Winners Announced! (event photos)

FlexEl LLC, winner of $20K in the information technology division, has developed a proprietary battery that has more capacity than any other rechargeable, flexible, thin-film battery in the world. The company’s environmentally friendly batteries recharge wirelessly at extremely low voltages, enabling them to take advantage of energy scavenging techniques not feasible with other batteries. They are well suited to power ultra-small electronics, including wireless sensor networks, implantable medical devices, RFID devices and smart cards, and could outlast many of those devices. FlexEl’s batteries can be manufactured using a cost-effective printing process. Team members include: electrical and computer engineering professors Marty Peckerar and Neil Goldsman; electrical and computer engineering research associate Zeynep Dilli; and Josekuttan Manikathuparambil, a graduate student in the master’s program in telecommunications.

Haemechanics, winner of $20K in the life sciences division, has developed a synthetic, hemostatic material capable of simultaneously inducing blood clotting and delivering therapeutics. The material is able to induce clotting as effectively as biologically based products, at a fraction of the price. Team members include: Fischell Department of Bioengineering research assistant Brendan Casey; Fischell Department of Bioengineering undergraduate research assistant Adam Behrens; Peter Kofinas, Keystone Professor, Fischell Department of Bioengineering; and Bartley Griffith; professor of surgery, chief, division of cardiac surgery, director, heart and lung transplantation at the University of Maryland Medical Center.

Tseai Energy Unlimited (TSU), winner of $10K in the undergraduate division and winner of a $15K Warren Citrin Social Impact Award, is developing a system to provide sustainable electricity to rural communities in the developing world and help improve the quality of life in those communities. The company plans to design and build micro-power plants using renewable energy sources, while also establishing food processing plants, based on a community’s local agriculture, to provide biofuel materials and other food-based products. Team members include: environmental economics undergraduate student Trevor Young; geology undergraduate student Stanley Ohaka; and American Studies undergraduate student Shavon Holland.

XyloFuel LLC, winner of a $10K Warren Citrin Social Impact Award, aims to license out patented processes for converting plant fiber to fuel ethanol and other products. University of Maryland researchers discovered a bacterium that can readily digest and ferment various forms of plant fiber to ethanol. Team members include Richard Kohn, professor of animal science, and  Robert Frank, engineering manager for XyloFuel.

New to the competition this year was $25K for the Warren Citrin Social Impact Award, made possible by a donation from Warren Citrin, co-founder of Gloto, and Solipsys (now Raytheon Solipsys).

Sponsors for the competition included Fish & Richardson P.C., Nixon Peabody LLP, and the Maryland Technology Development Corporation.

Judges for the competition included: Jonathan Aberman, Managing Director, Amplifier Ventures; Henry Ahn, Program Manager, TEDCO; Lou Cantolupo, Bio Entrepreneur, co-founder, Omnia Biologics; Melissa Carrier, Executive Director, Social Value Creation; Warren Citrin, co-founder of Gloto, and Solipsys (now Raytheon Solipsys); Martha Connolly, Director MIPS and Mtech Partnerships; Craig Dye, Affinity Lab; Michael Gutch, Member, Life Sciences Team, H.I.G. Ventures; Mark Grovic, General Partner, New Markets Venture Partners; Rich Harris, General Partner and Founder, RedShift Ventures; Karl Renner, Principal, Fish and Richardson; Jeffrey N. Townes, Associate, Nixon Peabody LLP

More competition photos

Download the slides from Jim Chung's Feb. 13 Executive Summary Workshop.

Market Research Workshop Video Now Online
The video of Mtech's Market Research Workshop, presented by Dean Chang, Director of Mtech's venture programs, is now available on Mtech's new YouTube channel.

Download the slides from Dean Chang's Jan. 20 Market Research Workshop

Resources

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