Students Deliver at 2022 Science & Technology Showcase

The 2022 Science and Technology Showcase (STS) provided an opportunity for student innovators at the University of Washington to embrace a key entrepreneurial trait: flexibility. The 15 teams (listed below) who participated in the 16th annual competition shifted into online presentation mode and wowed judges through a virtual platform many had never used before. By night’s end, judges awarded a total of nearly $5,000 to seven of those teams, while providing critical feedback to the remaining eight.

The $2,000 Electronic Arts Grand Prize went to team One Court for its touch-based interface designed to revolutionize how visually impaired people experience sporting events. The interface would add to existing, but limited solutions, like radio and interpersonal narration.

The $1,000 WRF Capital Second Place Prize went to team Ultropia for its all-in-one washer and dryer innovation. Ultropia aims to help people with limited infrastructure gain access to laundry machines by providing a resource saving product made with ultrasonic technology. The team also won one of the $200 Davis Wright Tremaine category prizes (Best Pitch) at the event—co-hosted by the UW Science and Engineering Business Association (SEBA) and the Foster School’s Buerk Center for Entrepreneurship.

The $700 Buerk Center Third Place Prize went to team PlantSeal for its affordable packaging solution that would allow state governments to more effectively enforce laws to ban the use of toxic, yet inexpensive, ‘forever chemicals’ (PFAs) from manufacturing.

In addition to those noted above, four additions category prizes were also awarded. The $200 Davis Wright Tremaine Most Innovative Prize went to team ChocoLED for its low-cost and eco-friendly light converter technology that make LEDs more palatable for human beings. Judges awarded the $200 Davis Wright Tremaine Best Market Strategy Prize to team Changa for its inclusively designed mobile app that aims to deliver health to places where doctors are in short supply and the distance to HHC is long.

Team QRx took home the $200 Davis Wright Tremaine Best Presentation Prize for its electronic healthcare record platform that help patients, authorized caregivers, and healthcare workers solve the problems created by traditional, and some say outdated, systems. Finally, the $200 Davis Wright Tremaine Prize for Most Enthusiastic Entrepreneur went to team Mezzo for its app that builds recommendations for meeting locations based on the shared preferences of those who are trying to get together.

The 2022 STS featured 15 finalist teams from a pool over more than 20 applications. The teams, judges, and organizers used the Gather virtual event tool offered by the UW Husky Union Building—which has helped students engage safely as times shifted between in-person and virtual. As judges from the greater entrepreneurial, scientific, and investment community approached individual tables with their avatar, they could interact with presentations, posters, and hear pitches from the teams. The goal of the STS is to help those students see the commercial potential of their science and technology based ideas coming out of the University.

Many of the STS competitors and the teams formed at the event are expected to compete in the 2022 Hollomon Health Innovation Challenge on Thursday, March 3, the 2022 Alaska Airlines Environmental Innovation Challenge on Thursday, March 31, and the multi-stage Dempsey Startup Competition in mid-April and May.

Recent STS competitors including Puget Buoy (2021), Aquagga (2020), AeroSpec (2020), SENSOL Systems (2020), ApnoMed (2020), Spira (2020), Nanodropper (2019), Chibage Chip (2019), Lonely Produce (2019), Otogear (2018), A-Alpha Bio (2017), PlayGait (2017), EpiForAll (2017), mIPS Labs (2016), and many others have gone on to launch, earn investments, and/or earn additional prize money in the Buerk Center competitions listed above, as well as the Jones + Foster Accelerator.

The Buerk Center and SEBA also wish to thank all of this year’s sponsors and prize presenters: Electronic Arts, Davis Wright Tremaine LLP, and Washington Research Foundation Capital (WRF Capital).

A complete list of teams (in alphabetical order) and the short descriptions they provided in their application are listed below.

2022 Science and Technology Showcase Finalist Teams

Bloom
– Bloom is developing a novel expandable vaginal dilator device that help both patients and doctors navigate and address health conditions related to female genitalia.

Changa
– Changa is developing an inclusively designed mobile app that aims to deliver health to places where doctors are in short supply and the distance to HHC is long.

ChocoLED
– ChocoLED is developing a low-cost and eco-friendly light converter that make LEDs more palatable for human beings to not just look at, but be affected by in terms of mood, alertness, and more.

Disha
– Disha is developing a social venture targeted at people who need to travel great distances for their treatment and may need the use of a charity house for an extended stay

Eat Together!
– Eat Together! is developing an app to match users with individuals in their community to meet up, share a meal, and build connections.

Firefly
– Firefly is developing an innovative, wearable, and self-sufficient smart sensor technology that will allow users to maintain social distancing practices in an efficient yet discrete manner.

Made
– Made is developing a marketplace app for homemade and healthy food available to customers 24/7.

Mezzo
– Mezzo is developing a platform that builds recommendations for meeting locations based on the shared preferences of those who are trying to get together.

One Court
– One Court is developing a touch-based interface designed to revolutionize how visually impaired people experience sporting events. The interface would add to existing, but limited solutions, like radio and interpersonal narration.

PlantSeal
­- PlantSeal is developing an affordable packaging solution that would allow state governments to more effectively enforce laws to ban the use of toxic, yet inexpensive, ‘forever chemicals’ (PFAs) from manufacturing.

PotentiaLi Energy
– PotentiaLi Energy is developing a solar-powered electric bicycle and scooter charging station in hopes of making micro-mobility more sustainable.

QRx
– QRx is developing an electronic healthcare record platform that help patients, authorized caregivers, and healthcare workers solve the problems created by traditional, and some say outdated, systems.

SINEW Mask
– SINEW Mask is developing a smart, individualized, near-face, extended wear mask that uses technology to create a novel air pressured device that is effective, comfortable, and still high filtration.

Turing
– Turing is developing a technical recruitment platform that will help recruiters find excellent software engineers by using evidence-based hiring decisions to real-world tasks instead of brainteasers.

Ultropia
– Ultropia is developing a resource saving all-in-one washer and dryer innovation to help people with limited infrastructure gain access to laundry machines.