2021 eGames Finalists Announced

All year, NC State entrepreneurs have been developing their ventures in preparation to compete in the 2021 eGames. This year’s virtual competition has exciting new elements and more chances to win cash prizes! In fact, we’re awarding over $100,000 in cash prizes to NC State entrepreneurs!

Students were able to compete in two categories – the “Think” and “Do” categories. The “Think” category is for students with an idea or business in the early stages.  The ”Do” category is for students with an established startup that is generating revenue, has received investments, or has licensed IP. All participating teams (including finalists and non-finalists) were also able to compete for Extraordinary Impact Awards in Social Impact, Environmental Impact, Design and Prototype, Arts, and IBM Built on Cloud.

We will be revealing 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place winners and Extraordinary Impact Award winners at the virtual eGames Award Ceremony on Tuesday, April 13 at 5:30 p.m. You can watch the awards ceremony via go.ncsu.edu/e-games or catch the Facebook Live or YouTube Live streams via the NC State Entrepreneurship channels.

Congratulations to the following teams who have been selected as finalists!

“Think” Category Finalists

• iVlo Medical | iVlo Medical is creating a device that allows the paramedic to manually set the drip rate, alert the paramedic or other emergency personnel of any changes in the IV drip rate, and by including an onboard display of the established drip-rate.
  Team members:
  Brady Anna, CEO | M.S. Biomedical Engineering
  Daniel Olson, COO and Head of Product | M.S. Biomedical Engineering
  Alex Nadimi, CIO and Software Development |B.S. EE
• InfinityCan | InfinityCan is changing the way that people interact with their trashcans. Their trashcan will have an automatic rebagging and sealing feature. This means that once a trash bag is full, the InfinityCan will automatically seal the bag closed. Once the bag is removed, the can will prepare a new bag for the next trash item.
  Team members:
  Luke Burgess, Programming | B.S. Electrical and Computer Engineering
  Ani Iyer, Machining and Design |B.S. Mechanical Engineering,
  Matthew Shuttleworth, 3D Product Modeling | B.S. Mechanical Engineering,
  Sumi Vijayakumar, Product Design and Market Research |B.S. Mechanical Engineering
  Matthew Harrill, Circuit Design | B.S. Electrical Engineering
• DEVO | DEVO will use a patent-pending cell-optimization process discovered at NC State to make cells produce plasmids at a 25-100x higher rate.
  Team members: 
  Eli Moskowitz, CTO | M.S. Biomanufacturing
  Andrew Buchanan, CFO | MBA
  Erik Andersen, BSN, RN, Chief Communications Officer | M.S. Biomedical Engineering
  Olivia Wedegaertner, COO | Ph.D. Animal and Poultry Science
  Miracle Walters, CIO | M.S. Biomedical Engineering
• The Active Defense Band | With only the press of a button, the user of our product will be able to deploy pepper spray, trigger a sound alarm, and notify their emergency contacts of an unsafe situation– providing complete personal protection.
  Team members:
  Catherine Ault, Finance | B.S. Chemical Engineering,
  Noel Corolla,  Marketing | B.S. Chemical Engineering
  Carson Crisp, Hardware and Software Development | B.S. Computer
  Engineering
  Darren Murphy, Product Design | B.S. Mechanical Engineering
  Laramie Scanlon, Business Development | B.S. Chemical Engineering, Sustainable Engineering, Energy, and Environment Concentration
  Sahaj Zalavadia, Software |B.S. Computer and Electrical Engineering
  Michael Ashley, Hardware |B.S. Computer and Electrical Engineering
• VertiBra | Using patented technology, VertiBra includes different sensors which are incorporated wirelessly into the bra thanks. The sensors enable customized calibration to detect incorrect posture, provide haptic feedback, and implement pain relief therapies such as massage and heat treatments.
  Team members:
  Jeanine Fry, CEO | M.S. Textile Technology
  Daniel Olson, Operations | M.S. Biomedical Engineering
  Bryson Boettger, Technology | M.S. Biomedical Engineering
  Marta Pasqualini, Research | M.S. Biomedical Engineering

“Do” Category Finalists

• Flux Hybrids | Flux Hybrids offers a hybrid conversion system that financially justifies electrification with cost savings that exceed its total cost during its lifespan making its total cost of ownership a net positive.
  Team members: 
  Micah Ulrich, CEO | M.S. Mechanical Engineering
  Clay Dowdey, COO | M.S. Mechanical Engineering
• Valish | Valish is a water-based, solventless, odorless, and durable nail polish that is applied similarly to traditional nail polishes. It only requires a one-step application and is cured faster than traditional and gel polishes with visible light rather than air drying or UV light.
  Team members:
  Grace Carrell, Head of Business Development and Co-founder | M.S Microbial Biotechnology and MBA
  John McGarrahan, Head of R&D and Co-founder | M.S. Materials Science & Engineering
• Extruo, LLC. | Extruo’s products are garments that have integrated sensors that track the position of a person’s limb in space relative to other anatomical landmarks (i.e. hip). Gathered sensor data is extracted and converted into a visual representation of their run. This visual aid will be able to slow down an athlete’s movement to provide coaches and athletes more in-depth conversations about areas of improvement.
  Team members: 
  Dakota Batch, Supply Chain, Product Development | Ph.D. in Textile Technology Management
  J’den Williams, Web Development & Marketing | Ph.D. in Textile Technology Management
  Branding & Marketing
• Seadrone | Seadrone is a remote-controlled quadcopter that can be deployed to an endangered swimmer and inflate upon arrival. The Seadrone utilizes flight to rapidly reach drowning victims and deliver flotation equipment.
  Team members: 
  James Wittenborn,  Product Design | B.S. Electrical and Computer Engineering.
  Leah Pursell, Quality Analyst |B.S. Mechanical Engineering
  Nolan Joyce, Hardware Architect |B.S. Computer and Electrical Engineering
  Megan Rettino, Product Manager | B.S. Mechanical Engineering
  Benjamin Gray, Software Engineer |B.S. Computer Science and Chemical Engineering
• Choir Baton | Choir Baton is a choir teacher’s co-teacher, providing on-demand professional development, coaching, and resources for choir teachers and their students.
  Team members:
  Beth Philemon, Founder | Second-year MBA

The eGames is NC State’s annual startup competition, awarding over $100,000 to entrepreneurs each year and recently ranked Top 20 University Entrepreneurship Competitions in the country! We give a special thanks to our supporters: IBM, Carimus, Eastman Chemicals, The Variable, Software Development Europe, NC State Arts and Raleigh Founded.