SEPTEMBER 8-11, 2026
Denver, CO
Seeking up to 3 teams at the angel, pre-seed, and seed level to pitch their startups to a panel of seasoned investors at SENT Summit 2026. Competition held at the SENT Summit in Denver, Colorado.
Application deadline: Friday, July 24th
WHY ENTER
The opportunity to connect with dozens of values-aligned investors at the SENT Summit and through the SENT platform.
$10,000 cash prize to the winner
“SENT certainly delivered on bringing high-quality investors to the room. We got at least a dozen investor meetings with top VCs and angels, and one led to an investment. Even more than that, I built rich relationships with other Catholics in the startup world and have benefitted from the support of that community.”
Paddy McNamara
FOUNDER OF ALLERA TECH
Pitch Criteria
Alignment
Does the company advance Catholic values? Does the management team attempt to live out their faith in the operations of the company?
Team
Do these founders make sense for this team? Does their background contribute to the likelihood of success? Do they have the skills internally (or are experienced finding them externally) to advance the product?
Timing
Why this now? What makes this the right time to build this company?
Market
Does the market make sense for the pitch they are making? If pursuing a VC scalable model, is the TAM large enough to justify VC funding?
Traction
Do they have sufficient traction for their stage? If seed, do they have paid contracts/strong user growth? If pre-seed, do they have pilots/beta users? Angel - do they have thorough customer discovery?
Apply For the SENT Pitch Competition
Up to 3 teams. 1 high-stakes competition.
We're excited to bring back our annual SENT Pitch Competition, where emerging Catholic innovators will present their ventures to a panel of seasoned VCs and angel investors... to win a $10,000 cash prize.
Partners
Coming Soon
Previous Venture Partners
Contact
Application
For questions regarding the application process or timing, please contact:
Andrew Hendershott at andrew@catholicangels.co
Partner & Media Inquires
If you’re a foundation, potential partner, or sponsor interested in the event, please contact;
Marisa at marisa@sentventures.com
FAQ
-
No! We are seeking Catholic startup founders looking to live and build Spirit-led companies in both secular and faith-tech verticals. You simply have to have at least one Catholic founder on your team and tell us how you are living out your faith as a Spirit-led founder in your application to be considered.
-
We are looking for companies from the MVP to the pre-product market fit stage. You don’t have to have previously raised financing but if you have, we prefer teams that have raised no more than $1mm previously. You don’t currently have to be fundraising but should plan that your next fundraise should be no more than $2.5mm.
-
We will select interview semi-finalists shortly after the application deadline. Finalists will be announced well in advance of the SENT Summit. Specific timeline to be released later.
-
Judges include Catholic angel investors and venture capitalists who invest at the angel, pre-seed, and seed stages.
-
At this time only for-profit startups with venture scalable roadmaps are allowed to participate.
Non-profit organizations are encouraged to apply to the SENT Mission Showcase if they see a fit there.
-
$10,000 cash prize to the winner
$50,000+ in in-kind prizes
The opportunity to connect with dozens of values-aligned investors at the SENT Summit and through the SENT platform.
-
No. We are looking for teams where Catholic values are lived out by the governance of the executive team and in the impact the business makes. We do not require all founders to be Catholics.
-
Finalist will be announced by August 15, 2026.
-
Yes, we will hold a 7-day grace period for all applicants to purchase tickets to the SENT Summit if they are not selected as finalists.