SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--MaiTai Global, the leading extreme sports community of entrepreneurs, innovators and athletes committed to philanthropic endeavors, today announced the launch of the Extreme Tech Challenge (XTC), a unique competition designed to fuel the world’s top emerging tech entrepreneurs and accelerate their success.

Open for submissions until August 31, 2014, XTC is an innovation competition unlike any other. It’s a chance for brilliant entrepreneurs to be recognized and attract investment, visibility, resources, and advice from leading corporate partners and industry luminaries. For three finalists, it’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to compete for the top prize on Sir Richard Branson’s private Caribbean island. The all-star Judges Circle includes such luminaries as Sir Richard Branson, founder and chairman Virgin Group; Felix Baumgartner, extreme sport athlete and B.A.S.E. jumper; Young Sohn, president and chief strategy officer, Samsung Electronics; Lars Rasmussen, head of Facebook Search and founder of Google Maps; and Gary Shapiro, CEO of CEA, producer of the Consumer Electronics Show.

"We're excited to host the finals at MaiTai Necker Island in February 2015 with guest judge Sir Richard, as he is the ultimate iconic entrepreneur," said Susi Mai, Red Bull athlete and president of MaiTai Global.

“There are a lot of imaginative and passionate entrepreneurs around the world building disruptive products. We established the Extreme Tech Challenge to identify the best of the next generation and provide them with experienced mentors and other resources to help them turn their products into successful companies as quickly as possible,” said Bill Tai, venture capitalist and co-founder of MaiTai Global. “Prizes are designed to give the winners even stronger competitive advantage enabled by resources to go to market effectively and at low cost. We already have great support from industry leading companies to kick off the contest, and we hope to crystallize an even broader support network as the contest builds.”

Top contestants, semi-finalists and finalists will be awarded with startup boosters and resources, which include access to funding, free infrastructure and platform support, donated office space in San Francisco or Silicon Valley, free investment banking consultation, and donated legal and tax advice from XTC partner companies and sponsors. To date, confirmed partners and sponsors include Amazon Web Services, the Consumer Electronics Association, GP Bullhound, Racepoint Global, Rackspace, Samsung, Silicon Valley Bank, Softlayer (a division of IBM), Treasure Data Inc. and YouNoodle.

The XTC Champion will be chosen from three finalists in a presentation to the judging panel during MaiTai Necker, an entrepreneur summit held annually on Sir Richard Branson’s Necker Island. The three finalists will be chosen from a field of 10 semifinalists who will present on stage at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES), the world's largest technology trade show, during CES during January 6-9, 2015.

The complete timeline for the Extreme Tech Challenge:

• Aug. 31, 2014: Submission deadline
• Sep. 30, 2014: Initial qualifiers notified
• Nov. 7, 2014: Top 25 Contestants announced
• Dec. 1, 2014: Top 10 Contestants selected
• Jan. 6-9, 2015: Semifinals at CES 2015
• Feb. 6, 2015: Necker Island Finals

For more information and updates, please visit ExtremeTechChallenge and follow us on Twitter @ExTechChallenge.

About MaiTai Global

MaiTai Global is a gathering of extraordinary entrepreneurs, innovators and athletes who contribute their energy to a shared experience centered on the kiteboarding lifestyle and philanthropic endeavors. As a community of passionate water-lovers, MaiTai members know firsthand that our oceans are under threat from pollution, overfishing, global warming and habitat destruction. MaiTai Global supports organizations that are proactive in protecting the world’s oceans and related ecosystems.