Serena Williams Pitch Contest

1. ELIGIBILITY:

The Serena Williams Pitch Contest  (the “Contest”) is open only to persons as of the date of entry (and, if a Finalist and/or Winner, as of the date of Finalist and/or Winner notification) that are current active members (Guest Passes do not qualify) of the MasterClass online platform (as determined by the email address associated with the active account), who are 18 years of age or older, are legal residents of the United States of America (excluding Alaska, Arizona and Hawaii), and have completed (as determined by the MasterClass platform) Serena Williams’ class on MasterClass (the “Class”). Persons who as of the date of entry (and, if a Winner, as of the date of prize fulfillment) are an employee of Yanka Industries, Inc. dba MasterClass (“Sponsor”) or any of Sponsor’s Affiliates (as defined in Section 8), and members of the immediate family or household (whether or not related) of any such employee, are not eligible. Eligibility determinations will be made by Sponsor in its sole discretion and will be final and binding. U.S. law governs this Contest. Void where prohibited by law. 

2. HOW TO ENTER:

The entry period for the Contest begins 12:01 AM Pacific Time (PT) on September 9, 2025 and continues through 11:59 PM PT on September 23, 2025 (the “Entry Period”). After completing the Serena Williams Class on the MasterClass platform, entrants must enter the Contest via the official entry form on the Serena Williams Pitch Contest landing page (learn.masterclass.com/SerenaWilliamsEntry) (“Landing Page”).

Submissions: Eligible individuals may enter the Contest by filling out the form on the Landing Page and submitting a complete entry with the following: 

Required for Entry:

(i) a recorded video response, in .mp4 or .mov format (no more than three (3) minutes and file size no larger than 230MB) inspired by Serena Williams’ Class that answers the following questions (specific judging criteria detailed in Section 4 below):

• What is your business idea?
• Why are you creating this business and why are you uniquely qualified/positioned to successfully build this business?

(ii) the entrant’s first name and last initial; and,

(iii) the email address associated with the entrant’s MasterClass account.

An entry is referred to in these Official Rules as a “Submission.” Submitting a Submission during the Entry Period constitutes acknowledgement of, and agreement and consent to, these Official Rules and the MasterClass Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. Each Submission must comply with all of the submission guidelines set forth herein. Each Submission will be judged for up to three (3) minutes only, any content beyond three (3) minutes will not be judged. Ineligible Submissions as defined by these Official Rules will be automatically disqualified.

Important Notice: Please do not submit Submissions that include confidential, proprietary, or otherwise sensitive ideas, information, or intellectual property. The ideas, information, and/or intellectual property contained in a Submission will be treated as public information and may be shared and used accordingly. In accordance with these Official Rules, Sponsor, Serena Williams, and any related parties shall not owe any compensation, notification or permission whatsoever and/or be liable under any circumstances for the use or dissemination of any such ideas, information, or intellectual property included in a Submission. 

General Entry Terms and Conditions: Each MasterClass account and each entrant is limited to one (1) Submission. Sponsor will have the right to disqualify any subsequent submission from an entrant, more than one submission from one MasterClass account, or any Submission that is determined to be plagiarized or paraphrased. All entries must be completed and received by Sponsor by the conclusion of the Entry Period. Proof of submission does not constitute proof of entry. Sponsor will have the right, in its discretion, to require proof of identity and/or eligibility in a form acceptable to Sponsor (including, without limitation, government-issued photo identification, Passport). Failure to provide such proof to the satisfaction of Sponsor in a timely manner may result in disqualification. The entrant must be able to receive emails from the email associated with MasterClass account used by the entrant to enter the Contest from the time of submission through at least sixty (60) days after the end of the Entry Period to enable Sponsor to communicate with a potential Finalist (as defined below) and Winner (as defined below). The entrant is responsible for checking email, including emails that go to Spam or Junk folders.

