CHICAGO, September 2024 — 1871’s 17th Annual Momentum Awards took place on 9.19.2024, bringing together hundreds of attendees from the Chicago tech community for an evening that celebrated innovation, community, and fundraised for 1871’s 501c3 Mission..
Congratulations to our eight winners who were honored for their successes and contributions to the tech communities in Chicago and beyond:
Corporate Champion: United Airlines
Chicagoness: Kristi Ross
Outstanding Tech CEO: Dhruv Saxena
Industry Disrupter: AQUA Cultured Foods
Social Impact: ReloShare
Rising Star: Mycocycle
Momentum: Hallow
CityLIGHTS: Loadsmart
The Momentum Awards are integral to our organization where we receive our largest donations of the year to support our mission as a nonprofit. 86% of every dollar donated supports our offerings, and we thank all those who contributed this year. We couldn’t do what we do without you. While we continue to work together to build a world guided by innovation, let’s look back on some highlights of the incredible night.
Cocktail Hour
VIP guests entered the space via our teal carpet. Following pre-ceremony cocktails, hors d’oeuvres and networking.
The cocktail bar quickly filled with people sporting name tags that featured companies from Chicagoland and around the country. Against the backdrop of excited chatter, The Jellyvision band played classic hits, their cherry red instruments contrasting beautifully with 1871’s teal branding.
The spirit of Chicago was in the room as Chicago style hot dogs and Italian beef sandwiches circulated to accompany dinner.
Award Ceremony
The show commenced with opening remarks from Betsy Ziegler, 1871 CEO, and Larry Eppley, 1871 Board Chairman and founding managing partner of Sheppard Mullin Chicago.
Each award was introduced and presented by an 1871 Board Member who handed off our signature Momentum award to the winner. The award recipients then had a few moments to address the audience, thank their supporters and express gratitude for their win.
Highlights of the award ceremony included: 1871’s 2024 Impact video, Alex Jones, CEO and co-founder of Hallow, accepting the Momentum Award with his newborn baby, Betsy Ziegler walking onstage to Charli XcX’s “365” (the instrumental version) and witnessing the excitement of the winners.
17th Annual Momentum Awards Winners | 2024
Celebrate Good Times
The night concluded with an afterparty where guests, nominees and winners continued to revel in the excitement of the event. When asked about their favorite part of the night, attendees were overwhelmingly impressed with the winning founders, emphasizing how special it was to experience their wins.
DJ Tess got the crowd grooving to Beyoncé, Gloria Gaynor and Bad Bunny. As the 1871 team danced into the night, our minds were all on next year’s Momentum Awards.
See you on 09.18.25!.
About The Momentum Awards
The Momentum Awards, now in its 17th year, is the largest annual celebration of tech innovation across Chicago and beyond. The event brings together 1871’s full community of innovators, leaders, civic supporters, and partners to celebrate the people that are disrupting their industries, building up their communities, and shaping the future.
With many nominations and thousands of votes casted, this year’s finalists were selected from the most competitive and impressive pool of nominees in the event’s history. Winners were determined by a combination of public vote and vote by the 1871 Board of Directors.
Our lead sponsors this year are Aon and Discover. Other sponsors include BMO, Cooley, ExpoPass, ITW, Molson Coors, PNC, SpotHero, Suntory, U3 Coffee, Dscout, OCA Ventures, Eternal Creations, Lettuce Entertain You, Lofty Ventures, Ashling Partners, 1440 & Reloshare.
The 18th Momentum Awards will take place on 9.18.25.
About 1871
1871, a nonprofit global innovation hub, exists to inspire, equip, and support early-stage, growth-stage, late-stage, and corporate innovators in building extraordinary businesses. 1871 is home to ~500 early-stage startups, ~250 growth and late-stage companies, and ~60 corporates, and is supported by an entire community focused on accelerating their growth and creating jobs in the Chicagoland area. The member experience includes virtual and in-person access to workshops, events, mentorship, and more. The nonprofit organization has 350 mentors available to its members, alongside access to more than 200 partner corporations, universities, education programs, accelerators, venture funds, and others. Since its inception in 2012, more than 1,050+ alum companies are still active, have created over 14,700 jobs, and have raised more than $3.7 billion in follow-on capital.
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