Standard Chartered Americas and the Zahn Innovation Center at the City College of New York have announced the winners of the 2026 Women in Tech Incubator Competition Awards. Now in its 12th year, this program provides early-stage female founders with the mentorship and capital they need to scale. The grand prize winner this year is Popped Up!, an integrated app platform that provides live updates and analytics for pop-up events. For their win, the team received $15,000 in seed funding to further develop their solution. The second-place prize of $5,000 went to PlantPulse, which created a plant care kit that monitors when indoor plants need water.
Moving From the Incubator to Real-World Impact
This program works as a practical way for founders to sharpen their business models and grow their professional networks. Participants spent a few months working side-by-side with mentors from Standard Chartered to really polish their go-to-market strategies. That kind of hands-on help is what bridges the gap between a classroom concept and the actual marketplace. This 2026 group stood out for being resourceful and having a disciplined way of looking at data. By offering both the money and the mentorship, the bank is trying to push for more economic inclusion. This initiative is part of the “Futuremakers by Standard Chartered” program, which tackles inequality for young people.
Mandy DeFilippo, CEO, US & Americas, and EMEA at Standard Chartered, stated:
“Through our longstanding partnership with the Zahn Innovation Center at The City College of New York, we are proud to support and recognize New York’s next generation of young entrepreneurs, powered by leadership, vision, initiative, and hard work, the same values that guide us every day at Standard Chartered. The 2026 cohort has demonstrated incredible ingenuity, and we are delighted to honor this year’s winners as they move from the incubator stage to real-world impact.”
My Anh Phan, CEO of Popped Up!, added:
“We are honored to be named the winner of this year’s Women in Tech Incubator Competition. This experience has provided us with invaluable mentorship and resources to refine our vision. With this support, we are excited to accelerate our growth and bring our solution to a broader audience.”
Kesia Hudson, Managing Director of the Zahn Innovation Center at CCNY, also stated:
“The caliber of innovation we’ve seen this year is truly inspiring. These entrepreneurs are not just building businesses; they are building the future. Our collaboration with Standard Chartered ensures that talented women have the platform they deserve to lead, disrupt, and succeed.”
The bank is still pushing for more diversity in tech through its work with the Zahn Center. This partnership offers a lot of practical support, like a newly renovated resource center, a mentorship network, and a speaker series all about women in entrepreneurship. By backing these founders, the program helps create a more inclusive and resilient economy. These winners are now part of a ten-year legacy of female-led businesses that the bank has supported. Standard Chartered stays focused on encouraging new ideas that solve modern operational problems. This project is just another successful chapter in the bank’s mission to drive commerce and prosperity.
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News Source: Businesswire.com