3. SUBMISSION GUIDELINES:

Entry into this contest constitutes agreement by entrants to abide by these rules. Each Submission must comply with the following guidelines: (a) the Submission must be original and have been created solely by the entrant; (b) the entrant must own the copyright(s), including to any written and/or visual content, in the Submission; (c) the Submission must not previously have been submitted in connection with any Contest, challenge, sweepstakes, or giveaway, published for commercial purposes or won any award; (d) the Submission must be in English, truthful, accurate, and not exceed three (3) minutes in length; (e) the Submission must not identify, depict, contain or otherwise use any Personality Rights (as defined below) of any person (except for the entrant or any person identified in Sponsor’s communications relating to this Contest); (f) the Submission must not contain any photos or video of any persons or any email address, mailing address, phone number, social security number, or any other personally identifying information of any person, except as explicitly permitted by these Official Rules; (g) the Submission must not include any brand name, trademark or logo of any entity (except for the entrant’s brand or a brand identified in Sponsor’s communications relating to this Contest); (h) the Submission must not contain any material that violates or infringes upon the rights of any third party, including without limitation any copyright, trademark or right of privacy or publicity, or that is unlawful, in violation of or contrary to any applicable law or regulation, or the use of which by the Licensees (defined in Section 7 below) as permitted pursuant to these Official Rules would require a license or permission from (other than pursuant to clause (e) above) or payment to any third party; (i) the Submission must not exhibit the entrant engaging in or otherwise promoting any illegal, sexually explicit, violent or dangerous behavior; (j) the Submission must not contain any material that is disparaging, defamatory, discriminatory, bigoted, threatening, indecent, violent, obscene or offensive; and (k) the Submission must not contain any material that Sponsor, in its sole discretion, deems inappropriate for public viewing, display and/or promoting Sponsor’s or its affiliates content, authors and imprints. “Personality Rights” means the name, likeness, image, voice and biographical information of or any statement attributed to any person. Each entrant agrees to provide to Sponsor at Sponsor’s request copies of all such permissions, licenses and consents in a form specified by Sponsor. Sponsor reserves the right in its sole discretion to disqualify any Submission that Sponsor determines does not comply with these guidelines or to require the entrant to make such changes to any Submission as are necessary to make it compliant.   

4. FINALISTS SELECTION AND NOTIFICATION:

Following the conclusion of the Entry Period, Sponsor and/or its agent will review all qualifying Submissions and, in its sole discretion, will select up to ten (10) finalists (“Finalists”) to advance to the final judging round (detailed in paragraph 5 below). In the event of a tie in the judging of Submissions, the tied submissions will be reviewed by a designated tie-breaking judge. 

Qualifying Submissions shall be judged, and the Finalists will be selected, according to the following criteria with each criteria being weighted equally:

• Founder story: Clearly state the purpose and unique selling proposition of the business. Narrate the founder's story, highlighting their unique qualifications and personal connection to the business's mission.
• Clearly outline what your company does: Provide a concise and easily understandable explanation of your company's core business, mission, and the products or services it offers. 
• What makes you different/competitive moat: Articulate your unique selling proposition (USP) and the sustainable competitive advantages that set your company apart from competitors. Explain your "moat" – what prevents others from easily replicating your success.
• Why you will be the one to win/grow super big: Clearly state your vision for the company's future growth and potential impact. Explain why you and your team are best positioned to achieve significant success and market leadership.

Sponsor’s notification to Finalists will require a response. Finalists will be notified by email on or about October 10, 2025 and must respond to Sponsor’s initial notification attempt within forty-eight (48) hours with such personal information or confirmation as Sponsor may require. The potential Finalists will be subject to verification of eligibility. The Finalists are responsible for checking email, including emails that go to Spam or Junk folders. If a potential Finalist does not respond to Sponsor’s notification, or if the potential Finalist/Winner does not otherwise comply with these Official Rules and/or cannot accept the prize as awarded for any reason, then the potential Finalist may be disqualified and an alternate Finalist may, at Sponsor’s discretion, be selected from among the remaining eligible highest-scored entries as specified in these Official Rules (in which case the foregoing provisions will apply to such newly-selected entrant), or Sponsor may, at Sponsor’s discretion, decide not to select an alternate Finalist.

5. WINNER SELECTION AND NOTIFICATION:

Finalists will be given the opportunity to submit a no more than ten (10) minute video elaborating on the initial three (3) minute video by October 17, 2025, 11:59 PM PT,  for Sponsor to review and judge (the “Finalist Submissions”). If no qualified Finalist Submission is received in accordance with the criteria outlined below, Sponsor reserves the right, in its sole discretion, not to award the prize. 

Finalist Submissions shall be judged, and the Winner will be selected, according to the following criteria with each criteria being weighted equally: 

• Deeper Dive into the Product: Elaborate on how your product or service addresses the problem you are trying to solve.
• Traction: Demonstrate traction and quantifiable progress since the initial pitch.
• Core customer: Define your ideal customer profile, including their demographics, psychographics, needs, and pain points. Explain how your product or service directly addresses their needs.
• Go-to-market strategy: Detail your plan for reaching your target customers, including your marketing, sales, and distribution channels. Explain how you will acquire and retain customers.
• Competition: Identify your competitors and discuss how your approach is different.
• Scalability & Growth Plan: Present a roadmap for future growth, including milestones, expansion plans, and how you intend to achieve significant scale. Include key metrics and projections.

