Bulldog Entrepreneurs Win $12,000 Ahead of Magic City Classic
AAMU Students Sweep Magic City Business Pitch Competition
Alabama A&M University students delivered a clean sweep at the 2026 HBCU Business Pitch Competition in Birmingham, capturing first, second and third place and showcasing Bulldog innovation ahead of the 85th Magic City Classic.
Competing against students representing 10 institutions, AAMU entrepreneurs claimed every spot on the winners’ podium during the Oct. 29 competition at Topgolf Birmingham. The event, presented by The Alabama Collective and digitalundivided and supported by JPMorgan Chase, brought together emerging entrepreneurs to pitch innovative business ideas and compete for cash prizes.
All three AAMU teams advanced through the opening round, each earning $1,000 before moving on to the championship round, where they secured an additional $9,000 in combined prizes. The Bulldogs finished the competition with $12,000 in total winnings.
Senior mechanical engineering major Bryson Hannah captured first place and an additional $4,000 for Internably LLC, a networking platform designed to connect college interns across the country.
Hannah developed Internably to address a challenge many college students encounter while completing internships away from home: finding opportunities to connect with other young professionals.
The platform places interns into curated group chats based on their internship city or company, helping them build social and professional relationships beyond their immediate workplaces.
“It’s easy to feel isolated when you’re interning in a new city where you don’t know anyone,” Hannah said.
Drawing from his own internship experience, Hannah recognized the need for a platform that would allow students working at different companies in the same city to connect. Already in use across several major U.S. cities, Internably is gaining traction through word-of-mouth and offers students a new way to expand their professional networks.
Second place and an additional $3,000 went to senior mechanical engineering majors Munachimso Arubaleze, Danylah Branch and Bukata Mubanga for FuelTrip, a mobile app that helps drivers save money by comparing nearby gas prices and calculating fill-up costs based on vehicle details and fuel levels. The app also offers price alerts and allows travelers to split fuel expenses.
Third place and an additional $2,000 went to seniors Amarachi Ezekiel, a computer science major, and Omotolani Bello and Osionela Ogiogwa, both biology majors, for NexU, a mobile marketplace connecting college students with verified student-run businesses. The app allows entrepreneurs to manage bookings and payments, sync academic calendars to avoid scheduling conflicts and access AI-powered business insights.
The competition challenged participants to communicate their business concepts through three-minute pitches followed by questions from judges. Entries were evaluated on clarity, market need, feasibility, differentiation and presentation. Participants also received entrepreneurship training, mentoring and coaching designed to help transform promising ideas into viable businesses.
The sweep adds another victory to an exciting Magic City Classic week for Alabama A&M, demonstrating that Bulldog excellence extends beyond the football field and into entrepreneurship, technology and business innovation.
As the University prepares to face rival Alabama State University in Birmingham, AAMU students have already made their mark on the Magic City, bringing home all three top honors and reinforcing the University’s commitment to developing the next generation of innovators and entrepreneurs.