Apply today. A shot at the $1,000,000+ global prize pool
Alibaba.com's CoCreate Pitch is the world's largest product-based startup competition. Hello Alice is the US delivery partner. Apply today — and if selected, pitch in Los Angeles September 9–10 in front of 8,000+ buyers and a 700M+ omnichannel audience.
Three steps
How it works
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Click Apply Now.
Head straight to the CoCreate Pitch application form — no downloads, no plugins.
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Complete and submit your application.
Tell us about your business and your product. It only takes a few minutes.
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If selected, fly to LA September 9–10.
Pitch at the CoCreate Summit at the LA Convention Center and receive $10,000 just for making the cut.
Where you are right now
We get what 2026 looks like for you.
You're trying to grow a small business in the most expensive customer-acquisition environment we've ever had. Every channel costs more than it did a year ago, supply chains still aren't stable, and everyone keeps telling you to "use AI" without telling you what to actually do with it.
Meanwhile, you're watching new product brands come out of nowhere and explode — and you can't tell whether they're getting lucky or whether they know something you don't.
You're not behind. The playing field just changed under your feet, and nobody mailed you the new rulebook.
The reframe
Your competitive advantage isn't your product. It's how you use AI to find buyers, sourcing, and a stage.
Conventional wisdom says: build a great product, find your channel, scale. The 2026 version of that story is broken — scale without AI leverage is now too expensive to chase. The brands breaking through this year aren't the ones with the best product. They're the ones who treated AI as a co-founder, using it to validate ideas, source suppliers, write applications, and put themselves in front of buyers and capital they'd never have reached otherwise.
The fastest path to that ecosystem isn't a referral, an investor intro, or a viral post. It's a single application to a competition most of your peers don't know exists.
What's actually at stake
$1,000,000+ global prize pool.
September 9–10.
Los Angeles.
CoCreate Pitch is the world's largest product-based startup competition — 33,000+ applicants from 89 countries and 6,400+ media reports last year. The 2026 global prize pool is $1,000,000+.
- $1M+
- global prize pool
- 33,000+
- applicants in 2025 (89 countries)
- 8,000+
- business buyers on the floor in LA
- 26M+
- livestream views
- 700M+
- omnichannel reach
The judges aren't names on a poster.
Daymond John (host), Lori Greiner, Simu Liu, and Rio Ferdinand have personally invested in past winners.
Last year's US Grand Prize went to a founder who simply showed up.
Christian Reed of Reekon Tools won the 2025 US Grand Prize for his hardware brand. The applicants who get to LA aren't the ones with the biggest businesses. They're the ones who showed up.
This isn't a pitch competition. It's a compressed 90-day path into a global commerce ecosystem, with the on-stage finale in LA.
Why apply through Hello Alice
Hello Alice is your trusted way to the LA stage.
Hello Alice exists to be the trusted bridge between small business owners and the resources they don't always know how to access. CoCreate Pitch — Los Angeles 2026 — is the next one.
Through Hello Alice, you can:
- Apply and submit your application for CoCreate Pitch.
- Compete for a share of the $1,000,000+ global prize pool in front of judges who back the founders they believe in.
- If selected, fly to Los Angeles September 9–10 to pitch at the CoCreate Summit, alongside 8,000+ business buyers and a 700M+ omnichannel audience.
- Continue to receive Hello Alice support — Business Health Score, curated programs, ongoing guidance — whether you make the stage or not.
Frequently asked
Questions, answered.
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Who can apply?
US-based small business owners with a product-driven business. The General track is for established product businesses; the AI Entrepreneur track is for founders building a new product from scratch inside Accio Work.
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What is Accio Work and do I have to use it?
Accio Work is Alibaba.com's enterprise AI agent. Yes — the application lives entirely inside Accio Work. The CoCreate Pitch agent walks you through the application in under 5 minutes. You receive 1,000+ credits just for registering.
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When are applications due?
July 25, 2026. Finalists are revealed by August 10, and the live finalist event is September 9–10, 2026 in Los Angeles.
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What does the $1,000,000+ global prize pool actually look like?
Prizes are split 50% cash and 50% Alibaba credits. The full prize structure is detailed in the official program Terms & Conditions linked below.
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If I'm selected as a finalist, who covers travel to LA?
Travel costs for finalists are covered within the finalist prize. Specifics are in the program Terms & Conditions.
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Where does my application data go?
Your application is submitted through Accio Work to Alibaba.com. If you opt in, Hello Alice may also receive your data to keep supporting you with Business Health Score, programs, and ongoing guidance. See the Privacy Policy for details.
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What if I have a question that isn't covered here?
Email our US CoCreate applicant support inbox: cocreatepitchus@helloalice.com.
Your shot at the LA stage starts with one application.
Applications close July 25, 2026.
Apply Now