Kyle Guinness launched Revitalize Energy to develop an energizing eye drop to relieve the effects of screen fatigue. The invention’s origin dates back just a few years prior when Guinness, then a student at the University of Pittsburgh, found that current market options failed to relieve his eyes of their screen-induced stress. Now, with a product undergoing clinical testing and a manufacturer signed on to make the drops, Guinness is optimistic he’ll be helping others see and focus better in the very near future.
I can’t say I was the best student at Pitt when it came to time management.
My frequent procrastination led to some late nights in Hillman Library or Sennott Square. Oftentimes, I found myself polishing off a few energy drinks to get my work done and keep my gears spinning.
However, at a certain point, the amount of caffeine I was drinking was just not helping my eyes. They felt heavy and dry, and it was hard to keep them open, which, in and of itself, made me even more tired. This got me down the rabbit hole of researching potential causes, and I landed on the sensation of eye fatigue. The Mayo Clinic defines it as the tiring of the eye through intense usage, and it can make us feel drowsy and sluggish.
While I was browsing for solutions, I came across blue light glasses, which I purchased almost instantly, but they never seemed to work for me. After talking with some industry experts and seeing some additional research, it was clear blue light had no impact on eye fatigue, so I was going to have to look elsewhere. I then thought, “what about delivering stimulants directly to the eye?” Turns out, there are products that do derivations of this in Asian markets like Japan and Korea. This gave me the confidence to try and build and launch our own product.
Great, we had an idea. All we needed to do was launch a consumer product, in an industry heavily regulated by the FDA, as a marketing major with zero chemical or manufacturing experience. What could go wrong? We knew we were going to need some help, and Pittsburgh answered the call.
The first institution we turned to for support was close to home. We participated in Pitt’s Randall Family Big Idea Competition, where we placed third. This gave us the confidence and funding to find the perspective of some technical talent and conduct some market tests in potential segments.
After Randall came Pitt’s accelerator, Blast Furnace, then the first cohort of the new Pitt incubator [program] The Forge. These organizations did an amazing job helping us get used to pitching our ideas and building out our business plan. Upon graduation, we participated in Ascender, where we got the momentum to recruit a scientific founder to help with formulation and navigating the FDA. We left that program with a finished product, investment capital raised and high hopes.
People often ask what the product feels like, and the best way our focus groups have described it is it feels almost like somebody is clearing up the area behind the eye and opening your eyes wider.
With how supportive Pittsburgh had been throughout our journey, our next stop was applying to AlphaLab Gear, where we were accepted in February 2022. They gave us guidance for finding a manufacturer and got us on track to launch our product in November of this year.
ABOUT KYLE GUINNESS
Title: CEO & co-founder, Revitalize Energy
Age: 24
Year company founded: 2019
What is your dream job? “My dream job is Jedi Knight, but if that doesn’t pan out, I would love to run a startup accelerator or university innovation program to support local entrepreneurs.”
