Startups as a new school subject. Setting up and maintaining modern gadgets is a business for the advanced only. Writing abstracts, diploma and term papers

The philosophy of money draws schoolchildren and adolescents into the business cycle, not to mention students. I want to make money as early as possible, be independent, self-sufficient, travel, buy branded clothes and have funds for entertainment. Studentship is the time when thoughts about your personal future are most fruitful. Try yourself in business or choose the path of a hired employee with a fixed salary? This issue should be resolved now. The free regime of the day and the absence of serious obligations make this time favorable for translating your own business ideas into practice.

Benefits of student status for a businessman:

  • a wide circle of communication (fellow practitioners become not only clients, but also "prompt" a valuable idea for making money);
  • part-time employment (as opposed to average educational institution, the schedule of a student of a higher school is not strictly regulated - there are "windows" of free time);
  • access to information (one of the main activities of the university is to teach young people to find useful information; this quality is useful when creating your own business);
  • minimum obligations (to family, children, creditors).

As a side job for students, they usually offer essay writing, resale of used things, baby sitting and even making cribs. This really makes money. But some go further and already in their student years begin to form their own business empire. Let's take a closer look at business ideas that can become a start for entrepreneurship.

1. Portal for pupils and students

A future journalist (or just a communicative student) can organize an information resource for student youth. At the same time, you do not have to create a website, spend money on it - there is already an Internet site. Surely the educational institution has its own website, but there is no time to fill it with news and advertisements. For a student, this is an opportunity to start his own business, because commercial information is sometimes more expensive than the material result of labor.

What is posted on such a portal:

  • news;
  • useful information:
  1. interesting articles,
  2. reference books useful for students, teenagers, schoolchildren,
  3. data on festivals, holidays, concerts, youth events,
  4. timetable of trains, buses;
  • photo reports about the held student actions;
  • advertising (what will bring the main income to a novice businessman).

The advantages of the business are obvious. But you will have to agree with the administration of the educational institution and get permission to be the curator of the site.

2. Setting up gadgets

It gives a student or schoolchild the pleasure of tinkering with new technology - testing, researching, adjusting. At the same time, a huge number of older people do not understand new functions, devices, options. Even adjusting the volume, receiving calls in conference mode, installing an easy-to-use video player - turns into difficult task for the owner of a smartphone or "smart" watch, who has not seen such "toys" as a schoolboy.

Ideas for startups: the “freshest” ideas from all over the world - 3 keys to success + TOP-5 ideas from around the world + 3 startup ideas from Russian developers.

Why startup ideas are becoming more and more popular in the business field and bring owners whole capitals?

First of all, because they offer completely new, innovative solutions for urgent problems of people.

Therefore, it is quite logical that in search of inspiration for creating your own startup, you should not rush "deep into history."

Follow trends, fashion trends, what is actually in demand now.

This article will also help you with this, which has brought together the main business trends and forecasts regarding future discoveries in the entrepreneurial "art" market.

What is a startup?

Before talking about start-up ideas, it is worth defining what they mean in general.

Most have only general idea about startups. Because someone thinks that this is the name of new resources on the Internet, others - that this is a business created by young people without experience.

There is some truth in this. However, the concept itself is broader.

Startup Is a business idea based solely on the use of innovative technologies or the introduction of completely new products.

That is, the composition of the team and the format of the company does not matter (often startups begin to develop without being officially registered).

The main thing is for the team to help solve some problem of humanity by proposing something unique.

Also distinctive features startups are represented by:

  • limited money to start;
  • getting started from scratch;
  • most often, startup partners were previously connected by some kind of relationship (worked together, studied).

And although the world learns about such companies at its very first steps, when the market position is not yet strong, only those companies that have already manufactured a product can be called startups.

Working out or "raw" project is only the basis for creation, but not the startup itself.

What is the key to the success of a startup idea?


When you analyze the ideas behind a startup that have proven particularly successful, you can identify several common traits.

