In the startup world, it’s widely accepted that passion is a key ingredient for success. Some mentors may ask young entrepreneurs to dig deep and find the passion that drives their work. 

For recent computer science master’s graduate from California Polytechnic State University (Cal Poly) Lucas Li, this question doesn’t require much introspection. His startup, ONGAWA, is a direct manifestation of his greatest passions. 

ONGAWA is breaking new ground in the gaming world by creating a fusion game that combines rhythm gaming with role-playing elements. Not only does ONGAWA offer a unique gaming experience, it also supports indie musicians by showcasing and monetizing their work. 

“I am a gamer, a musician and an anime lover, so I wanted to create something that I would really enjoy working on,” Li explained. 

His journey began when he teamed up with Brett Hickman, a recent Cal Poly computer science graduate, and the CTO of ONGAWA. Having already collaborated on several gaming projects in the past, their shared passions led to the development of their startup. 

“We both love gaming and we both love music, so we decided to merge the two and create ONGAWA,” Hickman shared. 

In the fall of 2023, Li pitched this startup at the Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship’s (CIE) Elevator Pitch Competition where students of any major can pitch their innovative product, service and startup ideas in 90 seconds for the chance to win cash prizes. 

“As a computer science major, I was accustomed to describing the full technical side of things, often overlooking the business perspective such as the demand for a product,” Li said. “Since the Elevator Pitch was my first exposure to business, I learned to convey my idea in simple terms and quickly capture people’s interest.” 

Li explained that the Elevator Pitch Competition validated his startup idea and encouraged him to apply for the CIE’s Summer Accelerator program, an intensive 12-week program that provides Cal Poly students and recent graduates with the resources necessary to turn their innovative ideas into full-fledged startups. 

Participants in the Accelerator receive $10,000 in seed funding, as well as access to expert mentorship, entrepreneurial workshops and a dedicated workspace in the HotHouse, the CIE’s office located in downtown San Luis Obispo.

Li recognized the team’s strength in coding and programming skills, but the need for work on the business development side of ONGAWA. He hopes to further learn and develop this aspect of his startup from the Accelerator’s resources and mentorship, he said. 

As co-founder and CEO, Li is responsible for hiring, project management and maintaining the overall vision of the game. He also helps manage communication between various internal teams such as game development and web development. 

As co-founder and CTO, Hickman leads a team of four in game development by hosting workshops throughout the week to help build the foundation of the game. 

Joining Li and Hickman are senior business administration students at Cal Poly, Jeremy Tai and Pedro Talavera. 

Tai acts as the company’s Business Lead and focuses on customer development. 

Talavera is ONGAWA’s Marketing Lead, focusing on the social media marketing aspect of the startup and connecting with potential music and art collaborators.

In the next three months, the team hopes to have a fully built Minimum Viable Product (MVP) of the game as well as a fully functional website. They are also planning to work with gamers to gather feedback on the demo and interview musicians and graphic artists to enhance the game’s visuals. 

Looking ahead, ONGAWA’s vision includes releasing a prototype of the game by the end of the Accelerator program. In the next five years, they want to create a polished and immersive role-playing experience.

What sets ONGAWA apart is best described by CEO Li. “ONGAWA is a merge between a traditional rhythm game and RPG elements, which is a big market. We also support indie musicians by collaborating with them and paying per stream,” Li stated. 

By integrating indie music, ONGAWA not only provides a platform for emerging artists but also enriches the gaming experience with original soundtracks and design.

ONGAWA is making a significant impact in the gaming industry, offering a fresh and engaging way to experience music, art and gameplay. 

 

When recent California Polytechnic State University (Cal Poly) biomedical engineering graduate Jenna Eissmann first shared her startup with her friends, she had no idea how deeply it would resonate. 

She described her startup, Infantry Obstetrics, and their mission to prevent shoulder dystocia injuries. Shoulder dystocia is a condition where a baby’s shoulder gets stuck during childbirth, often resulting in serious injuries like clavicle fractures and brachial plexus injury. 

To Eissmann’s surprise, she discovered one of her good friends suffered from shoulder dystocia as a baby and subsequently had her collarbone broken by the doctor in order to be delivered. 

That moment made Eissmann’s work proudly personal. 

“Hearing about the struggles my friend went through to recover from her injury made me realize the real-world impact our innovation could have,” Eissmann said. “I see the effects of this condition today and can’t wait to see what our solution can do in the future.” 

