AI Travel Platform Triumphs Over 100+ Applications at Prestigious Ronald Reagan Building Event, Securing Second Consecutive Pitch Competition Victory in Two Weeks

Washington, D.C. – October 24, 2025 – Nowy, the innovative AI-powered travel platform, won first place and $1,500 at DC Startup & Tech Week's (DCSTW) milestone 10th anniversary pitch competition. Selected as the Early Stage winner from over 100 applications and just three finalists, CEO and Founder Branda Fan delivered a compelling three-minute pitch before a powerhouse judging panel at the historic Ronald Reagan Building amphitheater.

This marks Nowy's second consecutive pitch competition victory in just two weeks, following the company's second-place finish at Maryland's Great Pumpkin Pitch on October 7th.

Elite Competition at Landmark Event

DC Startup & Tech Week's 10th anniversary pitch competition, sponsored by Maryland Innovation Center, represented one of the event's most competitive showcases to date. The judging panel comprised prominent regional leaders:

• Reggie Aggarwal, CEO and Founder of Cvent

• Nina Albert, Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development, Washington D.C.

• Maurice Boissiere, Chief Customer Officer at DataTribe and Founder of Higher Calling Ventures

• Esther Lee, Global Public Policy Leader and Presidential Appointee

Eight startups competed across three categories (Early Stage, Growth Stage, and University Stage), with Nowy emerging as the Early Stage champion before an audience of founders, investors, and regional tech community leaders.

Rigorous Pitch Earns Judge Recognition

Fan's three-minute live pitch and Q&A session impressed judges with Nowy's clear value proposition: transforming social media inspiration into instant bookable trips. The judges challenged Fan with penetrating questions about revenue models, user-to-booking conversion rates, community building strategies, and B2B expansion plans.

"The judges brought the heat," Fan reflected. "Reggie Aggarwal asked about our revenue model, while others dug into our user-to-booking conversion and B2B strategy. These questions pushed us to think deeper and validated that we're solving a problem that resonates across the ecosystem."

Adam Lattimore, Director of Technology and Innovation at the Office of the Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development, praised the victory: "Congratulations on a deserved win! DC is lucky to have innovators like you pushing our ecosystem forward!"

"From Scrolling to Going" Philosophy Resonates

Nowy's pitch centered on the company's mission to eliminate the frustration gap between travel inspiration and actual booking. The platform addresses a critical market inefficiency where 73% of travelers save social media travel content, but only 12% convert that inspiration into booked trips.

"We're building technology that turns 'I wish I could go there' into 'I'm booked and going, money saved,'" Fan explained. "From scrolling to going—that's the Nowy way."

Audience members expressed enthusiasm for the platform's potential:

• "Congratulations, Branda! I can't wait to use Nowy on Android. Please hurry."

• "Congratulations, loved listening to your pitch and super excited to see where Nowy goes next!"

• "It was fun to watch you pitch! Well done!"

Funding to Accelerate Multi-AI Infrastructure

The $1,500 prize will be strategically deployed to enhance Nowy's sophisticated multi-agent AI system and support growth and marketing operations. In a video interview with the Office of the Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development, Fan emphasized the importance of early-stage capital: "If you're a founder, you know what I mean—every second counts, every penny counts. We'll deploy this money into our multi-AI model and our growth and marketing operations."

Two Weeks, Two Victories

Nowy's back-to-back pitch competition wins demonstrate remarkable momentum:

• October 7, 2025: Second place ($3,000) at Great Pumpkin Pitch, Maryland Innovation Center

• October 24, 2025: First place ($1,500) at DC Startup & Tech Week Early Stage Competition

"Two weeks. Two competitions. Two wins," Fan noted. "The real win is the clarity we're gaining with every pitch, every question, every engaging conversation. Each competition strengthens our narrative and validates our market approach."

Featured in Regional Tech Media

Nowy's victory garnered coverage from Technical.ly, which highlighted the company alongside other innovative founders building DC's tech future. The recognition underscores Nowy's position within the region's thriving entrepreneurial ecosystem.

Building on Strategic Partnerships

The DCSTW victory continues Nowy's impressive 2025 trajectory:

• J.P. Morgan Startup Banking Program: Access to $100K in AWS credits and comprehensive banking ecosystem

• Google Cloud Partnership: $25K in cloud credits with expansion potential to $350K

• TEDCO Grant: $10,000 from Maryland Technology Development Corporation

• Moxie Awards: 2025 finalist for "Boldness in Business"

• Travel Technology Association: Featured innovative advocate member

Strengthening DC's Innovation Ecosystem

Fan expressed gratitude for the regional support network that has accelerated Nowy's growth: "This is the third year since I first attended DCSTW. I've met numerous advisors, like-minded founders, and mentors. It's the ecosystem I wish I had when I started, and now I'm grateful to be part of it."

DC Startup & Tech Week's 10th anniversary celebration highlighted the diversity and strength of the region's innovation landscape, with winning startups spanning travel tech, biotech, and AI-driven government solutions.

About Nowy

Nowy is an AI-powered travel platform that transforms social media inspiration into personalized, bookable travel experiences. By analyzing user preferences from TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube content, Nowy creates intelligent itineraries with routing, mapping, price monitoring, and instant booking capabilities. Founded in 2024 and headquartered in Washington D.C., Nowy has facilitated over 100,000 trip creations and maintains a 4.9-star user rating across 500,000+ destinations worldwide.

Learn more at nowy.io

Media Contact: Branda Fan, CEO & Co-founder
branda.fan@nowy.io
nowy.io