Conventionally, they can be called "secrets of success."

Factors on which the success of a startup idea depends:

    What exactly do you think of an idea that became a startup?

    Do you think she can make a lot of money?

    Or do you actually “burn” and are sure that this business will be useful to people and become innovative?

    Only in the second case does the startup really have a chance of success.

    If you do not have a genuine interest, you can quickly "burn out".

    Moreover, startups rarely bring instant profits.

    Much depends on the team.

    It is obvious that a team of like-minded people working on the same wavelength can do more than one person.

    You should not strive to shoulder everything only on your own shoulders.

    You should not count how many people will have to divide the profit, but take care of the perfect quality of every detail.

    Youth is a plus.

    Let this statement sound like discrediting.

    But the fact remains: investors are more focused on investing in the young and ambitious.

    Let experienced people go about their business - running large organizations and sharing knowledge with others.

For those who no longer consider themselves a "young man", but are on fire, let us clarify: success in business has no age restrictions.

Doubt? Take a look at this picture:

TOP 5: global startup ideas


As a rule, startups are concentrated in the field of IT technologies. We decided to create a selection of ideas that were created and implemented by ordinary people.

This step is intended to inspire you to implement your own ideas, even if you do not have a special education or many years of work experience.

1. Eco-friendly idea: special shampoo


Nephentes looks like an enema or something like that.

In fact, this startup idea can have a significant impact on the preservation of the environment.

Few people think, but ordinary plastic bottles from under "" are harmful to the environment product. One bottle can take hundreds of years to decompose!

Do you remember how much you use them during your life?

According to the idea of ​​this startup, manufacturers produce products in huge containers, filling the necessary portions into the buyers' Nephentes bottles.

Curiously, the design does not even involve the use of a cover! The neck simply folds and slides into the compartment.

Another plus: you can finally use the product 100%, including what usually remains at the bottom.

2. Indian Startup Idea




If you think that India can only dance and make films, then you will be surprised - there are quite a few ideas for startups created in this country.

Interestingly, there is even a kind of analogue of the American Silicon Valley.

In addition, India is really interested in the huge amount of garbage on the streets. Innovative ideas come up regularly.

For example, an edible spoon is a great alternative to plastic utensils. After eating, you can use it as a dessert or, of course, just throw it away.

It is obvious that such "material" as flour decomposes as quickly as possible and is absolutely harmless to nature.

The creators also assure that vegetarians can safely eat the product. And in the future, it is even planned to develop a gluten-free version.

3. Idea for junk food lovers




How many of us are not familiar with such a misfortune: you carefully take chips or something else greasy, and your fingers get dirty so that you have to go to wash them.

And you need to be extremely careful not to catch or stain anything!

A startup has appeared in Italy, the idea of ​​which is to create fingertips. They are very thin, but the latex fits snugly around the fingers.

Thanks to this, consumers can safely enjoy the goodies, and then just throw away the "baits".

It is assumed that these devices will not be sold independently, but complete with chips, nuts or similar food for which they were invented.

4. Startup: "folding" napkins




But the idea of ​​this startup is designed for a higher cuisine - that is, for restaurants. It appeared as a reaction to the fact that conventional napkin holders are already becoming an obsolete part.

But napkins pressed into a small round "washer" are another matter. To use such a thing, visitors must submerge the "pill" in an antiseptic solution.

And then the fabric unfolds, acquires a pleasant smell, and even becomes a "weapon of killing" harmful microbes on your hands.

Do not immediately estimate the increased costs for owners: these towels are not disposable. So the idea of ​​a startup will not harm either the wallet or the environment.

5. The idea of ​​a startup with social value




Often, startups are called upon to solve global problems, and not just improve the already comfortable life of consumers.

For example, in Denmark a special supermarket was created - "WeFood". Its concept is that they sell goods here that cannot be put on the shelves of "decent" ones.

Incorrect labeling, torn packaging, an approaching expiration date or even a delay in general - all these are usually reasons for writing off, returning or even disposing of goods.