Infantry Obstetrics, founded on the principle of transforming women’s health, is driven by stories like these. For Eissmann, her friend’s experience serves as a powerful reminder of why their work matters and fuels their dedication to creating a safer future for mothers and babies alike. 

Infantry Obstetrics is creating a new method to treat shoulder dystocia with their handheld device. Their device works with the mother’s anatomy to gently wrap around the infant’s upper body.

“Maddie Mumford, Rachel Rowe and I were all in the same senior project group. After working together for two quarters, we realized we work really well together – and we like each other! We knew we had something here, so we wanted to continue developing this device,” said Eissmann. 

Biomedical engineering graduate and co-founder Rachel Rowe holds a part-time remote position as COO, supporting from a logistical standpoint and helping with research. 

Biomedical engineering graduate and co-founder Maddie Mumford works in a hybrid remote position full-time as CFO and focuses on research, financial projection forecasts and their regulatory strategy. Mumford will be pursuing her master’s in biomedical engineering at Cal Poly in the fall of 2024. 

Eissmann holds a full-time in-person position as CEO and is in charge of handling programming, running in-person testing with the device and catching Rowe and Mumford up to speed on the day-to-day happenings. Eissmann will be pursuing her master’s in engineering management at Cal Poly in fall 2024. 

The team joined the Center for Innovation and Entreprenuership’s (CIE) Summer Accelerator program because, as engineers, they felt confident in the design and technical aspects of building their startup, but needed support with the business-side, they said. 

The Accelerator is an intensive 12-week program that provides Cal Poly students and recent graduates with the resources necessary to turn their innovative ideas into full-fledged startups. 

Participants in the Accelerator receive $10,000 in seed funding, as well as access to expert mentorship, entrepreneurial workshops and a dedicated workspace in the HotHouse, the CIE’s office located in downtown San Luis Obispo. 

Currently, the only methods to address shoulder dystocia involve hand maneuvers, which have a 58% failure rate and lack a standardized approach, Eissmann explained. Infantry Obstetrics is working to change this with their device.

Infantry Obstetrics is currently in the product development phase and is consulting with obstetrics and gynecology (OBGYN) partners to gather feedback and refine their design. 

In the future, the team hopes to finalize their product design, test the device in real-world settings, apply for a patent, attract investors and form a corporation. 

“While the numbers don’t seem incredibly common, shoulder dystocia affects more people than you’d expect,” Eissmann explained. “It’s 2024. Women’s health really needs an intervention to help both mothers and babies. Our device is something that’s made for women by women, and I think that’s really powerful.” 

Mense is a period product company with a mission to provide a comfortable, safe and working solution for people with periods. Founded in 2022 by California Polytechnic State University (Cal Poly) biomedical engineering graduate McCall Brinskele, Mense aims to destigmatize menstruation and elevate the conversation surrounding this essential aspect of reproductive health.

While Brinskele was taking a course at Cal Poly focusing on biomedical engineering in women’s health, her sister was diagnosed with endometriosis and uterine fibroids. The reality of female reproductive health conditions and Brinskele’s learning of the lack of coverage in the women’s health space inspired Brinskele to create a platform addressing this underrecognized topic.

“I first began working on this company as part of my interdisciplinary senior design project, which was a wonderful experience,” says Brinskele. “It’s awesome that Cal Poly has the ability for students to work with other disciplines outside of their major.”

Mense quickly earned a spot in the Cal Poly Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship’s (CIE) 2022 Summer Accelerator, a 12-week intensive program where Cal Poly students and recent graduates transform their business ideas into startups with the help of a $10,000 seed fund and local resources.

After completing the Summer Accelerator, Mense joined the Cal Poly CIE Incubator program,which helps early-stage startups develop into financially secure and scalable enterprises providing entrepreneurs with mentorship, funding opportunities and other resources over two years.

“The Incubator is the next step of growth for companies that are moving from just an idea and a product to incorporating and taking on investment,” says Brinskele.

The program has connected Mense to business professionals in various fields, including Novocuff, a graduated Incubator company also focused on female reproductive health, which has been an asset for Mense.

“Dr. Christopher Heylman is a personal mentor to our company. His advice has been absolutely crucial when it comes to our prototyping and securing non-dilutive funding. Kelly Sooter is another wonderful marketing consultant that we work with,” says Brinskele. 

