TUCSON, AZ (March 18, 2026) — IdeaFunding 2026, co-led by Startup Tucson and the University of Arizona Center for Innovation (UACI) and presented by the Arizona Commerce Authority, has announced the 20 Arizona-based startups advancing as finalists in this year’s pitch competition. IdeaFunding is one of the state’s most anticipated entrepreneurial events, offering a front‑row look at the bold ideas and startups shaping the region. For more than 20 years, IdeaFunding has helped hundreds of Arizona-based startups advance their ventures, earning it a place as Southern Arizona’s largest and longest-running entrepreneurial pitch competition.

IdeaFunding introduced a reimagined competition structure for 2026, featuring two distinct tracks designed to support a broader range of innovators: the Creative and Innovation Community Track, sponsored by Arizona Arts, and the Tech Track, sponsored by R&A CPAs. The updated format expands opportunities for entrepreneurs across Arizona to showcase solutions that drive economic growth, community impact, and technological advancement.

The Process

Over the past two months, participating startups have engaged in dedicated pitch training, mentorship, and preparation for Round 1, where they presented their ventures to a panel of judges. Following a competitive selection process, the top 10 startups from each track have been chosen to advance as finalists:

Advancing companies were selected based on a scored rubric by local community leaders who served as unbiased judges. The judges include:

• Cristie Street, Southern Arizona Leadership Council
• Dave DiCosola, UAVC
• Erica Yngve, Sonoran Stitch Factory
• Gina Catalano, Venture Solutions
• Kameron Norwood, Cushman & Wakefield|PICOR
• Will Pew, Hecker Pew PLLC

These 20 companies will compete in live Industry Track finals on Thursday, March 26, at Hotel Congress, where judges will select 4-6 finalists who will compete that same evening during the Main Stage Showcase.

Main Stage Showcase

The Track finalists will be announced in real time during the IdeaFunding 2026 Main Stage Pitch Showcase at the historic Rialto Theatre, also on March 26, during TENWEST. These founders will pitch their companies live to an audience of investors, founders, and community leaders.  With over $50,000 in cash and in‑kind prizes at stake, startups have the opportunity to gain a powerful boost toward faster growth and greater innovation.

New for 2026, IdeaFunding will present two $10,000 flagship awards during the main stage showcase, each recognizing a different type of entrepreneurial excellence:

• Catalyst Award – for companies where funding can spark immediate momentum
• Vision Award – for bold ideas with long-term potential and transformative impact

These two winning teams will also receive a year of incubation programming and space at UACI valued at an additional $10,000.

In addition to these two flagship awards, the 2026 prize lineup also includes sponsored services and value-added support, as well as other specialty prizes aligned with founder needs. These specialty prizes include the Tucson IDA Social Impact Prize, the CIC Adelante Arizona Prize for diverse founders, Tech Launch Arizona’s Liftoff Prize for a University of Arizona-affiliated company, and the Startup Tucson People’s Choice Award.

Together, the awards reflect IdeaFunding’s commitment to supporting startups at different stages of development while celebrating both practical progress and ambitious innovation.

IdeaFunding is pleased that Jason Feifer, Editor-in-Chief of Entrepreneur Magazine and bestselling author of Build for Tomorrow, will serve as a Main Stage Showcase judge.

Feifer will headline the 2026 TENWEST Conference on Thursday, March 26. He is known nationally for helping founders navigate change, seize opportunity, and speaks to this year’s festival themes—innovation, resilience, creativity, and the future of entrepreneurship.

IdeaFunding and TENWEST extend their gratitude to the Arizona Commerce Authority for its continued support of Arizona’s entrepreneurial ecosystem, as well as to HUSTL – a Vantage West digital banking solution built to help entrepreneurs streamline their finances – for serving as the 2026 festival’s title sponsor. The community is invited to watch the finalists pitch on March 26, 2026, at 7:00 pm at the Rialto Theatre.

For more information and to purchase tickets to attend TENWEST and IdeaFunding , visit: www.tenwest.com.

TUCSON, AZ (March 18, 2026) — A proposed 160-acre Arizona State Trust land sale tied to Copper World’s planned mining operation in the Santa Rita Mountains is drawing renewed scrutiny ahead of a public auction scheduled for April 29, 2026. The parcel is being pursued for the disposal of mine tailings, and the Arizona State Land Department is moving forward with the sale following earlier administrative approval.

