News

Profiles of Columbia Venture Competition Finalists

We wish the best of luck to the 2017 Columbia Venture Competition finalists,
Their profiles are listed below.
The 30 finalists continue to prepare for the final presentations
that will take place on Thursday, April 13th throughout the day.
The winners will be announced the next day the #StartupColumbia Conference in
Roone Alredge Auditorium 9:30am – 5:00pm.

Find out who will split the $250,000 prize pool.
Get your #StartupColumbia tickets here.


StartupColumbia Challenge
VIDEO: Finalists

Manal Kahi ʼ15SIPA
We deliver authentic meals made by refugees
– – – – –
Mekhos Health
Anirban Gangopadhyay ʼ14SEAS, Vikas Vavilala- ’14CC
Automate clinical trial recruitment
– – – – –
Mindr
Sarah Lux-Lee ʼ16SIPA – 3rd Place Winner!
Events for the intellectually curious parents (babies welcome)
– – – – –
Parceed
Tatiana Sorokina ʼ12BUS,  Louisy Raymond, Bentley University
We democratize access to education
– – – – –
Second Line Vinyl
Michael Thomas ʼ17GS, Zane Howard, U. Pittsburgh
World’s first modern manufacturer of vinyl records
– – – – –
SleepAXIS 2nd Place Winner!
Saad Shaikh ʼ17BUS, Salman Ali ʼ17BUS
The future of sleep telemedicine
– – – – –
Unbound 1st Place Winner!
Lorraine White ʼ17BUS ʼ10CC, Jackie Churchwell ʼ17BUS
We empower women through enhanced sexual wellness

Technology Challenge, Sponsored by Columbia Engineering
VIDEO: Finalists

TempRes Technology
Chathuranga De Silva ʼ17SEAS, Porakrit Leophairatana ʼ17SEAS
Temperature responsive antimicrobial film for medical applications
– – – – –
Conor Russomanno ʼ11SEAS, Andrea Ortuno ʼ16SEAS
Open-sources innovation of human-computer interface technologies
– – – – –
Nascent Energy Systems
Keith Heyde ʼ12SEAS
Efficient energy harvesting for rail infrastructure optimization
 – – – – –
Cathecare 2nd Place Winner!
Charles Pan ʼ16SEAS, Aonnicha Burapachaisri ʼ16SEAS, Aishwarya Raja ʼ16SEAS
CatheCare sterilizes catheter hubs and saves lives
– – – – –
Voyant Photonics – 1st Place Winner!
Chris Phare ʼ17SEAS
Tiny, cheap laser radar for self-driving cars
– – – – –
IMMPLACATE – 3rd Place Winner!
Mariko Kanai ʼ17CC, Holly Wobma ʼ19CUMC
Off-the-shelf stem cell therapy for immune disorders

Global Technology Challenge, Sponsored by Columbia Engineering
VIDEO: Finalists

Allied Microbiota 3rd Place Winner!
Frana James ʼ16SEAS
Cheaper, more effective clean up of pollutants
– – – – –
Kheyti – 1st Place Winner!
Kaushik Kappagantulu ʼ17BUS
Affordable greenhouses helping smallholder farmers battle poverty
– – – – –
EfficienCity
Jeremy Hopkins ʼ18BUS
Online marketplace to scale energy efficiency globally
– – – – –
Luso Labs – 2nd Place Winner!
Ritish Patnaik ʼ16SEAS, Olachi Oleru ʼ16SEAS
Automated, accurate, and accessible cervical cancer screening
– – – – –
Tessa Flippin ʼ16BUS
Remittance platform for Latin America using bitcoin
– – – – –
Aline Sara ʼ14SIPA
Online language practice and learning delivered by refugees
– – – – –
HIC Chair
Narmine Ben Aissa
Training smart cushion to prevent back pain

SIPA Dean’s Public Policy Challenge Grant
VIDEO: Finalists

CiteMe Honorable Mention Winner!
Alexei Gittelson ʼ17SIPA, Johnathon Adam de Villier ʼ17SIPA
Connects researchers seeking data on a wide variety of natural features
– – – – –
Demoperate Honorable Mention Winner!
Andy Chen Wang ʼ18SIPA, Shreemathi Tumkur ʼ18SIPA
Online social platform to collaborate, network, and engage with local governments
– – – – –
FiveOne Labs Tied 1st Place Winner!
Sophia Burton ʼ17SIPA, Patricia Letayf ʼ17SIPA, Alice Bosley ʼ17SIPA
Incubator for displaced & conflict-affected entrepreneurs in the Middle East
– – – – –
HelmetSmart Tied 1st Place Winner!
Olivia Marie Arguinzoni ʼ17SIPA, Malgosia Rejniak ʼ18SIPA
Encouraging motorcyclists in India to wear helmets
– – – – –
I-Care Tied 1st Place Winner!
Fang Liu ʼ17SIPA, Xinwei Gao ʼ17SIPA
Technology and medical data to provide senior citizens with better options
– – – – –
SunCommunity – Honorable Mention Winner!
Gabriel Guggisberg ʼ18SIPA
Platform that connects consumers & supplies of solar tech in developing countries

Columbia Undergraduate Challenge, Sponsored by Columbia College
VIDEO: Finalists

NoMor – 2nd Place Winner!
Chiara Vallini ʼ17SEAS, Caroline Chiu ʼ17SEAS, Hae Seong Kim ʼ17SEAS, John Mavroudes ʼ17SEAS, Walid Rahman ʼ17SEAS
Team dedicated to develop anti-tremor device to improve lives
– – – – –
Alan Gou ʼ17SEAS, George Liu ʼ17CC – 1st Place Winner!
Platform used by teams to plan, record, and learn from growth and marketing experiments
– – – – –
Alex Nicita ʼ20CC, Ian Yiran Huang ʼ20CC, Kevin Chu ʼ19CC, Josh Learn ʼ20SEAS
Platform linking current students with prospective students for a more personalized and immersed campus tour
– – – – –
Pencraft 3rd Place Winner!
Derek Netto ʼ17SEAS
Motion controller for mobile gaming
– – – – –
Justin Donovan ʼ19CC, Mike Bulkin ʼ20CC, Conder Shou ʼ19CC
Gallo allows high-volume gasoline purchasers to pre-purchase gasoline at wholesale prices.
– – – – –
Etcetera
Riley Jones ʼ17CC, John Kotey ʼ17SEAS, Summer Payton ʼ17BC,
Ibrahima Niang ʼ17GS, Ibrahima Niang ʼ18SEAS
Software service delivery digital venture development tools for entrepreneurs of color
– – – – –
Matt Piccolella ʼ17SEAS
Making it easier for people to discover the best half-and-full day trips in their city

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