In May 2024, Brinskele brought Mense to the seventh annual AngelCon competition, where six tech startups compete for over $100,000 in equity funding. After pitching to an audience of 250 attendees and over 20 angel investors, Mense received a $50,000 investment. 

“The Incubator played a crucial role in helping us prepare for AngelCon,” remarks Brinskele. “We heavily leaned on all of our consultants when it came to pitch prep and making sure everything was together, and the boot camp was an absolutely amazing experience.”

As an entrepreneur who has utilized several programs offered by Cal Poly and the CIE, including lecturing for classes in the Orfalea College of Business, Brinskele is always looking for growth. She encourages new entrepreneurs to do the same, by being unafraid to ask questions and never fear failure.

“For anyone who’s applying to the Incubator program, I would say go for it. Lean into your connections. You never know who’s going to be helping you in the future.”

Mense is currently working with manufacturers on a final design for their menstrual cup and applicator product and will graduate from the Incubator program in 2025.

Concussions are far more widespread and severe than most realize. Shockingly, 50% of concussions go undetected, despite the fact that there are 3.8 million sport-related concussions annually in the United States alone, according to the University of Michigan. 

The same study also explains that globally, 12 concussions occur every second and $1,522 is spent on concussion care every second. 

While occasional incidents make headlines, countless athletes, from youth leagues to professional sports, endure the lasting effects of brain injuries. 

ODIN is dedicated to addressing this critical issue head-on by using innovative technology to revolutionize athlete safety. 

Founded during a California Polytechnic State University (Cal Poly) senior project class, ODIN aims to mitigate the compounding effects of brain injuries in athletes participating in impact sports. Their primary product is a sideline-ready headset that provides objective and transparent concussion assessments in minutes.

Their mission is deeply personal for Cal Poly economics and entrepreneurship graduate Connor Heffler, the CEO of ODIN and former football player, who has firsthand experience with the devastating impact of concussions on athletes.

“I’ve felt the effects of concussions and seen many of my teammates affected by them, so this is something very close to my heart,” Heffler shared. 

Under the encouragement of their senior project advisor and the CIE Academic Programs Director, Dr. Thomas Katona, ODIN applied to the CIE’s Innovation Quest, a high stakes competition where Cal Poly students pitch their innovative business ideas and prototypes to a panel of judges in hopes of winning thousands to fund their startup. 

ODIN received the first-place award of $15,000, and used this attention and funding to continue developing their startup through the CIE’s Summer Accelerator program, an intensive 12-week program that provides Cal Poly students and recent graduates with the resources necessary to turn their innovative ideas into full-fledged startups. 

Participants in the Accelerator receive $10,000 in seed funding, as well as access to expert mentorship, entrepreneurial workshops and a dedicated workspace in the HotHouse, the CIE’s office located in downtown San Luis Obispo.

The team behind ODIN is composed of several dedicated individuals, each bringing a unique skill set to the startup. “I knew I couldn’t develop ODIN on my own. I recruited engineers dedicated to making a real difference, not just building something cool,” Heffler explained. 

Josh Gottschalk, a fourth year biomedical engineer at Cal Poly, serves as ODIN’s COO and oversees regulatory work and competitor patent infringement. 

Noah Cain, recent Cal Poly graduate in computer science, acts as one of their Machine Learning and Software Engineers and ensures the headset is as accurate and precise as possible. 

Marina Zellers, a biomedical engineering master’s student at Cal Poly, acts as ODIN’s Biomedical Engineer and maintains accurate concussion diagnosis and compliance with FDA regulations. 

Seth Saxena, a third year engineer at Cal Poly, is ODIN’s Lead Electrical Engineer and focuses on redesigning the headset’s hardware setup and developing the computer vision code. 

Sarah Duncan, the newest member of the team, is a computer science master’s student at Cal Poly and acts as their Machine Learning and Software Engineer, working alongside Cain to create precise models for detecting concussions. 

As the CEO, Heffler oversees everything from customer development to pitching to investors. 

ODIN hopes to demonstrate the safety and efficacy of their device, eventually bringing it to the market to enhance the safety of athletes at all levels. 

“Our goal is to have this headset on every sideline, from youth sports to professional leagues, reaching millions of athletes and other individuals who suffer from concussions,” Heffler explained.

