Fifteen entrepreneurs and innovators of automotive products are competing for the prizes

The 10th annual SEMA Launch Pad competition was held recently at the SEMA Garage in Diamond Bar, California.
As part of the competition, 15 entrepreneurs and small business leaders pitched their automotive-related products to a panel of judges.
These 15 semifinalists were chosen from a large pool of applicants. Their pitches included interactive demonstrations, question answering, product innovations, and more.
The Launch Pad judging panel consisted of Chip Foose (Foose Design), Jared Hare (Addictive Desert Designs), Myles Kovacs (TIS Wheels), and Alex Parker (Redline Detection).
This group carefully listened to pitches for hours and evaluated the diverse range of products.
These included custom accessories and tools, performance aftermarket products, tire kits, retrofit kits, and mobile apps for the automotive community.
There were also innovations related to the growing electric vehicle (EV) community and demands related to advanced driver assist systems (ADAS).
“This year’s SEMA Launch Pad competition is fierce,” Launch Pad Judge, Alex Parker, said.
“The judges were blown away by the level of innovation, creativity, and sheer grit that these competitors brought. Their passion and their products are so inspirational, and each of these competitors should be very proud.”
The 15 semi-finalists will each receive a one-year SEMA membership, a complimentary booth in the SEMA Launch Pad Pavilion at the 2022 SEMA Show in November, and other items totaling to a prize package valued at $4,000.
Five finalists, who will be announced later this year, will advance to pitch their products at the 2022 SEMA Show, where they will compete for a grand prize that includes free advertising space in SEMA News, use of the services from the SEMA Garage, discounts on SEMA Data, and thousands of dollars in cash for a total value of up to $92,000.
The 15 semifinalists are Fabian Araujo, Andrew Auble, Robert Carale, Jesse Freeman, Dustin Golat, Jake Hamann, Jacob Hawksworth, Conrad Mohr IV, Susan Pieper, Frank Terlep, Irvin Vance, Daniel Whittington, Andrew Wiess, Kevin Robinson, and Kai Tan.
The competition will be featured in a nationwide TV special airing after the SEMA Show.

For more information, visit www.sema.org/launchpad