Twelve interdisciplinary teams made their case for capital at Wentworth Thursday. The Institute's Accelerate, Innovation + Entrepreneurship Center put $13,000 on the line as part of the Institute's fourth Pitchfest — the culmination of a semester's worth of brainstorming, planning, strategizing and iterating.
Fifty-three ideas were submitted at the beginning of the academic year, and were whittled down to the teams that presented to a panel of alumni, mentors and representatives of Boston's innovation ecosystem Thursday evening. Of the final 12, eight of the startups were comprised solely of freshmen, according to the Center's Associate Vice President Monique Fuchs. She described the first-year representation as "an incredible increase compared to previous years."
Every idea featured at the Pitchfest centered around a product, which came as no surprise to Fuchs, who has called Wentworth "a big pool of product innovation." Referring to the students as "makers," Fuchs acknowledged being impressed by how many came in with prototypes at such an early-stage pitch round.
Teams immersed themselves in boot camps and collaborated with mentors over a 10-week period. On Thursday, the judges evaluated the work completed. The panel included: Jeff Altschuler, founder and CEO of Altronics Manufacturing; Ethan Bagley, principal innovation catalyst at Constant Contact; Rick Grundy, VP and director at AVTECH Software; Karen Reuther, creative director and brand specialist at Cast; and Larry Blumsack, founder of Zoka Institute.
Fuchs shared the top six teams with BostInno — four of which received gap funding to innovate to the next level. The others will be invited to pitch again during the spring semester for their shot at financing.
The six teams included:
Alpha Industries, Winner of $8,000 — Alpha Industries is dedicated to improving the efficiency and ease of both cargo and passenger flights, opening new markets and methods for nearly every industry imaginable. The team: Josh Willis, Ryan Cataldo, Caleb Jackson and Greg Frasco.
Aqua Lung, Winner of $2,000 — With Aqua Lung's product, anyone can breathe underwater. No compressor, no classes, no expensive scuba equipment. The team: Peter Backus and Tyler Castle.
Modular Branch System, Winner of $2,000 — The Modular Branch System is a startup in the healthcare market segment that is focusing on reducing complications relating to fluid occlusions in medical lines such as intravenous lines and feeding tubes. The team: Sze "Ron" Chau, Rodney Chery, Robertha Perez and Derek Wong.
Gnar Guard, Winner of $1,000 — The Gnar Guard is an innovative ski racing chin guard that reinvents the way the industry currently affixes guards to helmets. The team: Scott Venti and Ian Gagnon.
Resistance — Resistance is an electric bike company delivering a simplistic, stylish, innovative and affordable solution to urban commuters. The team: Scott Bonney, Brandon Dryer and Kimberly Silva.
ImpactAlert — ImpactAlert is a system that can detect sports-related concussions and notify coaches or personnel with real-time monitoring. The team: Alex Schwarzkopf, Dylan Powers and Matthew Joyal.
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Featured Photo via Wentworth