The team is already in talks with The National Football League (NFL) Head, Neck, and Spine Committee and NFL team physicians, targeting the broader sports community. 

Currently, the primary option for concussion assessment is the Sport Concussion Assessment Tool (SCAT), a questionnaire filled out by players. However, players might lie to get back on the field, leading to long-term issues like traumatic brain injuries or memory loss. The team recognizes the preexisting solution’s limitations and the dire need for a more effective and user-friendly option, they said. 

“Unlike our competitors, it will be a non-invasive product that will be perfect for sideline use as it will be completely portable and ready to give concussion assessments in minutes,” said Gottschalk. 

ODIN’s mission to elevate athlete safety through innovation is more than just a business endeavor, but a pursuit of passion to protect the future of athletes.

In the world of startups, it’s extra special to find a team that is not only a cohesive unit of innovators but also a close-knit group of friends. For the founders of SafePlate Technologies, this unique dynamic is their everyday reality. 

This startup aims to revolutionize the allergen testing industry by simplifying the process for food manufacturers. 

Not only are they a team of entrepreneurs, but they are best friends and roommates, each with a unique entrepreneurial spirit nurtured from a young age. 

Avery Taylor, the CTO of SafePlate and a recent California Polytechnic State University (Cal Poly) graduate in computer engineering now pursuing a master’s in electrical engineering, developed his entrepreneurial skills throughout his childhood. Growing up with a single mom who worked two jobs, he learned to be self-sufficient early on by selling various items at school. 

“It’s been instilled in me that you can’t just depend on someone else giving you money, you have to earn it,” Taylor shared. His journey has shown him his ultimate goal: to use his skills and expertise to improve people’s lives. 

Nahal Sadgehian, the CEO of SafePlate, has a similar story of entrepreneurial roots. A mechanical engineering graduate with a minor in entrepreneurship, Sadeghian had several mini businesses starting at the age of five, including a knitting shop in Iran before moving to America. 

Sadgehian’s family history is steeped in entrepreneurship, with both of her parents running their own businesses. 

Her immigrant experience fuels her drive for success. “After both of my parents moved here, they had to completely start from scratch. My mom built up her own business and it is super successful now, so for me to be here, I feel like I have to prove I am doing my parents justice by pursuing entrepreneurship,” Sadgehian said. 

Josh Chao, CFO of SafePlate and recent Cal Poly business administration graduate, comes from four generations of entrepreneurs: his great grandfather sold cattle in China, his grandfather owned a tire factory, and his father worked as an entrepreneur in America. Despite facing a significant barrier in his early years due to a stutter, Chao transformed this challenge into a source of inspiration. 

His journey from a child who could barely speak to now pitching in front of large audiences is a testament to his perseverance. “I’m showing the world that I can overcome challenges. I’ve always wanted to inspire people and show them they can do it as well,” Chao stated. 

Mitchell Dann, the COO of SafePlate and recent Cal Poly graduate in mechanical engineering, discovered his appreciation for business and entrepreneurship in high school where he had a custom T-shirt business that eventually turned into an LLC. 

“Ultimately, I couldn’t pursue it due to taking 4 AP classes, an engineering class, jazz band and marching band my senior year,” Dann said. However, this was not the end of Dann’s entrepreneurial endeavors, as he had a successful bicycle repair business in his dorm during his freshman year of college. 

After several internships and other various career opportunities, Dann found that the corporate cubicle life wasn’t for him and the startup world was the only place that allowed him to take an idea from scratch and turn it into something impactful. 

All four founders began working together during a senior project group led by Dr. Thomas Katona, the Cal Poly Center for Innovation & Entrepreneurship’s (CIE) Academic Programs Director. They shared a common goal of improving the food industry in America and instantly clicked upon meeting. 

SafePlate’s innovative technology uses spectroscopy to scan for proteins within allergen structures, analyzing how light interacts with matter to understand a material’s properties. FTIR spectroscopy, a specific technique using mid-infrared light, identifies a material’s unique “fingerprint” based on its absorption pattern.

The personal connection to food safety hits close to home for Chao and Dann, whose parents have severe allergies that require extra attention when eating at home and at restaurants. This, along with speaking to other people with severe allergies, influenced the team to delve into the allergen spectrum of the food industry and develop a solution that ensures everyone can enjoy a safe meal. 

