural China.

The competition, now in its ninth year, was the culmination of a business model and study abroad course to China for Smith MBA students, led by the Dingman Center.

In a twist this year, the course — dubbed the China AdVENTURE Challenge — incorporated opportunities to accrue points by participating in site visits and cultural activities from Hong Kong to Beijing.

The challenge, inspired by The Amazing Race reality TV show, allowed Smith students to compete for a $1,000 scholarship separate from the business plan prizes.

A highlight was a behind-the-scenes visit to KBL Group International, the Hong Kong garment factory of Steven Begleiter ’92.

Dean Alexander Triantis accompanied the delegation of 17 Smith students throughout the trip, which also included an alumni event.