In early 2025, the Ideas Center at UCU and the IDEA Center at the University of Notre Dame (USA) signed a cooperation agreement, paving the way for a visit of startups from the IdeasLab acceleration program to the United States. This partnership went beyond just a trip — it also included a prior exchange of lecturers.
Olena Zanichkovska, lecturer for the IdeasLab student acceleration program and faculty member at the UCU Business School, shared insights on AI-driven innovations with American startups. Meanwhile, Paul Rafferty, a lecturer at the University of Notre Dame, led a workshop for Ukrainian participants on building an effective Value Proposition using the Challenger Approach.
How the Teams Were Selected
Every six months, IdeasLab selects the 20 best student startups from across Ukraine. The main requirements are simple: be a student, have a team, and have an idea. Out of 150 applications in this round, 20 teams were chosen, 10 completed the full program, and three received final grants.
An additional selection round determined which teams would take part in the “Race to Revenue” accelerator in the United States. During interviews, startups pitched their ideas before a jury composed of representatives from the University of Notre Dame’s IDEA Center, UCU’s Ideas Center, and Ukraine’s Ministry of Education and Science.
Three teams were chosen for the online stage of the program, and from them, two — Petsos.app (a 24/7 online veterinary service) and Bridge (a fast, reliable messenger that works even with weak internet) — went on to present at the final Demo Day in the USA.
“The main goal of the visit was to exchange experiences between acceleration programs and students developing their own startups. It was crucial for our students to see that their projects are not only competitive internationally but often surpass global counterparts. If your idea is strong, its value is recognized everywhere — by both Ukrainian and global markets. And if you have something to say to that market, say it boldly and confidently. Our startups did this brilliantly,”
says Maksym Zabrodin, IdeasLab coordinator at the UCU Ideas Center.
This visit also deepened the longstanding partnership between UCU, its Business School, and the University of Notre Dame — a relationship spanning over two decades.
“The level of support shown by Notre Dame’s representatives was exactly what our students needed to experience firsthand,” adds Maksym.
The US Visit
Before the trip, several weeks of online training prepared the teams. They worked on their business models, products, and strategies alongside leading Ukrainian and international mentors:
- Paul Rafferty — workshops on Truly Differentiated Messaging, Pitch Decks, Outbound, and AI for Sales.
- Ben Hoggan — insights into customer research nuances.
- Malcolm Werchota — how to use AI not as a trendy gimmick, but as a genuine growth tool.
- Logan Herzog — Go-to-Market Strategy, guiding startups in building their own growth plans.
- Brian Hamilton — lessons learned from launching and selling a tech company.
- T.A. McCann — five steps to a successful seed round and advanced customer discovery techniques.
- Olena Zanichkovska — AI as a catalyst for product-to-market strategy.
- Matthew Bradley and Mike Joslin — perspectives from within the US startup ecosystem.
The program culminated in Demo Day in the United States, where Petsos.app and Bridge pitched their projects to American investors. In the US — a market with access to abundant venture capital — such an opportunity can be transformative, enabling a startup that was just an idea three months ago to secure funding for global expansion.
While in the US, participants also attended lectures from:
- John Henry, Director of Startup Programs at Notre Dame’s IDEA Center;
- Paul Rafferty, entrepreneur and go-to-market strategist;
- Kathleen Hessert, strategic communications expert and founder of Sports Media Challenge.
They fine-tuned their startups’ unit economics with Tim Connors, co-founder and president of the venture fund PivotNorth Capital, and toured Elkhart, Indiana, guided by the local Regional Partnership, which shared its vision for transforming the city into a modern, sustainable innovation hub.
The Bridge team shared a key takeaway:
“One of our biggest discoveries was realizing how valuable personal connections, informal conversations, and small talks can be. That’s where ideas, trust, and collaboration opportunities are born. For many of us, this was the most valuable part of the experience.”
They also noted that:
“Big numbers in a pitch don’t always guarantee success. We saw that creativity, sincerity, and focusing on the core problem can often be more convincing to investors than dry statistics.”
Their final reflection:
“It was an incredible experience that showed us how to move forward — both professionally and personally — and opened new horizons in technology, education, and global thinking.”
The Future of IdeasLab
Trips to the University of Notre Dame will now become an annual tradition. Each summer, 2–3 startups from the IdeasLab program will join the “Race to Revenue” accelerator, gaining the chance to present their ideas to a global audience. A new initiative for working with Ukrainian youth is also in the plans.
IdeasLab is a free student accelerator run by the UCU Ideas Center in collaboration with the University of Notre Dame (USA), supported by Ukraine’s Ministry of Education and Science, the Ukrainian Startup Fund, the Ukrainian Catholic University, and Grammarly.
Social Media Post Version
At the start of 2025, the Ideas Center at UCU and the IDEA Center at the University of Notre Dame (USA) began a partnership that opened the doors of global entrepreneurship to our students.
The result? Two student startup teams — Petsos.app (24/7 online veterinary service) and Bridge (messenger that works even with weak internet) — completed the Race to Revenue accelerator and pitched their projects to American investors at the final Demo Day in the USA.
Why this matters:
- Ukrainian students proved that their ideas can compete — and win — on the global stage.
- They worked with top US mentors on product development, go-to-market strategies, and investor outreach.
- The most valuable moments weren’t just official pitches, but the small talks where trust, partnerships, and new ideas are born.
From now on, Ukrainian startups from IdeasLab will have the chance each year to make their mark internationally — with even bigger plans ahead for engaging Ukrainian youth.
IdeasLab — a free student accelerator by the UCU Ideas Center, in collaboration with the University of Notre Dame, and supported by the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine, the Ukrainian Startup Fund, the Ukrainian Catholic University, and Grammarly.