“It got to the point where we got frustrated because we can send rockets to the moon but we still don’t really know what’s in our food,” said Taylor. 

SafePlate participated in Cal Poly CIE’s Innovation Quest earlier this year, a high stakes competition where Cal Poly students pitch their innovative business ideas and prototypes to a panel of judges in hopes of winning thousands to fund their startup.

This experience led them to apply to the Cal Poly CIE Summer Accelerator, an intensive 12-week program that provides Cal Poly students and recent graduates with the resources necessary to turn their innovative ideas into full-fledged startups. Participants in the Accelerator receive $10,000 in seed funding, as well as access to expert mentorship, entrepreneurial workshops and a dedicated workspace in the HotHouse, the CIE’s office located in downtown San Luis Obispo.

“We saw a big gap in the market and saw how we could use this emerging technology of combining AI and spectroscopy. We also had to take advantage of this opportunity under the guidance offered in the Accelerator,” said Dann. 

Each founder brings unique skills to the startup. Dann focuses on mechanical design and research, Taylor specializes in AI and programming, Chao handles customer development and branding and Sadeghian’s dual expertise in entrepreneurship and mechanical engineering allows her to help in all areas of the company.

“She’s the glue that holds us all together. She has strengths in the marketing/business side and also the technical side – that’s why she is in the best position to be the CEO,” said Taylor. 

The startup is currently focused on solving the problem of gluten detection in flour with hopes of expanding and developing a machine that tests for all nine major allergens (milk, eggs, fish, shellfish, tree nuts, peanuts, soybeans and sesame). They also anticipate their technology will bring allergy-free food prices down with fewer recalls and fewer allergic reactions. 

What sets them apart from their competitors is their commitment to creating a reusable and easy-to-use allergen testing solution. While other companies spend a significant amount of money and labor to complete testing, SafePlate wants to empower more manufacturers to scan for all the allergens in the most efficient way, they said. 

With their deep-rooted friendships and diverse entrepreneurial backgrounds, the founders of SafePlate Technologies are transforming the food industry one allergen at a time. 

SafePlate, along with the rest of the 2024 Summer Accelerator cohort, will pitch their startup and showcase their progress at Demo Day, on Sept. 6 at 4 p.m. at Rod & Hammer Rock. Tickets are available here.

Two and a half million U.S. adults are considered severe gambling addicts, and another 5-8 million are considered moderate gamblers, according to the National Council on Problem Gambling. 

Problem gambling, also referred to as “gambling addiction” or “gambling disorder” is a compulsive behavior that prevents victims from being able to control their urge to gamble despite negative consequences on finances, relationships and overall well-being. 

Meet Austin Hatfield and Diana Koralski, two young entrepreneurs from California Polytechnic State University (Cal Poly) actively working to decrease the above statistics with their startup, GamRewired.

GamRewired aims to help gambling addicts replace their addictions with healthy habits through cognitive behavioral therapy. It will also act as a tool for those who regularly attend therapy and want to see progress in the days between sessions. 

Hatfield, CEO and co-founder of GamRewired, found the current solutions for gambling addiction such as therapy to be insufficient. These solutions and recovery processes are best described as a yo-yo effect in which addicts experience highs during therapy sessions and lows in between sessions, Hatfield explained. 

“With GamRewired, you get to keep making strides and replace your addiction, which is the part I fell in love with,” said Hatfield. 

The idea for GamRewired originated from Hatfield’s interest in the field of psychology. He felt that options like therapy aren’t adequately meeting the needs of addicts and wanted to create something that enhances the effects of psychology to fully eliminate the inconsistent yo-yo effect. 

Hatfield met his co-founder and CTO Koralski, soon-to-be computer science and business administration graduate from Cal Poly, through the Hatchery. The Hatchery is an on-campus startup incubator that provides student entrepreneurs with the resources to launch a business idea. 

Koralski was looking for entrepreneurial opportunities through the Hatchery and was quickly introduced to Hatfield. Their partnership blossomed by leveraging their different, yet complimentary, skill sets, she said. 

The Hatchery helped develop GamRewired in two crucial ways: connecting Hatfield and Koralski as business partners and providing a third-party perspective, he said.

Both Hatfield and Koralski credit the Hatchery for connecting them with other like-minded entrepreneurs and peers navigating a startup journey for the first time as well. 

