(EMAILWIRE.COM, May 10, 2002 ) MIT students' entrepreneurial spirits haven't been dampened by the recent slow economy. Down times are often the seedbed for great new companies. Some of those companies are being formed right now by MIT Sloan and engineering and science students as part of the MIT $50K Entrepreneurship Competition, the competition that launched over 70 companies, including Akamai Technologies (NASDAQ: AKAM) and other companies acquired by the likes of Microsoft, Motorola and Broadcom.

The MIT $50K continues to be a barometer of economic times, and the students' entries are particularly strong this year -- also showing a continued boost in medical business concepts, following a move away from dot.com type companies in recent years.

Media reports say the recovery may be underway: the students are ready. This is no lighthearted extracurricular; contest alumni are worth millions -- a number of former teams have gone public or are acquired. Over 400 people are entered in this year's competition, to hopefully share in the $50,000 prize and gain the notoriety of the top $50K spot. This year 114 teams entered and the final awards will be given on May 15 at 7pm, in MIT's Kresge Auditorium.

Venture capitalists keep a close eye on MIT's competition. Each year some teams receive funding offers even before the competition is over.

The team business plans run the gamut from medical to networking to consumer products ideas, showcasing the best students and technologies of MIT.

One team, DonkeyNet, has traveled to India three times already this semester to test and prepare for marketing their communication technology for rural areas -- even presenting before groups like the UN Information Communication Technology Task Force. Their technology will allow individuals and businesses in remote areas to send data: email, photos, video etc., anywhere in the world, using inexpensive technology and existing transportation channels. Other teams have proposed GPS based pet tracking, artificial heart valves, "instant healing" technology for tissue wounds, and a lightweight, rechargeable, Lithium ion battery.

The strength of the MIT Competition over others is the combination of students from one of the top management schools in the county and the top engineering and science school. It also has tremendous educational backing: workshops, 11 MIT Sloan entrepreneurship classes, professional mentors for all semifinalists, and the network of MIT entrepreneurs who have formed over 4,000 companies. The MIT $50K organizers each year share best practices with competitions around the world through their Global Startup Workshop. The MIT competition has been called the "granddaddy of business plan competitions" and "the one to watch."

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