State of New

For Immediate Release: June 2, 2014

GOVERNOR CUOMO ANNOUNCES RECORD NUMBER OF
APPLICANTS FOR WORLD'S LARGEST BUSINESS IDEA
COMPETITION

43North Attracts Entrepreneurs and Startups from Around the Globe Looking to Win Seed
Funding and Relocate to Western New York

Governor Andrew M. Cuomo today announced a record number of applicants for the 43North
global business idea competition, which concluded its application round on May 31, 2014. A total
of 6,932 applications were received for the competition during the four-month entry period, with
2,603 qualified submissions advancing to the first round of judging. The applicant pool included
business ideas hailing from all 50 U.S. states and 96 countries, representing various sectors such
as information technology, software development, web and mobile technology, business services,
media and entertainment, e-commerce, healthcare and biotechnology, green and clean
technology, advanced manufacturing, sports and fitness, agri-business, and others.

The 43North competitionnamed after the latitudinal line that runs through Western New
Yorkfeatures $5 million in cash prizes, with a top prize of $1 million, and is part of Governor
Cuomos Buffalo Billion initiative, intended to drive new economic opportunities throughout the
City of Buffalo and the Western New York region.

The 43North competition is an important part of our Buffalo Billion initiative, designed to
attract talented entrepreneurs and startup ventures from all over the world and bring them here
to Western New York, Governor Cuomo said. We are proud to announce the first round has
gone global big way with applications coming in from over 90 countries. This another sign that
Buffalo is on the radar of entrepreneurs worldwide.

We set out to attract 1,000 applicants for the competition and we blew that number right out of
the water, said 43North Steering Committee Chairman Jordan Levy. I think the huge response
43North has received demonstrates the viability of our strategy to build a local entrepreneurial
eco-system, and what we have to offer startups in terms of support, talent, mentorship and
services, and a low cost environment to help get businesses started.

In May 2013, the New York Power Authority (NYPA) trustees approved $5.4 million in funding
for the 43North global business idea competition. The award came from a recommendation by
the WNY Power Proceeds Allocation Board (WNYPPAB) to apply the revenues from the sale of
unutilized hydropower toward the concept of a competition. These funds were subsequently
committed to the non-profit Launch NY for management of the competition and eventual
distribution of funds.

The tremendous response from startup entrepreneurs to the 43North business competition is
great news for Western New York and reflects another way that New York State is partnering
with new highly innovative firms, under Governor Cuomos leadership, to diversify the Buffalo-
Niagara regions job base and provide a shot in the arm for its economy, said John. R. Koelmel,
NYPA chairman and an Erie County resident. The Power Authority is pleased to be providing
the funding for the business competition awards and is looking forward to significant economic
developments resulting from this seed money.

The NYPA proceeds funding for 43North stems from net earnings obtained from its sale into the
wholesale electricity marketplace of unutilized hydropower designated under state law for
Western New York businesses. In addition to the $5.4 million for 43North, NYPA has made
proceeds funding awards of more than $8 million to more than 20 Western New York
enterprises as part of its multidimensional efforts to spur job creation and capital investments in
the region.

To spread the word about the business idea competition and attract applicants from across the
country and around the world, 43North embarked on an aggressive social media, public
relations, minority engagement, and roadshow outreach campaign. This effort resulted in over
14 million online impressions, roughly 100 earned media placements, thousands of personal
conversations and individual meetings, participation in several high-profile national minority
and women business enterprise (M/WBE) conferences and events, and over 75 outreach
presentation stops in two dozen North American cities and the international startup hotbeds of
Israel and India.

From its inception, 43North has been about shattering the traditional business plan competition
model and offering entrepreneurs the level of funding and support necessary to not only get
their ideas off the ground, but also to position them for long-term viability, said Western New
York Regional Economic Development Council Co-chair and Managing Partner at Larkin
Development Group Howard Zemsky. That is how we can attract top startup talent to our
region, and thanks to Governor Cuomo and the New York Power Authority, we were able to
make that happen with an amazing amount of initial interest from applicants.

Above all, the success of this competition lies in the story being told about the great assets
Buffalo has to offer entrepreneurs and the new way of doing business in our region, as well as
the unprecedented commitment from Governor Cuomo and state government to spur innovation
and job creation in Western New York, said Western New York Regional Economic Development
Council Co-chair and President of the University at Buffalo Satish K. Tripathi. The competition
has certainly captured the attention of many in the global startup community and people are
truly starting to take note of what is happening with both 43North and Western New York as a
whole.

In addition to the top cash prize of $1 million, 43North will award six $500,000 prizes and four
$250,000 prizes. Winners also receive free incubator space for a year, guidance from mentors
related to their field and access to other exciting incentive programs, like Start-Up NY.

43North is one of Governor Cuomo's Buffalo Billion initiatives that is designed to spark new
businesses for Buffalo, but we never dreamed that spark would turn into a fire, said Empire
State Development President, CEO & Commissioner Kenneth Adams. This competition is
attracting promising start-up ventures from around the world. 43North will provide capital,
mentoring and support services to winners and create new economic opportunities for Western
New York.
Here is a breakdown of the application and judging process:

February 5 May 31, 2014: 6,932 applications were received via the competitions website,
43North.org. The purpose of Round 1 was for applicants to provide a vision for their venture,
including their business concept, target customers, industry overview, competitive landscape
and revenue potential.

June 2, 2014: Of the 6,932 applications, 2,603 were deemed qualified submissions, meaning that
they included a response to each application question and chose to formally submit their
application. A pool of more than 200 judges will now review the qualified submissions.

June 30, 2014: The semi-finalists will be announced.

September 2014: The semi-finalists will be asked to present further details on their business
plan to 43Norths judging panel, followed by 10 minutes of questions. At the conclusion of the
week, the 11 finalists will be announced. Each finalist will be guaranteed a cash prize.

October 30, 2014: The finalists will pitch their business in-person to a panel of celebrity judges in
Buffalo and the award ceremony will be held. Events will take place in the week leading up to the
pitches and award ceremony. Details on finals week will be announced later this summer.

We are thrilled with these applicant figures, and having traveled throughout the country and to
several foreign destinations over the last several months, I can speak first-hand to the excitement
that exists for 43North and the pot of funding and support that we are offering finalists, said
43North Executive Director Andrew Pulkrabek. Buffalo is now part of a wider entrepreneurial
conversation thanks to 43North and other complementary efforts, such as Launch NY, Start-Up
NY, and the advancement of new local incubator and co-working spaces like Z80 Labs and dig.

To learn more, visit www.43north.org.

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