“When you’re working like 12, 14 hours a day, it feels like you’re missing out on the college experience. It feels like you’re missing out on life a lot of the time; but when you have someone else literally right next to you doing that, or even someone from another team doing that, it makes you feel like you’re not crazy in that sense, and it feels like you actually have a community,” said Hatfield. 

Koralski encourages other students to get involved with the Hatchery because of the direction it gave her when facing the uncertainty attached to college, graduating and career pursuits.

 “The Hatchery has provided a lot of guidance. I had an idea that I wanted to be a part of a tech startup or something like that, but I didn’t really know where to get started. The Hatchery has a really well-structured program with mentors who give feedback and open up a lot more opportunities,” Koralski said. 

GamRewired participated in Innovation Quest (iQ) and received the second-place award of $10,000. iQ is a high-stakes competition where Cal Poly students pitch their innovative business ideas to a panel of judges in the hopes of winning funding for their startups. 

“Winning iQ gave us the confidence that we are moving in the right direction. We got a lot of great feedback,” Koralski said. “It was really affirming of our idea and obviously, now we have some funding so we can start making the product come to life.” 

GamRewired has several goals in the near future, including participating in the  Summer Accelerator, an intensive 12-week program that provides Cal Poly students and recent graduates with the resources necessary to turn their innovative ideas into full-fledged startups. 

Hatfield and Koralski look forward to working with great mentors, building their team and gaining expertise in the fields of AI and cognitive behavioral therapy by working with in-field professionals through the Summer Accelerator, they said.

On a long-term scale, GamRewired hopes to combat more than just gambling addiction. A few years down the line, they aim to enter the field of therapy on a broader scale and expand from gambling addiction into other co-addictions.

Hatfield calls for a need to revolutionize the field of psychology, and believes GamRewired is “just the platform to do that.”

In a world where innovation is the key to progress, Anemo AI emerges as a beacon of hope for researchers in the Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) field. 

Anemo AI is accelerating the research process for STEM researchers, specifically for Computer Science (CS) statistics and Artificial Intelligence (AI). They plan to conduct Research and Development (R&D) focused on AI which helps increase the rate of innovation. R&D enables professionals to push the boundaries of possibilities and accelerate advancements in the field. 

The idea for the startup originated during Ameer Arsala’s, co-founder and computer science junior, co-led research project. While conducting AI research, Arsala encountered numerous obstacles that slowed down their research process. For the first month, they performed a literature review when the research goal is to begin experimentation as quickly as possible, Arsala explained. They wanted to speed up the process. 

Ishan Meher, co-founder and computer science sophomore, met Amira through a Cal Poly Computer Science club where he was co-leading a different project. Miguel Flora, co-founder and computer science freshman, also participated in the same clubs. After casually talking about the idea for Anemo AI and recognizing their compatibility, they collectively decided to bring their idea to fruition. 

Last fall, Meher participated in the Cal Poly Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship (CIE) Startup Launch Weekend, a 52 hour-long event where innovators create interdisciplinary teams and develop a business over the weekend. From there, Ishanna learned about more CIE programs, including the CIE Hatchery. Since the co-founders developed a plan and mission for their company, they thought it would be beneficial to join the Hatchery and receive help, Ishanna said.  

The CIE Hatchery is an on-campus startup incubator open to all Cal Poly students interested in learning how to take a business from an idea to launch. Student entrepreneurs are provided with resources like mentorship, coaching and weekly workshops. 

“As a non-business major, the Hatchery helped us get a second opinion on our approaches and our strategy,” Meher said. “As Computer Science majors, we are pretty dead set on the technical side of things and it’s good to have an outside view on how to run a business.” 

As student entrepreneurs, these cofounders value the Hatchery’s role in providing a safe space to fail, Arsala said. Failure is a part of the learning process and they appreciate the environment the Hatchery fosters for that purpose. They believe their opportunity to experiment and test themselves will help in the future to deliver when it truly matters, Arsala explained. 

Looking ahead, the co-founders want to use Animo AI as a tool for their own research. They hope to use their product to accelerate their research and STEM research as a whole. 

In the near future, the cofounders hope to join the CIE Summer Accelerator program and iteratively approve their product. The Summer Accelerator is a 12-week program that provides participants the funding, hands-on mentorship and resources to build a business. 

The co-founders of Anemo AI are excited to grow their business and grow as individuals with the contribution of CIE resources. 

