UCL Entrepreneurs get thumbs up from Airbnb co-founder

A start-up founded by four UCL students has won the backing of a panel of judges led by Airbnb co-founder, Nathan Blecharczyk. The company, RunTroll - a multiplayer game and app which aims to make running more fun - won the pitching competition organised by the UCL Entrepreneurs Society on campus on Wednesday evening, triumphing over four other student start-ups after they were chosen by him as the winner. Following Blecharczyk's endorsement, the RunTroll team will receive mentoring by Airbnb staff, as well as funding from the UCL Entrepreneurs Society seed investment fund - run by the Society's committee members - which is also backing the company. The team, comprising students Nicholas Tenhue, Manfred Micaux, Angie Skazka and David Pribil, all of whom are studying the MSc ICT Innovation at UCL, won the competition on the strength of their pitch about their business, RunTroll. Unlike other running apps, RunTroll offers an immersive gaming experience for users while they exercise, connecting runners across the world in real-time to provide a multi-player race experience. Users compete in races, enabling them to move up or down global rankings, and become the fastest Troll in all of Trollvania. Through participating in races, users can earn TrollGold and customise their avatar with apparel from the in-app TrollStore.