We are paw-sitively thrilled to announce the 2020 Out-of-the-Box Thinking Scholarship winners!

2020 has been a year of unprecedented challenges, but one thing hasn’t changed: We received so many amazing entries for AutoPets’ Out-of-the-Box Thinking Scholarship! This year, students were asked to come up with the next big idea in pet care and/or animal welfare. This idea could be either a digital product, a physical product, or a marketing campaign related to the pet care industry or animal welfare. Ideas also needed to align with AutoPets’ mission of developing highly functional, connected pet products that make pet care more enjoyable. Each essay had to include how the idea was conceived, why it is needed, what makes it unique, who the target audience is, and what the marketing and retail strategies would be.

2020 Scholarship Winners

Grand Prize $1,250 Scholarship

Grace B. for the Better Betta. Better Betta is a beginners aquarium set that utilizes a water sensor which connects to a fun and educational phone app to encourage better care for betta fish.

Second Place $500 Scholarship

Makenzie P. for What a CATch. What a CATch is an innovative, programmable cat toy that helps fight against cat obesity and boredom. With its ability to move at various speeds in multiple directions and a variety of activation options, it was designed to be engaging and convenient.

Third Place $250 Scholarship

Jennifer L. for The Self-Cleaning Water Bowl. This self-cleaning water bowl allows pets to drink clean sanitized water at all times using a filter and UV light.

Congratulations to our 2020 scholarship winners Grace, Makenzie, and Jennifer! And special thanks to everyone who applied.

Cover photo by Trà My on Unsplash