WNY48 is Buffalo's 48-hour startup competition. Pitch an idea, form a team, and launch in a weekend.
701 Ellicott Street (UB CBLS), Buffalo
Event Starts In
No experience required, just the drive to create. WNY48 gives you the structure, the people, and the 48 hours to make something real.
Friday evening: 60 seconds, any idea, anyone. The crowd votes on the top concepts.
Validate, design, and prototype with help from expert mentors.
Present your MVP to judges for feedback and prizes.
Times are approximate and subject to change.
There’s a place for every kind of person at WNY48, whether you’re building, advising, funding, or supporting.
Pitch an idea, find your team, and build a startup in 48 hours. Open to everyone, no prior startup experience needed.
A few hours on Saturday makes a huge difference. Share your hard-won expertise with teams that are hungry for it.
Put your brand in front of the best entrepreneurial talent in Western New York. Custom packages available.
Help us run a world-class event. Volunteers get full weekend access, meals, and a WNY48 shirt.
WNY48 is made possible by organizations that believe in Western New York’s entrepreneurial future.
Nope! Many participants come without an idea and join a team around someone else’s pitch.
None in particular! We need people with all kinds of skills: coding, design, marketing, sales, finance, domain expertise, and hustle. All skill levels welcome.
Tickets are $48, with early bird pricing at $25.00! All tickets include 5 meals throughout the weekend, a commemorative t-shirt, unlimited internet and coffee, one-on-one mentorship, and partner benefits and discounts. Scholarships are available, so email us if cost is a barrier.
You can come with friends, but we encourage everyone to participate in the open team formation process Friday night. Some pre-formed teams go on to win. It’s up to you.
You own 100% of what you create. WNY48 makes no claim on your intellectual property.
Prizes will be announced closer to the event. Past prizes have included cash, AWS credits, coworking memberships, and mentorship packages. We're still finalizing prizes for 2026.
WNY48 is inspired by the global Startup Weekend format but is independently organized by community members in Western New York.
Absolutely. Students make up a big part of every WNY48 cohort. Several past participants have gone on to found real companies that started as weekend projects.