Meanwhile, even in Denmark there are many people who have to save on everything.

The supermarket idea not only helped lower-income people eat more nutritiously. There was also a 25% reduction in food waste across the country!

Here is such a useful and, oddly enough, profitable startup.

What about Russia: 3 domestic ideas for startups


While the words “conditions of economic decline” have already become classics for texting in the realities of Russian entrepreneurship, things are not so bad in the field of startups.

The buy-and-sell benchmark is gradually giving way to an innovative approach.

Original solutions still do not have such strong government support as in other countries.

Nevertheless, their number is increasing, and investors are ready to invest their funds. This is especially evident in the variety of startup ideas in 2016.

1) The startup you've definitely heard of


Have you seen the original processing of a photo on Instagram, which turns an ordinary frame into an artistic canvas? Chances are, you already know what this is about.

For the rest, let's clarify - the "Prisma" application - a service that allows original processing of users' photos.

For many, it will come as a surprise that it was Russian programmers who developed Prism. Moreover, its creator is a former employee of the well-known mail.ru.

The peculiarity of the program is that it does not just overlay some filters on top of the card.

Thanks to the use of neural network algorithms (which you may have heard a lot about too), Prism analyzes the frame and then creates it from scratch. But already in the form of a picture.

The fact that almost everyone now knows about this application is already an indicator of success. It remains to add that the administration of "Facebook" banned the use of the program on its network only because it considered it to be competitive.

2) Idea for a startup on cards




It is believed that various savings and discount cards are gradually becoming a thing of the past. At least because no one wants to carry dozens of options with them, not knowing which one they need.

The developers of the "Cardberry" startup came up with the idea to create a device that can accommodate all kinds of cards.

We will not go into technical details. The bottom line is that any user cards are, as it were, entered into the memory of this electronic device.

Every time a person needs a certain card, he goes into a special application and selects it.

"Cardberry" adjusts to the choice and becomes a full-fledged replacement for the required card.

For your attention, we offer a cool video

about the 10 most successful startups in the world:

3) The idea of ​​a startup for a comfortable life




Perhaps you are not familiar with the SVET company yet, but you have every chance to hear about them.

As the name suggests, the team offers lighting equipment. What is the innovativeness of this startup idea?

The fact is that the bulbs of this company are designed to simulate ordinary natural lighting.

Moreover, the device settings can be regulated (for example, in accordance with the time of day or night).

This startup idea is not only original and adds more comfort to daily life... But it also has a beneficial effect on human health.

There is, perhaps, only one minus to the idea: at the moment one device is estimated at $ 70. The amount is too significant for Russians. However, the startup is in demand overseas.

Collected above ideas for startups only emphasize: everyone can create a business based on an innovative idea. Startups are not limited to IT.

The main thing is that you bring something new and useful to the world.

And if the idea is worthwhile, and the implementation is diligent, it can make you rich, no matter how trite it may sound.

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Domestic inventors have never had problems with the generation of innovative ideas - their practical implementation is much more difficult. And the best start for students who want not only to amaze the world with their imagination, but also to learn how to make dreams come true, is the international Microsoft Imagine Cup competition.

This competition helps to understand what innovative solutions the market needs, to receive recommendations on the development of such solutions and information on the technologies available for their creation from experts and gurus of the IT industry, as well as to compete for monetary grants for further development project.

The selection of applications for the Imagine Cup competition, the world's largest annual technology competition, held with the support of Microsoft since 2003, has ended. The competition is attended by graduate students and students from all over the world, and in the 2017 season they will compete for a prize of $ 100,000. In April, Moscow will host the Russian qualifying stage, the winners of which will represent our country at the international final in the United States. Domestic teams traditionally show a very high level of preparation of their developments. Let's see what success the projects of the Russian winners of the Imagine Cup of the past years have achieved.