“The Hatchery provides a space to be around like-minded entrepreneurs and it motivates you to work on your own business,” Meher said. “I get really inspired and riled up when I see a bunch of people working on their product or company. It inspires me to take our product to the next level.” 

 

It’s been more than six months since the 2023 Cal Poly Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship (CIE) Summer Accelerator came to an end. During the Accelerator, Cal Poly students and recent graduates spent 12 weeks immersed in the startup process, turning their startup ideas into real, viable businesses. 

The program culminated at Demo Day, where the participating teams showcased the progress they made on their startups throughout the summer and pitched their companies. 

Since Demo Day, the 2023 Summer Accelerator cohort has embarked on new professional, educational and entrepreneurial endeavors. 

Here’s a team-by-team breakdown of what the cohort has been up to: 

Ecoternatives | ENTEIN | Horizen Technologies | Mí Tiara | Nexstera Tech | Social Spark | TensorMaker | Té Piña

 

Ecoternatives 

Aiden Riehl, founder and CEO of Ecoternatives, joined the Summer Accelerator after working on his company from his room for the previous two-and-a-half years. 

“The Accelerator was the first time where I met other people my age doing the same thing as me and where I felt normal in terms of entrepreneurial desires,” Riehl explained. “Although it lasted a summer, I think it impacts you for the rest of your life.” 

Ecoternatives is an online marketplace that sells sustainable and plastic-free products at more affordable prices. 

Since the Summer Accelerator, Riehl traveled for five months spanning from Indonesia, Southeast Asia, Australia and New Zealand. 

Reflecting on his pre-Accelerator state, Riehl acknowledged feeling disorganized without procedures in place to improve his operations. During the Accelerator, he learned how to create these. 

“With the help of the Accelerator, I was able to streamline a lot of the tedious tasks by building systems into my company,” Riehl said. 

Amidst Riehl’s travels, he remained dedicated to advancing Ecoternatives. He introduced new processes for future employers, collaborated with content creators to bolster Ecoternatives and built out a marketing strategy. 

Riehl finally completed one of his biggest goals: automating tasks onto people he trusts, he said. With his new operations, he could finally hire two employees who in turn allowed for Riehl’s travel. 

In response to high customer demand, Riehl’s team is working on an Ecoternatives app for iPhones. Furthermore, Ecoternatives is creating a Build-a-Box subscription feature enabling customers to curate product bundles on a subscription basis. 

Lastly, Ecoternatives expanded to 15 more eco-friendly products. 

“With the Accelerator, I started thinking about my business long-term,” Riehl said. “ It made Ecoternatives into a real company with normal business practices and something I wouldn’t be embarrassed talking to investors and professionals about.” 

ENTEIN 

William Burns, a mechanical engineering major, began his CIE journey when he pitched his startup ENTEIN at Innovation Quest (iQ) 2023 and won the Environmental Impact Award. 

ENTEIN is utilizing food waste to grow insects as an affordable animal feed protein supplement. 

Feeling motivated by his success at iQ and eager to lift his startup off the ground, Burns joined the Summer Accelerator. For the summer, Cameron Yartz, a mechanical engineering major, also joined the project. 

“The Summer Accelerator allowed us to move forward in ways we would not have been able to alone,” Burns said. 

With the help of the Summer Accelerator, ENTEIN was able to monetize different aspects of their business, increasing investor interest, Burns explained. 

Burns attributed much of their success to the networking opportunities over the summer. 

“The connections I made through the Summer Accelerator were priceless. I could not have started a company if I didn’t have our lead mentor and the CIE staff helping with different aspects of Entein,” Burns said. “The people made it happen.”  

Thinking back to Burns’ first pitch versus pitch at Demo Day, he said he grew a lot. The Summer Accelerator helped him better communicate about ENTEIN and relate their startup to various types of audience members, especially those not familiar with agriculture, he said. 

Since completing the Accelerator, Yartz is now working on a different project with an interdisciplinary team to create a Prosthetic Aid for Lifting (PAL) so Madeline Everson, born with ulna and radius in her left hand, can continue lifting in the gym. 

“This project is definitely out of our comfort zone, but we are motivated to succeed,” Yartz said. 

Burns has continued to put full effort into ENTEIN while a full-time student. He is running testing on their product from multiple waste sources and has expanded in their greenhouse. 

