Amplify your impact, connect with founders, and embark on a transformative journey! 

The IYA Innovation Quest offers a series of dynamic experiences that aim to accelerate, cultivate, and support qualified student-led ventures at the intersection of business, technology, and creative practice. This yearlong immersive journey of programming is designed to empower founders, foster innovation, and create a lasting impact within the IYA and Trojan community, serving as a catalyst for innovation and visions realized. Embracing IYA’s intersectional challenge-based learning principles, the Innovation Quest takes learning and entrepreneurial growth from the classroom to the boardroom and beyond and into the hands of creators, as students construct and refine their founder toolkits and nurture skills to address challenges at scale. 

The Innovation Quest is co-led by Business of Innovation faculty Tina Sharkey, Chris Swain, JM Arnoult. Join us! Be a part of the Trojan founder community and ignite your impactful journey.

The Innovation Quest kicks off with the IYA Founders Bootcamp IYA Founders Bootcamp. This  immersive one-day bootcamp experience was held both on-campus and virtually via Zoom for remote participants. 

Explore the power of a founder community, gain insights from industry thought leaders, and establish meaningful connections with like-minded peers and founding teams. Equip yourself with tools to build and enhance your founders' toolkit and reach.

The inaugural IYA Founders Bootcamp commenced, setting into motion a year-long IYA Innovation Quest – a series of dynamic experiences that strive to cultivate and support qualified student-led ventures at the intersection of business, technology, and creative practice.

IYA Founders Bootcamp

The Innovation Quest continues with Ignite Grants. We ward grants of $1,500 each to up to 10 teams that align with specific team application guidelines, fueling the development of their Minimum Viable Products (MVPs). 

In addition to the grant, winners will be assigned an industry mentor who will supervise spending, while providing beneficial insight and direction. 

Note: Teams must include at least one IYA student who is actively enrolled.

Please read the Ignite Grants Overview for further details on application, eligibility, award process, and essential FAQs. 

Applications for 2023-2024 are now closed. 

The  IYA Venture Showcase concludes the yearlong Innovation Quest – a culminating event spotlighting emerging ideas from the next generation of purpose-driven innovators and entrepreneurs at the Academy. Our dynamic program focuses on cultivating innovation at the potent intersection of technology, design, business, culture, and community. 

The IYA Venture Showcase spotlights emerging ideas from the next generation of purpose-driven innovators and entrepreneurs at the Academy, giving student and alumni companies the opportunity to present their products, services, and technologies to industry leaders for funding and a lightning round of feedback. 

As part of the ongoing Innovation Quest, this event is the capstone to our year-long journey of creativity, entrepreneurship, innovation, and founder community building at IYA. 

Applications for 2023-2024 are now closed.

The inaugural IYA Venture Showcase, hosted by USC Iovine and Young Academy, spotlights emerging ideas from the next generation of purpose-driven innovators and entrepreneurs at the Academy. Watch highlights with guest panelists, Liz Hellner, Jason Mayden, and Sam Wick.

IYA Venture Showcase 2023

“Now is the time to look at the youth as leaders of tomorrow, and give them the agency and support that they need. Academy students are unique in that they create the lane, they don’t join a lane,” Jason Mayden, Distinguished visiting lecturer in Product Innovation, IYA

“To do purpose-driven incubation and innovation like what happens here at the Academy… I don’t think you can find anywhere else where that is happening,” Tina Sharkey, Lecturer, Business of Innovation at IYA, and Venture Showcase director 

IYA Venture Showcase

2024 IYA VENTURE SHOWCASE PARTICIPATING COMPANIES

2024 Venture Showcase: Participating Companies

IYA Innovation Quest

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