Man-made worlds of sand

Virtualization technologies are on the rise today - virtual content is superimposed on a real image, as a result of which what is visible to the eye is radically transformed. Russian companies have already begun to use these technologies, for example, the Zengalt startup has created an application that takes the user to the Mesozoic era, showing the viewer a holographic image of the fauna of that time. At the same time, dinosaurs seem to be "embedded" into the surrounding reality, "walking", for example, among the skyscrapers of "Moscow City" ...

However, glasses are not the most comfortable accessory, especially if we talk about kindergarten kids. For them, the Chelyabinsk developer Dmitry Andreev came up with the project "Interactive sandbox", where a box with ordinary sand, installed in the hall kindergarten, illuminated from above by a computer-controlled projector. Anything is projected onto the sand: houses, roads and bridges, rivers and lakes, canyons and volcanoes. The sandbox comes to life, and it becomes much more interesting to play. But it's not in vain that it is interactive - the camera tracks everything that children do with the relief, and corrects the image produced by the projector in real time! If you wanted to change the paved road and use your fingers to "draw" on it, say, a turn - the projector will immediately make the turn realistic: it will highlight the asphalt with markings, the sandy shoulder, the grass around. Rake a pile of sand - and it will immediately become a mountain, dig a hole - there will be a lake!

“Children now learn computers and tablets almost from infancy, but we took the traditional sandbox game, a little bit of new technologies - and combined them!” Says Dmitry Andreev. “Winning the Microsoft competition allowed our student project to step over the amateur stage, attract the attention of the Minister of Education to the prototype, and eventually develop into a full-fledged company "Innovation for Children".

Today, Interactive Sandbox is a ready-made product that can be purchased. The startup has developed into the Innovation for Children company, and dozens of kindergartens throughout the country and even abroad are already equipped with sandboxes.

Chasing light

The Turn On game of the Russian indie game project from Perm Brainy Studio is often called the popular Internet meme "Warm and Lamp" - and it really is! Incredibly cozy graphics with very juicy, but at the same time soft colors and mesmerizing music - this is exactly what is called an atmospheric game. There is something in it from the cult film "Kin-dza-dza", something from slightly arthouse Estonian cartoons about the dog Lotte - everyone will have their own associations ... Adults perceive the game as a colorful "casual" game, children - quite seriously.

A seemingly unpretentious platformer game, mute, like Chaplin's films, but everything in it is clear and without unnecessary chatter. As a result of a meteorite falling in the city, the lights go out everywhere and a mini-apocalypse begins. You control a small revived spark, which must return energy to every house, running along the wires. Both manual dexterity and logic are required from the player to move quickly, fight enemies and collect bonuses.

Everyone knows "Mario", where the hero runs on platforms-platforms, in fact, this is classic game in the genre " platformer ", - says Dmitry Ogorodnikov, one of the creators of the game. - In Turn On, instead of platforms - wires, the main character can only move along them, which noticeably distinguishes the game from others. Plus, I think, the popularity was promoted by the kindness of the game - everything is positive and beautiful here, no one kills anyone, which is a rarity even in platformers!

A successful platformer is not easy to make - it is believed that in this uncomplicated genre everything that can be done has already been implemented. In addition, a serious flagship-level action game can only be done by studios with multi-million dollar budgets. The developers wanted to try to do something new within the existing simple student indie studio. And they succeeded - the jury of the Imagine Cup competition appreciated what makes their product original and distinguishes it from others.

Today, the game is already generating real income for its creators: it is sold on the Xbox and PC platforms in the global game store Steam.

Electronic Eyes

A world in a gray fog, filled with sounds - this is what a blind person feels. but modern technologies can at least partially replace vision! Helping the visually impaired and the participants chose as the main focus of their research Russian startup Oriense. They have developed a navigator for the visually impaired, radically different from traditional navigators. It is called OrNavi and is a mobile gadget with a number of large keys. Of course, he does not have a screen, as is customary today.

