Lightbank Unveils New Initiative Lightbank Start

Lightbank, the technology investment vehicle from Groupon (NASDAQ: GRPN) co-founders Brad Keywell and Eric Lefkofsky, has introduced a new initiative called Lightbank Start.

Designed to help young entrepreneurs build a tech business with the help and support of Keywell and Lefkofsky, Lightbank Start provides CS majors (or those with equivalent mad tech skills) with the opportunity to receive $100,000 in funding. By signing with Lightbank Start, entrepreneurs will be able to work with the firm in its Chicago office as part of a 50/50 partnership.

Interested parties are encouraged to create a video and share their story with Lightbank. Entrepreneurs can submit their pitch at lightbankstart.com.

On Twitter, the start-up community has been eagerly waiting for more information regarding Lightbank Start.

After the announcement, Facebook (NASDAQ: FB) users provided both positive and negative remarks regarding the new Lightbank initiative.

"$100k to give away half of your company?" Alex Haefner ‎questioned. "THIS IS MADNESS."

But Alex Southern took a more positive stance, asking, "In my next life can I be Eric Lefkofsky? He wins on every deal ;)"

Ultimately, Lightbank said that its goal is to help "the best young tech talent in the country realize their dream of entrepreneurship," the company wrote on its site. "Create your own path, build the next big tech company."

The new venture will primarily target undergraduates with drive and ability to apply their knowledge to building companies. Positions at the new Lightbank initiative will be available for those students looking to create a company from scratch, offering an experience like the early days of now famous Facebook, Google (NASDAQ: GOOG) and Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT).

In May 2011, Benzinga was welcomed into the Lightbank family with a $1.5 million investment.

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