From the Finalist Submissions, one (1) Grand Prize winner (the “Winner’) will be selected by Sponsor with input from the Serena Ventures team based on the stated criteria.

The Winner will be notified the week of October 27, 2025 (subject to change at Sponsor’s sole discretion) via email sent to the email address used by the Finalist in their Submission, and Sponsor will set up a time to coordinate travel and logistics with the Winner.

Sponsor’s notification to the Winner will require a response. The potential Winner will be notified by email and must respond to Sponsor’s initial notification attempt within forty-eight (48) hours with such information or confirmation as Sponsor may require. The potential Winner will be subject to verification of eligibility and may, in Sponsor’s discretion, be required to complete, sign, and return to Sponsor an Affidavit of Eligibility/Release of Liability or an Affirmation of Eligibility/Release of Liability, as determined by Sponsor, and, if legally permissible, a Publicity Release, and any other documentation provided by Sponsor in connection with verification of the potential Winner’s eligibility and confirmation of the releases and grant of rights set forth herein (as applicable, “Winner Verification Documents”), within three (3) days of attempted delivery of same. If the potential Winner cannot be reached or fails to provide any required Winner Verification Documents within the designated time frame, or if the potential Winner does not otherwise comply with these Official Rules and/or cannot accept the prize as awarded for any reason, then the potential Winner may be disqualified and an alternate Winner may, at Sponsor’s discretion, be selected from among the remaining finalist submissions as specified in these Official Rules (in which case the foregoing provisions will apply to such newly-selected entrant).

6. PRIZE:

One (1) Grand Prize will be offered. The Grand Prize will consist of:

• Review of business pitch deck by Serena Williams;
• A virtual meeting for one (1) person with Serena Williams for one 30 minute session to discuss business pitch deck;
• A $15,000 start-up budget from Sponsor (awarded as a corporate check or wire transfer to Winner); 
• An in-person meet-and-greet and lunch for one (1) person with partner(s) and expert(s) from Serena Ventures at their New York City office;
• Economy air travel for one (1) person to New York City and ground transportation to/from airport and hotel (if and as needed), and transfers between hotel and Serena Ventures office (if and as needed);
• Local hotel accommodation for two (2) nights in New York City in one (1) room (room and room tax only) (if and as needed); and,
• $500 spending money (awarded as a corporate check or wire transfer to Winner).

The approximate retail value (“ARV”) of the Grand Prize is up to USD $25,000*. Total prize value may vary depending on the location of Winner and required travel to New York City. If Winner elects to receive only a portion of the Grand Prize, then the remaining Prize elements may not be awarded. Winner must be available to travel to New York City on mutually agreed dates within one (1) year of Winner’s verification date as determined by Sponsor, or Winner forfeits all rights to the trip. If Winner is not able to travel after the trip is booked by Sponsor (including, but not limited to, any issues related to ID or Passport validity), no Prize substitution or compensation will be awarded. Sponsor shall book travel for Winner. Winner may not bring a guest to any Prize-related activity, unless otherwise mutually agreed with Sponsor.

*Receipt of the Prize will have tax implications. Taxes and any other expenses not listed above are the sole responsibility of Winner. Submission of tax forms and related information will be required. An IRS form 1099 will be issued.

In the event the Winner engages in behavior during any Prize-related activity that, as determined by Sponsor in its sole discretion, is obnoxious, offensive, threatening, disruptive, illegal, or tortious, or that subjects the Winner to arrest or detention, or that is intended to or does threaten or harass any other person, or that violates any applicable rules and regulations, or that in any way disparages or adversely affects the reputation, image and/or customer goodwill of Sponsor, Serena Williams and/or Serena Ventures, or that otherwise violates these Official Rules, Sponsor reserves the right to remove the Winner from the applicable Prize-related activity, deny the Winner attendance to any other Prize-related activities and/or disqualify the Winner from the Contest and require the Winner to forfeit any and/or all Prize components, with no further obligation or compensation whatsoever to the Winner and no obligation to pay any damages, fees, fines, judgments or other costs or expenses of any kind whatsoever incurred by Winner as a result of such conduct. In the event that circumstances beyond Sponsor’s reasonable control—including, but not limited to, acts of God, war, other force majeure events, or governmental restrictions—prevent the awarding of the stated Prize, Sponsor reserves the right to substitute the Prize.