The software of the device is carefully thought out taking into account the fact that it has an exclusively voice interface. OrNavi's tips may seem strange to the sighted, but to the blind, they are a salvation! In continuous mode, the navigator reports which objects the owner is passing by: shops, pharmacies, banks, parks, etc. As you approach the entrance, you will hear his number according to the account, and the numbers of the apartments in it! Not only buildings are sounded, but also all objects of urban infrastructure - lawns, fountains, stairs. At a public transport stop, the navigator will immediately inform you about the route numbers. If the owner of the device got on the bus, he will hear the name of the nearest stop in advance. Moreover, the sound in the device is transmitted through bone conduction headphones, due to which the user's ears remain open and he can hear the surrounding sounds, which is very important for the visually impaired!

But the most interesting thing about the navigator is the glasses built on the basis of Microsoft Kinect, a sensor from the gaming Xbox consoles, which many developers have already successfully applied in projects completely unrelated to games.

With the help of a camera and an image depth sensor, the glasses actually perform the work of a guide dog - their "eyes" look several meters ahead and notice steps (prompting whether they are going up or down!), Pits, pillars and other city obstacles, - said Maxim Spiridonov , a blind programmer at Oriense. - The device warns in advance both about the distance and about the side from which it is better to avoid the obstacle. "

In addition, the glasses will help you determine the denomination of the bill by voice prompts, read the sign, recognize the color (for example, to pick up clothes before going out or arrange socks in pairs), scan barcodes to find out the type of product. The wide possibilities of the device give the feeling of independence necessary for the blind.

Social projects are given Special attention at the Imagine Cup. In the field of development helping people with disabilities, it is much easier to find support for a student team taking their first steps with an eye to the high-tech market. And Oriense did not fail - thanks to the victory in the competition, the inventors of the "electronic eyes" attracted the attention of a number of funds to help the blind, the large venture accelerator iDealMachine, the Skolkovo innovation center.

A ball in a black and white universe

Making simple games is very difficult ... unless, of course, you want the game to become popular. Alexander Vilasak and his team from St. Petersburg called IzHard, the developers of the "complex primitivism" indie game OVIVO, dream of competing with the famous Finnish "Angry Birds" or the Russian Cut The Rope. Both of these games, like others like them, look extremely straightforward, but are built on complex mathematics that simulates the physical behavior of real objects. As a result, "primitive" toys are not so easy to get through, they are really addictive!

OVIVO is a 2D platformer game where a ball named OVO, which you control, travels through a black and white abstract world. Being black, OVO is heavier than air, and gravity acts on it, and when it changes color to white, it becomes, as it were, inflated helium - and flies upward. Colors and worlds alternate every second, and it is not easy to control the ball, catching ups and downs and switching the dark part of the world to the light one and vice versa. The player will have to overcome the dangers and collect all the symbols to open the history of the dual universe, and all this is accompanied by atmospheric psychedelic music ...

There are certainly similar games - BadLand, Type: Rider, Limbo and others, - says Alexander Vilasak. - The difference between OVIVO and these games is primarily in the unusual mechanics of the hero's movement: the game does not have the "Jump" function, as usually happens, the character jumps due to the increasing impulse when changing the position in the colors. Plus, there is no text in OVIVO, right up to the tutorial - "maximum minimalism"!

The guys are sure that participation in the Microsoft Imagine Cup is the best path to the profession for aspiring game designers. It is possible that without winning the competition, the unusual and mesmerizing game would have remained a hobbyist game, but the $ 50,000 prize invested in the revision of OVIVO gave the young studio the first commercial product, which actually became their hallmark. The official release is scheduled for summer 2017.

Robotic arm replaces the living one

New technologies in recent years have made a real breakthrough in improving the quality of life of people with disabilities... And it's nice that more and more domestic developments appear in this area, such as the Myoarm Control System project from the MIPT Galvani Bionics team of students.

