
Innovation Challenge Finalists
NDSU students presented their business ideas at the midway point through the Innovation Challenge in a showcase style format on March 21, 2018. They presented to judges privately throughout the day then at 5:00 PM when the event opened to the public.
The judges in each track spent time with each team and faced a challenging decision in selecting the few teams that would be moving onto the final presentations on April 5th in the NDSU Memorial Union.
Product Finalists in no particular order include:
- Babak Jahani, creating an antibacterial coating to reduce the spread of disease.
- Raquib Hasan, Abbey Wohlers, and Meredith Schroeder working on “Osteo-Fill,” a moldable putty-like substance that works to cure infections.
- Cody Weise and Ahsan Nazmul with “DAAM,” 3D printed helmets to help reshape infant skulls that may have been damaged during childbirth.
- “Exo-Therapeutics” by Jessica Pullan and Matthew Confeld with a highly focused cancer therapy, they have discovered a high-tech way to help the body specifically target only cancerous cells.
- Hanaa Mansour and Matthew Crouse, have created a 3D printed “flask holder” to increase efficiency in laboratories.
- Nick Broberg and Thomas Konetschka have developed “Nature’s Boost,” a high-performance energy gel for runners made from pure maple syrup.
- “Proximity Skin Tanning (PST)” by Austin Breuer, a safe skin tanning solution that promotes the skin cells to darken on their own.
- Sarah Whims and Aaron Kinslow developed “Roof Renew,” lightweight, durable, and renewable roof shingle.
Service Finalists in no particular order include:
- “Ace2Stem” by Shrinidh Joshi, developing “designer” stem cells that assist in repairing the body when struck by disease.
- David Syverson created “Stackable Credentials,” a way to provide students with merits to demonstrate competence and skill.
- “Webblen” was developed by Nate Thoreson, an app that revolutionizes the way communities find events.
- “T-Prime Therapeutics,” another project of Matt Confeld’s alongside Abigail Zikmund, developing a genetically unique vaccine for cancers in family generations.
- Babak Mamnoon and Chad Rehovsky created “3D Biotumoroids,” a 3D printed chamber that helps to grow and monitor drug treatments of breast cancer.
- “PawPrint Prosthetics” brought in a 3-legged German Shepard to model their 3D printed prosthetics for pets.
Social Impact Finalists in no particular order include:
- “Green Around the Gills” by Swati Sharma and Priyanka Deka, creating opportunities for sustainable rural growth through local business development.
- Another of Hanaa Mansour’s projects with DeMetris Reed, called “Rainbow Colors,” creating a more colorful community to reduce seasonal depression.
- “PlusOne” by Ted Zipoy, Ian Gilley, and Michael and Timothy Straus, empowering students to donate extra dining center meals to those in need.
- “Breathe Smarter” by Shrindh Joshi, another student with multiple projects, and Divya Sharma, a way of improving patient outcomes and increased efficiency through cloud-based data platform for asthma patients.
- Jesse Riley, Nikki Ellingson, Elsie McGuigan, and Mackenzie Alexander created “Songbird Creations,” a way to help schools fundraise and increase interest in STEM fields while reconnecting students to nature, away from their screens.
- Sarah Biesterveld designed the “Modular Accessibility Installation,” which creates affordable access to buildings for those who are unable to use standard accesses, through a modular design.
The NDSU Research and Technology Park has worked with these incredible students and hopes that they will continue to push themselves towards great things.