All Prize details that are not expressly specified in these Official Rules will be determined by Sponsor in its discretion. No substitution, cash redemption, or transfer of the right to receive the Prize is permitted, except in the discretion of Sponsor, which has the right to substitute the Prize or any component of the Prize with a Prize or Prize component of equal or greater value selected by Sponsor in its discretion. The Prize consists only of the opportunity expressly specified in these Official Rules. All expenses or costs (including tax related expenses and/or costs) associated with the acceptance or use of the Prize that are not detailed above as part of the Prize or any component of the Prize are the responsibility of the Winner. The Prize is awarded “as is” and without any warranty, except as required by law. In no event will more than the number of Prize(s) stated in these Official Rules be awarded. All federal, state and local taxes on the value of the Prize are the responsibility of the Winner. An IRS form 1099 will be issued as required by law.

7. GRANT OF RIGHTS: 

By entering the Contest, each entrant irrevocably grants to Sponsor, each of Sponsor’s Affiliates, and the agents and licensees of each of the foregoing (collectively, the “Licensees”) the right to use the entrant’s name, Submission content, and any information supplied by the entrant (including an email address provided for delivery of Prize) in accordance with Sponsor’s Privacy Notice at http://masterclass.com/privacy and in perpetuity, throughout the world, in all media and formats whether now or later known or developed, for the purpose of administering the Contest, without further notice or compensation. For the sake of clarity, each entrant shall retain ownership of their respective submitted written and/or recorded Submissions and shall retain the right to publish or otherwise exploit their content after the Contest has closed.

In addition, by submitting a Submission, each entrant irrevocably grants to the Licensees (i) a non-exclusive license to publish, display, reproduce, modify, edit, create derivative works based on and otherwise use the Submission, in whole or in part, including any pictures, written material, or other content submitted as part of the Submission, and (ii) the right to use in connection with the Submission the entrant’s name, in perpetuity, throughout the world, in all media and formats whether now or later known or developed (including without limitation on Sponsor’s websites and Instagram, Facebook, TikTok and other social media channels), including without limitation for commercial use and in advertising and promotions, without further notice, permission or compensation. In addition, each entrant understands that Submissions may be made public and may be reposted on Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, and other social media channels by other users.

8. RELEASE AND LIMITATION OF LIABILITY: 

By entering the Contest, to the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, each entrant on behalf of himself or herself and anyone who succeeds to entrant’s rights and responsibilities including without limitation entrant’s heirs, executors, administrators, personal representatives, successors, assigns, agents, and attorneys, and with respect to minors entrant’s parents and legal guardians (collectively the “Entrant Parties”) releases Serena Williams, Serena Ventures, Sponsor, each of Serena Williams and/or Sponsor’s Affiliates, the licensees and licensors other than Entrant Parties including authors of each of the foregoing, all other companies involved in the development or operation of the Contest, including any platforms used to promote the Contest, the successors and assigns of each of the foregoing and the directors, officers, employees and agents of each of the foregoing (collectively, the “Released Parties”) from and against any and all claims and causes of action of any kind that the entrant and/or Entrant Parties ever had, now have or might in the future have arising out of or relating to the Contest, participation in the Contest, the provision, acceptance or use of any Prize or any component thereof, or any exercise by the Licensees of any of the rights granted above, including without limitation any and all claims and causes of action: (a) relating to any personal injury, death or property damage or loss sustained by any entrant or any other person, (b) based upon any allegation of violation of the right of privacy or publicity, misappropriation of ideas, information, or intellectual property, defamation, or violation of any other personal or proprietary right, (c) based upon any allegation of infringement of copyright, trademark, trade dress, patent, trade secrets, moral rights or any intellectual property right, or (d) or based upon any allegation of a violation of the laws, rules or regulations relating to personal information and data security. Each entrant on behalf of himself or herself and the Entrant Parties agrees not to assert any such claim or cause of action against any of the Released Parties. Each entrant on behalf of himself or herself and the Entrant Parties assumes the risk of, and all liability for, any injury, loss or damage caused, or claimed to be caused, by participation in this Contest, the use of Instagram, Facebook, or TikTok (if any) related to the Contest, or the provision, acceptance or use of any Prize or any component of any Prize. The Released Parties are not responsible for, and will not have any liability in connection with, any typographical or other error in the printing of the offer, administration of the Contest or in the announcement of the Prize. The Released Parties are not responsible for, and will not have any liability in connection with, late, lost, delayed, illegible, damaged, corrupted or incomplete entries, incorrect or inaccurate capture of, damage to, or loss of entries or entry information, or any other human, mechanical or technical error of any kind relating to the operation of the Contest page or attempted communications with any entrant or Entrant Parties, the submission, collection, storage and/or processing of entries or the administration of the Contest. The term “Affiliate” of Sponsor means any entity that directly or indirectly, through one or more intermediaries, controls, is controlled by, or is under common control with Sponsor. The term “control” means the possession, directly or indirectly, of the power to direct or cause the direction of management and policies of an entity, or the ownership, directly or indirectly, of more than fifty percent (50%) of the equity interests of the entity.