Galvani Bionics is a software and hardware platform for controlling robotic arm prostheses. A small bracelet is worn on the forearm, and its sensors pick up the bioelectric impulses of muscle fibers in hot spots... The impulses are amplified, digitized, after which they are mathematically processed so that the device unmistakably understands what movement the owner wants to make with the robotic arm.

It is not the person who trains to work with the device, but the device itself adapts to the person, which fundamentally simplifies the process of getting used to the prosthesis, - says the project manager Timur Bergaliev. - We are often asked: what is the fundamental difference between Myoarm Control System and similar foreign technologies? There are no fundamental differences in this area and cannot be, all manufacturers of smart prostheses apply the principle that was discovered by Luigi Galvani in the 19th century - the use of electrical impulses generated by muscles as commands for a mechanical arm. We simply use our own data processing algorithms, which better realize the recognition of commands to operate the prosthesis. The dimensions of the device are reduced, the learning process is simplified by the system, and most importantly, the use becomes more convenient!

Improving the technology used by the world's major companies is the right way interest industry leaders. Such youth projects, and even those marked with prizes in international competitions, are often acquired by large brands, and yesterday's students get jobs in corporations. Now the guys are working on a pre-production sample of their device. After the final modifications, Russian prosthetists are waiting for the hardware and software platform, who have already announced their readiness to start embedding the system into their prostheses.

... Well, the Imagine Cup 2017 competition promises the opening of new interesting projects. On April 15, the names of the finalists will become known, whose projects will represent Russia at the international final of the competition in Seattle.

Everyone needs money. What can we say about students who are critically short of time for a part-time job. However, do not be discouraged. We have prepared the most promising business options for the student, which are easy to implement in the shortest possible time.

Writing abstracts, diploma and term papers

It should be noted that the pricing in this area is quite different. After all, each order is estimated at individually... It all depends on the requirements put forward, the subject, the need graphical presentation research results, etc. Most often, the lead time for such orders is from 3 days to a week in the case of abstracts, and from 7 days - for more serious scientific works... For urgent orders, the client must pay an additional 20% of the original price.

Further development of this business idea for students is the opening of their own office space and registration as a private entrepreneur. Of course, this is possible with the growing popularity of services and expanding the customer base. As a result, the degree of trust from potential customers will significantly increase. Creation of your own Internet resource will contribute to the growth of the client base. Moreover, it is desirable to establish cooperation with existing electronic libraries, which will significantly increase the volume of work.

Maintenance and customization of modern gadgets

For this type of activity, you will need: passion for progressive gadgets, sociability, as well as perseverance. Before starting a business, a student will need:

  • purchase a personal computer or laptop;
  • connect to the Internet. After all, there today you can find instructions for any technique. There are also recommendations for setting up and maintaining it;
  • find a small room with good lighting.

Newly minted owners of smartphones and tablet computers are often unable to figure out all the functionality of these devices on their own. It is also very often required to install additional software. Services include gluing protective films on displays, assistance with registration in content stores for subsequent self-downloading of programs, etc.

The pricing policy depends on the paid applications, as well as the cost of materials used to provide services (for example, the price of a film).

Do not miss:

Creation of a portal for schoolchildren and students

Today, a university and even a school's own website is no longer a rarity. But the information posted on such sites is not relevant and interesting to students. All such projects are built according to an identical scheme: the history of the institution, the teaching staff, graduates, etc. Why not create a resource with various administrative data, news of student and student life, job offers, materials for the educational process, scanned lectures of university teachers, etc.

Having formed the core of the audience (regular visitors), you can post materials on a paid basis or earn on contextual advertising.

Why should a girl "throw an insult" to her boyfriend, how to plan a travel route and where to order on the Internet good dress? Students of the Higher School of Economics and listeners, developed by the IIDF experts, talk about their Internet projects.

Maria Razumovskaya, service i

A year ago, our friend complained about her boyfriend - he did not respond to her messages. And somehow by chance she said: "I wish I could throw an offense at him." We immediately caught on to this idea, began to come up with what the offense was, how it could be thrown, and what purposes “throwing the offense” serves. So, in a couple of hours, we came up with the concept of the iObidka service.

