← The issue Alumni DigestWaterloo

The introduction after the pitch

At Velocity, alumni help the next generation reach people they could not reach alone.

Founders and supporters gather for the Velocity Pitch Competition.
EnterpriseFounders and supporters gather for the Velocity Pitch Competition.Photo: Source: University of Waterloo; see original article for photo credits.

More than 100 judges volunteered at a recent Velocity Pitch Competition, offering feedback and introductions. Founder Connor Kapahi (PhD ’26) describes one unexpected presentation that led to supplier contacts his company had struggled to reach.

The university’s report follows founders working on diagnostics and assistive technologies. Their examples show why an alumni network matters at a practical level: someone can challenge a pitch, explain a market or make an introduction. The story is about work that follows the stage time.

Sources 1
  1. Original reporting · uwaterloo.ca
Next · p.02A life beyond the rinkFor Kristin O’Neill, graduate study created room for another kind of ambition.

Chapter 01 · Alumni & PeopleRead it in the issue →

More from Alumni & People

Across health, research, enterprise and public life, Waterloo alumni and students turn knowledge into work that changes what comes next.

This story is from the September 2026 issue of Alumni Digest · Waterloo. It's free, monthly and independent.

Alumni Digest is independent and is not an official University of Waterloo publication. Stories summarize the public reporting linked under each piece; photographs belong to the credited sources and remain under rights review.