New detail in the public record comes from a February 6, 2026, memo from Pima County Administrator Jan Lesher to the Board of Supervisors, titled “Update on State Land Auction for Proposed Copper World Mine.” In that memo, Lesher wrote that State Land Commissioner Robyn Sahid notified the county that the state was proceeding with the auction, with required public notices to follow, and said the county remained concerned that moving ahead before completion of Copper World’s final feasibility study could facilitate development of the proposed mine. Lesher also urged Gov. Katie Hobbs to defer the sale until that study is completed and reviewed.

The February memo builds on an earlier September 11, 2025, memo from Lesher to the Board, in which she told supervisors that the State Land Department’s Board of Appeals had approved the sale of 160 acres of State Trust land to Copper World, Inc. for mine tailings. In that letter, Lesher said Pima County opposed the sale and reiterated concerns about groundwater use, impacts on surrounding residential areas, and the loss of natural and cultural resources.

The land sale has become a flashpoint because opponents argue the parcel is more than a routine state land disposition. Pima County, the Tohono O’odham Nation, and environmental groups have objected, saying the tract could play a strategic role in the long-term buildout of the mine and should be evaluated in that broader context. Recent challenges to the auction have also argued that the land has been undervalued and that the transaction carries implications beyond the 160 acres itself.

State officials have framed the issue differently. According to recent reports, the state’s position is that the sale would generate revenue for State Trust beneficiaries, including schools, and allow tailings to be placed farther from nearby homes and schools than at another possible location. Hobbs’ office has said the mine would move forward with or without the auction and described the sale as the state’s best available option for balancing trust obligations with impacts on nearby communities.

“The reality is that this mine was going to move forward with or without this state land auction,” a spokesperson for Hobbs’ office said. “This project has been in motion for decades and, because it is primarily on private land, will proceed with or without the state’s involvement, but we are committed to ensuring the mine is a responsible neighbor and invests in surrounding communities.”

The debate also highlights the difference between historic and modern mining. Earlier mining operations often faced fewer requirements for waste containment, water protection, and reclamation, while modern projects such as Copper World are typically shaped by engineered tailings facilities, detailed feasibility work, extensive permitting, environmental monitoring, long-lead infrastructure planning, and closer scrutiny of community impacts.

Copper World is being designed under modern mining standards, including engineered tailings storage, detailed feasibility work, long-lead infrastructure planning, and today’s permitting and environmental review requirements.

The proposed sale is not yet a closed transaction. It remains an auction process, and opponents are still trying to stop or delay it before the April 29 sale date. For Southern Arizona, the dispute sits at the intersection of land use, public-land trust policy, mining economics, and regional growth management, making it both a consequential public-land decision and a mining story.

(March 18, 2026) — Amazon is expanding its rapid-delivery service with new 1-hour and 3-hour options, giving customers faster access to more than 90,000 products ranging from pantry staples and cleaning supplies to electronics, toys, apparel, and home goods.

The new options are integrated into Amazon’s existing Same-Day shopping platform, where eligible items are marked for 1-hour or 3-hour delivery. Customers in participating markets can also search specifically for those products using new delivery-time filters and a dedicated shopping page.

Amazon said the 1-hour service is now available in hundreds of cities and towns nationwide, while 3-hour delivery has expanded to more than 2,000 communities, including major metro areas, midsize cities, and smaller suburban markets. The company said the service operates seven days a week and will continue expanding in the months ahead.

“Our customers are busier than ever and are looking for new ways to save time while keeping their households running,” said Udit Madan, senior vice president of Worldwide Operations at Amazon. “We saw an opportunity to use our unique operational expertise and delivery network to help make customers’ lives a little easier while unlocking even more value for Prime members.”

Prime members pay $9.99 for 1-hour delivery and $4.99 for 3-hour delivery, while non-Prime customers pay $19.99 and $14.99, respectively. Amazon’s standard Same-Day Delivery remains free for Prime members on qualifying orders.

The faster service builds on Amazon’s existing same-day network, which the company said has been retooled to move a broader selection of goods through fulfillment and final delivery more quickly. Since launching Same-Day Delivery in 2015, Amazon has expanded the service to millions of items in more than 9,000 U.S. cities and towns.

The rollout adds to Amazon’s broader delivery portfolio, which includes two-day, next-day, and same-day shipping, as the company continues investing in speed and convenience for household and everyday purchases.