Our project helps in a playful way to get rid of unpleasant feelings that usually accumulate and gradually poison the relationship. In our opinion, this would be very valuable. And we truly believe that iObid will help our users build relationships.

I am inspired by people who have managed to overcome their fears, challenge themselves and society. As Funkadelic sang on a similar occasion: Free your mind, and your ass will follow.

The course from IIDF gave us, first of all, the necessary impetus to action, and the teacher generously shared his enthusiasm and optimism. So now we are dealing with the basics of creating a project: we watch and revise training videos, read additional literature... And we understand that after the launch of iObjects of implementation, dozens of new ideas will await.


Helen Tevanyan, UDress service

My mother is a fashion designer by her second education: as far as I can remember, there were always sewing machines, fabrics, threads, mother's sketches and small collections at home. Feeling a little adult and independent, I decided to figure out how to monetize the talents we have at home. At that moment, I came across an article about the "Custom Shirt" project, and I thought that we could do something similar. It remained to decide which item of clothing can be sewn remotely without losing quality - and after long consultations with the fashion designer, we settled on dresses.

We began to fully develop the project already within the course. It turned out that I was not the only one thinking about the fashion theme: so we united like-minded people, went over ideas and stopped at creating an Internet studio with a designer of dresses. Now we are testing hypotheses, calculating the market, finding out exactly who our customers are. A little analytical work, and we will start developing an MVP - there is a developer in our team who is waiting for a signal from us.

In the long term, we would like to turn our project into a full-fledged great product, covering all the needs of a girl when creating an image. Such a pocket atelier-stylist - what style of dress for what type of figure is better to choose, what color to recommend, what is the best way to wear the created dress, etc.

I cannot sincerely admire unfamiliar people. Therefore, I admire my head at the last job - Nikita Abramenko, product owner of Simple Investments and Stream of Alfa-Bank. One day I dream to learn to look at problems in a complex, deep and energetic way and solve them, as he does.


Sergey Chirkov, Hitcher.me project

The idea of ​​the project arose as a result of visiting excursions in different cities: I always wanted to learn more segmented, and not general trivial information about the main attractions. In addition, it would be more convenient to explore the city on your own or with friends, rather than with a group of 20 strangers.

This is how the Hitcher app was born, helping travelers find a route that is interesting for them in a fun and interactive way. Thanks to the involvement of experts in the development, our users can now find out unique information that is not even in Wikipedia.

I have been working on the project since October 2015, when, as part of a master's program at the Higher School of Economics, I began to develop an application design.

I am a workaholic, I can sit at the computer for days, and therefore I am inspired by people who skillfully combine work and personal life... There should be harmony in everything: I think this is one of the components of success.

We will do the most popular application for travelers in Russia. And then we will develop it in other countries as well.

The main thing that the course helped me with was that it allowed me to find like-minded people who believed in the idea and are now helping to implement it.


Konstantin Slavnov, Podarkinator project

The idea of ​​the project appeared during the pre-New Year gift bustle. As it turned out, there are still no normal and convenient services in Runet that would help to decide on a gift in a few minutes - and without the tedious scrolling of long lists. We want to fix this.

In general, I am a mathematician-programmer by education, and first of all I am engaged in data analysis. "Podarkinator" is a great chance to test your strength both in entrepreneurship and in the scientific field: what we will do is, in fact, a recommendation system.

I started working on the project in January, as soon as I got to the first lesson of the course. It immediately became clear that they wanted concrete actions from us, and not just read another course on business development from scratch. This was a powerful impetus for me and for this idea.

I can't say that some person in the IT industry especially inspires me. I try to focus more on findings, advice and ideas in general than on someone in particular.

The course helps to act. When you have a certain outline along which you move and develop your project, it helps a lot. What is important, there are the same students around you who are in the same conditions as you. It was on the course that I assembled my team, together with which we are working on the Podarkinator.