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The Lytvyn Foundation of Kharkiv digital entrepreneur and philanthropist Volodymyr Lytvyn is launching MindShift Awards — a new prize for Ukrainian IT entrepreneurs aged 18–25 years.
MindShift Awards: award details Young entrepreneurs creating startups, SaaS products, AI solutions, technology services, or developing business ideas in any field using modern technologies and IT are invited to participate. The grant fund for the first award will be 1 million hryvnias, and the event final is planned to take place in Kyiv in the first half of 2027. MindShift Awards continues the work of Volodymyr Lytvyn and the Lytvyn Foundation with Ukrainian youth. The foundation already runs: the MindCraft online business school; the Code The Future series of IT hackathons; a business club and business incubator; the ONE POINT sports-education program in partnership with tennis player Elina Svitolina’s foundation. The organizers of the award start from a problem many young entrepreneurs face: creating a promising product is not enough if people outside a small circle of users don’t know about it. MindShift Awards aims to give participants expert evaluation, mentoring support, new professional contacts, grants, and the opportunity to present their product to a wide audience. Two paths to victory MindShift Awards has two tracks. Startup Pitch is intended for ideas, MVPs, and technological projects at an early stage. Applications will first be reviewed by an expert jury, which will form a shortlist. Finalists will go through mentoring sessions to prepare their pitch, after which they will present their developments live to the jury at the final ceremony. Selection will consider key criteria: how clear the problem the product solves is; the quality of the idea; the technological component; MVP feasibility; understanding of the audience; pitch quality; and market potential. In addition to the three main winners, there are special nominations: AI Product of the Year, Best MVP, and Future Impact. Read also: AI backpacks for teenagers: Volodymyr Lytvyn supports graduates of the MindCraft online business school The second track is designed for young entrepreneurs who already have a working business or startup. The audience will take part in the selection here: an open online vote will be held on the MindShift Awards website, and its winner will receive a separate grant. A million for the development of young startups The MindShift Awards slogan reads, "1 000 000 hryvnias for those who are changing Ukraine." Grants are provided for the three main winners, for separate nominations, and special grants are also possible. Support will not be limited to cash payments. The format will depend on the needs of the specific project and may include funding, partner services, strategic and mentoring sessions, access to IT tools, legal and marketing consultations. Participants will be able to use grant support for needs such as refining an MVP, creating a website, app, or other technological solution, testing hypotheses, design and branding, legal formalization, marketing, initial sales, and participation in industry events. Thus, a project at the idea or prototype stage will be able to receive resources for a concrete next step. The MindShift Awards final will take place in Kyiv The first MindShift Awards will conclude with an offline ceremony in Kyiv, during which finalists will present their startups to an expert jury. Winners will be determined and grants awarded. A separate part of the final event will be networking for young entrepreneurs with business representatives, experts, and potential partners. What is known about the Lytvyn Foundation and its founder Volodymyr Lytvyn is a Ukrainian entrepreneur, investor, philanthropist, and owner of several successful businesses. He is the founder of the Lytvyn Foundation — a charitable foundation building systematic free education for teenagers in entrepreneurship and technology. The strongest participants in the foundation’s projects receive grants to develop their own ideas and dreams. Lytvyn is convinced that entrepreneurial thinking should be formed in adolescence. That is why his foundation invests in the new generation that will build Ukraine’s future.
Previously we also wrote about how the Lytvyn Foundation’s business school helps teenagers create their own startups and receive grants.
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