NDSU students presented their business ideas at the midway point through the Innovation Challenge in a showcase style format on February 27, 2019. They presented to judges privately throughout the day on February 28, 2019.  

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 March 28^th in the NDSU Memorial Union.

Graduate Research Finalists in no particular order include:

1. Ghazal, Vahidi, Amir, Darabi, Jamileh Shojaeiarani, and Chad Rhehovsky, with Hydro-Healers, 3D printed hydrogel bandages that can be customized for individual patients.
2. Velmanickam Logeeshan the creator of Illuminate, an engineering technique to rescue cancer patients from death.
3. Matthew Confeld and Babak Mamnoon in pharmaceutical sciences with Natal Notes, allowing expecting mothers to be proactive about their newborns health, through genetic screening and counseling.
4. Pranothi Multini, with Silk-Cath in pharmaceutical sciences: coating of a venous catheter tube with a unique fusion protein that can capture heparin present inside the body will provide both anti-coagulant and antimicrobial surface.

Entrepreneurship Finalists in no particular order include:

1. Jesse Saxberg, Chase Tozer, and Adam Allmer, who developed the Busy Boozy Bar app that eliminates waiting at the bar for drinks and fosters a fun, social environment that allows for bar-goers to “Raise a glass to short lines and good times.”
2. Grayson Klein, who developed ElboRoom, which helps remote workers find unique workspaces to pursue their business goals in a space fit for them.
3. Colin Schulte, Jordan Thielman, and Kyland Kielger, with Hot Bike, Hot Bike helps cyclists travel more comfortably so they can ride in colder climates.
4. Matthew Solem and Kristian Rue with Push Receipts, which eliminates paper receipts to prevent waste and gives you control of your data.
5. Megan Skjonsby, Nancy Ngo, Chase Nettum, Noah Moberg, and Megan Schumacher, the creators of Shark Card, creating a virtual stage for business cards to be organized and sustain networking connections.

Social Impact Finalists in no particular order include:

1. Mariah Billadeau with EcoTex, an eco-friendly outdoor recreational textile that will reduce the use of microplastics.
2. Shelby Grabanski, Ninad Kashyap, and Matt Hofman with Outside In, helping people get rid of useless socks that take up their space to create winterwear that will keep them and the homeless population from freezing in the harsh North Dakota weather.
3. Ryan Morff, Charlie Carlson, Hayden Teruya, and Jeffrey Ostlund the creators of Reel, which helps young social media users connect with their friends and family in an authentic way so they can feel confident and happy about their real selves without fear of judgement.
4. Emma Kangas and Elsie McGuigan with U-Scoop, a way to give college students the tools to earn volunteer hours by clearing snow and ice from public walkways, intersections & around cars to keep students safe, promote healthy activities & build community on campus.
5. Ryder Belgrade, Myles Duval, Peyton Beehler, and Sam Betty, the Wind-Turbine Guys, creating Compact omnidirectional wind turbine which can be mounted on city buildings to help reduce carbon footprints.

The NDSU Research & Technology Park is excited to announce that Hot Bike also went home with the Dr. David Well’s People’s Choice Award of $1,000 on Wednesday, February 27, 2019. Dr. David Wells was a very prominent supporter of the Innovation Challenge and left an incredible hole when he passed away. He encouraged students to participate, was always there to help, and was one of the writers of the first rules of the Challenge 10 years ago. The Park chose to recognize his dedication to student innovation by naming the award after him. 

The NDSU Research & Technology Park is dedicated to enhancing the investments in North Dakota State University by the citizens of North Dakota. Through partnerships with international, national, and regional centers of excellence, as well as high technology-based businesses and the research community at NDSU, we help develop technology-based businesses and broaden the economic base of North Dakota.