Three teams of Clark County student entrepreneurs earned the opportunity to pitch their business ideas at CES 2018^® – owned and produced by the Consumer Technology Association (CTA) – Jan. 9-12 at the Las Vegas Convention Center. The teenagers are part of the CTA Future Innovators program – established by CTA and EVERFI in 2015 – which teaches students how to apply math and creative skills to think entrepreneurially about business. CES is open to consumer technology professionals, and attendees must be 18 years old to attend.

During yesterday’s semi-final round, 17 teams of students pitched their business plans to four judges: Cindy Hoag, senior director, CTA; Helena Lagos, director, Rebel Venture Fund; Joshua Leavitt, vice president, Society of Information Management; Yin Nawaday, founder & CEO, Icebox Consulting Group. The teams advancing to the final round at CES are:

• Conditional Cubes from Cimarron-Memorial High
• Estavillo-Lisama from Northwestern Career and Technical Academy
• Addendum LLC from Southwestern Career and Technical Academy

“CTA is committed to building the next generation of entrepreneurs, and the CTA Future Innovators program is a great way to get today’s students thinking outside the box,” said Jennifer Taylor, vice president, U.S. Jobs, CTA. “Learning how to start a new business helps teenagers apply unconventional talents and skills to a business idea, encouraging them to think critically and solve real-world challenges. Las Vegas is our second home, and we’re thrilled to provide local students with the foundational skills they need to become future technology leaders in Nevada and beyond.”

“This is a tremendous opportunity for Clark County students to present their business ideas to expert judges ahead of CES,” said Snehal Bhakta, education project facilitator, Clark County School District Career & Technology. “These students are definitely on the right path to be leading innovators and problem-solvers for the Nevada workforce.”

All participating students successfully completed the CTA Future Innovators program that included an interactive digital learning course called  Venture - Entrepreneurial Expedition™, powered by EVERFI. The student pitches are designed to focus on practical ideas that can be implemented locally to solve pressing issues for the county and state.

“CTA is a perfect partner for this student pitch competition, as we both inspire and cultivate the next generation of future leaders,” said Jon Chapman, president of global partnerships, EVERFI. “We are proud to provide students with the opportunity to put the creative and entrepreneurial skills they’ve learned through Venture to tangible use right here in the Las Vegas community and before the world’s leading tech innovators in January.”

The Conditional Cube team was represented by students Aspen Anderson, Morgan Hershey, Ajaya Branch and their teacher Jennifer Miller. Estavillo-Lisama was represented by students Cherese Lisama, Jaslin Estavillo and their teacher Denise Cale. Addendum LLC. was composed of students Anish Chejerla, Ishaan Raja and their teacher Katherine Burns. These participants will present their business plans at CES on Jan. 12, 2018.

High-definition video b-roll from CES is available for easy download on CESbroll.com. See exclusive photos from the CES show floor, keynotes, conference sessions, events and award ceremonies in the CES photo gallery.