9. GENERAL RULES: 

Sponsor has the right, in its sole discretion, to modify these Official Rules (including without limitation by adjusting any of the dates and/or timeframes stipulated in these Official Rules) and to cancel, modify or suspend this Contest at any time in its discretion, including without limitation if a virus, bug, technical problem, entrant fraud or misconduct, failure or refusal of any person or entity involved in the development or operation of the Contest (including without limitation any author) to comply with such party’s obligations in connection with the Contest, failure or unavailability of any website, account or platform on which the Contest is to be offered or other cause beyond the control of Sponsor corrupts the administration, integrity, security or proper operation of the Contest or if for any other reason Sponsor is not able to conduct the Contest as planned (including without limitation in the event the Contest is interfered with by any fire, flood, epidemic, earthquake, explosion, labor dispute or strike, act of God or of public enemy, communications failure, riot or civil disturbance, war (declared or undeclared), terrorist threat or activity, federal, state, provincial, territorial, or local law, order or regulation or court order). Sponsor has the right, in its sole discretion, to disqualify or prohibit from participating in the Contest any individual who, in Sponsor’s discretion, Sponsor determines or believes (i) has tampered with the entry process or has undermined the legitimate operation of the Contest by cheating, hacking, deception or other unfair practices, (ii) has engaged in conduct that annoys, abuses, threatens or harasses any other entrant or any representative of Sponsor or (iii) has attempted or intends to attempt any of the foregoing. All federal, state, provincial, territorial, and local laws and regulations apply. Some states and/or jurisdictions may have restrictions on contests and have been residents of such states and/or jurisdictions may be excluded from participating in this Contest. All entries become the property of Sponsor and will not be verified or returned. By participating in this Contest, entrants on behalf of themselves, and to the extent permitted by law on behalf of the Entrant Parties agree to be bound by these Official Rules and the decisions of Sponsor, which are final and binding in all respects. These Official Rules may not be reprinted or republished in any way without the prior written consent of Sponsor.

10. DISPUTES: 

By entering the Contest, each entrant on behalf of himself or herself and the Entrant Parties agrees that, to the maximum extent permitted by applicable law, (a) any and all disputes, claims and causes of action arising out of or connected with the Contest, or the provision, acceptance and/or use of any Prize or Prize component, will be resolved individually, without resort to any form of class action (Note: Some jurisdictions do not allow restricting access to class actions. This provision will not apply to you if you live in such a jurisdiction); (b) any and all claims, judgments and awards shall be limited to actual out-of-pocket costs incurred, including costs associated with entering the Contest, but in no event attorneys’ fees; and (c) under no circumstances will any entrant or Entrant Party be permitted to obtain any award for, and each entrant and Entrant Party hereby waives all rights to claim, punitive, special, incidental or consequential damages and any and all rights to have damages multiplied or otherwise increased and any other damages, other than for actual out-of-pocket expenses. All issues and questions concerning the construction, validity, interpretation and enforceability of these Official Rules or the rights and obligations of the entrants, Entrant Parties and Sponsor in connection with the Contest shall be governed by, and construed in accordance with, the laws of the State of California in the United States of America without giving effect to any choice of law or conflict of law rules or provisions that would cause the application of the laws of any jurisdiction other than the State of California. Any legal proceedings arising out of this Contest or relating to these Official Rules shall be instituted only in the federal or state courts located in San Francisco County in the State of California, waiving any right to trial by jury, and each entrant and Entrant Party consents to jurisdiction therein with respect to any legal proceedings or disputes of whatever nature arising under or relating to these rules or the Contest. In the event of any conflict between these Official Rules and any Contest information provided elsewhere (including but not limited in advertising or marketing materials), these Official Rules shall prevail.

11. SPONSOR: 

Yanka Industries, Inc. dba MasterClass. The Contest is in no way sponsored, endorsed, or administered by, or associated with any social media platform. 

To obtain the name (first name, last initial) of the contest Winner, please send a written request within 60 days of the contest end date to: MasterClass - Serena Williams Pitch Contest, 548 Market St PMB 491713, San Francisco, CA 94104-5401 US. Be sure to include the name of the contest and your return contact details (email preferred). Only requests received within the stated timeframe will be honored.

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