Four Huskies Win at CMU’s New Venture Challenge

Last Friday MTU students won at Central Michigan Univeristy’s New Venture Challenge. Each year the two universities collaborate so Tech students have an opportunity to showcase innovative business ideas. In total four huskies were awarded for pitches on ecommerce solutions in construction material supply chains, an electronic child safety bracelet, electrochemical biosensor for t4 detection, and a software provider for online clothing retailers. The New venture challenge helps students network and connect with business moguls to establish the tools to grow innovative ideas into real companies.  

In preparation of the NVC, students participated in a number of workshops and review sessions. The students also benefited from the expertise available within MTEC SmartZone, which is hosted by the Office of Innovation and Commercialization in collaboration with the university’s College of Business.

Two-Minute Pitch Competition

• Jakob Christiansen (construction management) won first place and received $4,000. Christiansen pitched “ProBoard,” an e-commerce platform to solve issues in the construction material supply chain.

Seven-Minute Pitch Competition

• Bayle Golden (engineering management) won first place in the Social Mission category and received $10,000. Golden pitched “SafeRow,” an innovative wearable device designed to keep children safe when every second counts.
• Rourke Sylvain and Ali Dabas (both biomedical engineering) won second place in the High Tech High Growth category, receiving $5,000. Their pitch was “imi (integrated molecular innovations),” an electrochemical biosensor for T4 detection.
• Jordan Craven (management information systems, minoring in computer science) won third place in the High Tech High Growth category and received $2,000. Craven pitched “Tall and Small Designs,” a technology company that provides software as a service to retailers who sell clothes online.