The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA), and its federal partners, announced the winners of its third annual Growth Accelerator Fund Competition on August 31. The 68 winners in 32 states and the District of Columbia were judged by more than 100 experts from both the public and private sector with entrepreneurial, investment, startup, economic development, capital formation and academic backgrounds. The competition consisted of two panel reviews, the first involving over 400 applications and presentations to establish a pool of 200 qualified finalists. Of those 200 finalists, a second panel evaluated presentations and pitch videos before selecting the final 68 winning organizations. Each winner will receive a cash prize of $50,000 from the fund’s $3.4 million to boost the economic impact of accelerators across the country.