ENTEIN also doubled in growth capacity and is sending more samples to third-party suppliers to build production in the Sacramento and Fresno areas.

“I wouldn’t be where I am today if I didn’t have a full summer to follow my passion and work on ENTEIN,” Burns explained. “The Accelerator prepared me to run my business and gave me the tools and confidence I now use every single day.” 

Horizen Technologies

Owen Works and Camden Ford, co-founders of Horizen Technologies (formerly known as Horizen Biotech and DrinkWise), went into the Summer Accelerator viewing their startup as a college assignment. However, during the summer, their perspective underwent a significant shift. 

“Throughout the Summer Accelerator, Horizen Technologies changed from being an academic project into becoming a real business,” Ford said.  

Horizen Technologies aims to create a drinking culture that prioritizes safety, health and well-being through their biosensor platform which monitors Blood Alcohol Content (BAC) levels.

Ford, a biomedical engineering graduate, initially hesitated to ask questions because of his limited entrepreneurial knowledge, he explained. However, he soon realized that everyone in the Accelerator was learning and he gradually became comfortable asking questions, failing, and ultimately gaining more, he said.

Following the Summer Accelerator, Horizen Technologies joined the CIE Incubator program. The Incubator is a two-year program providing early-stage companies the resources to develop into financially stable and high-growth companies. 

“Getting into the Incubator was a huge accomplishment,” Ford said. “It’s guiding us in the right direction of how to operate, helping us raise funds and explore the customer we want while giving us a place to headquarter at.” 

Since last summer, Works has been working on the company full-time while Ford is finishing his Master’s of Science (MS) in Biomedical Engineering at Cal Poly, dedicating his capstone project towards their product development. 

Both have led various undergraduate student teams within the Orfalea College of Business and College of Engineering. 

Recently, Horizen Technologies qualified as one of the top six finalists for AngelCon, an event where six qualified tech startups pitch their business for a chance to win $100,000+ in equity funding. 

As the co-founders prepare for AngelCon, they have been seeking fundraising options and have completed several grant programs.

Horizen Technologies was chosen for the VentureWell Spring 2024 E-Team program. Out of the twenty-five teams, they advanced with seven others to the second stage where they received a $20,000 grant to build their business further. 

The co-founders are grateful to the Accelerator for providing them with resources and connections who help mentor and teach them how to run their business, they said. 

“We are relatively young and we’ve never started a business before, so we rely on knowledge from mentors who have done this before,” Ford said. “The Accelerator gave us great connections with people who want to help us and has made us not afraid to do what it takes to accomplish our goals.” 

Buy your ticket for AngelCon and support Horizen Technologies on Thursday, May 2nd at 5:00 p.m. at Rod and Hammer Rock: https://angelcon2024.eventbrite.com/?aff=CIEwebsite

Mí Tiara

Computer science senior Luiz Guzman remembered the challenge of pitching his startup due to his “significant stage fright and public speaking issues,” he said. 

However, after advice from mentors, he realized how important it is to pitch his startup or else it would simply not exist. This mindset helped him push through his nerves and eventually, during Demo Day, Guzman found the experience “exhilarating.” 

Guzman and computer science senior Maricela Carillo co-founded Mí Tiara (formerly known as PlanForMí), a startup that leverages artificial intelligence (AI) to simplify the event-planning process by easily connecting local vendors and customers. 

Looking back on Demo Day, Guzman felt a significant achievement and immense satisfaction from completing the program, he said. 

“Representing my Hispanic community and showcasing diversity in the program added to my sense of pride and accomplishment,” Guzman explained. “It reinforced the importance of diverse perspectives in entrepreneurial endeavors and highlighted the value of inclusion and representation in the startup ecosystem.” 

Following the Accelerator, Guzman and Carillo focused on the Accelerator’s feedback to refine their platform. This included enhancing their product features, expanding their vendor network and deepening their engagement with the Hispanic community, Guzman said. 

Looking forward, Mí Tiara plans for a successful launch in Fresno County and plans on expanding into other regions with significant Hispanic populations. 

As the co-founders continue running Mí Tiara, they credit the Accelerator for deeply ingraining the principles necessary to run a successful business, Guzman explained.  

“The Summer Accelerator was a catalyst for growth, pushing me out of my comfort zone and enabling me to lead with confidence,” Guzman said. “The experience of pitching, networking, and strategizing under the Accelerator’s guidance was invaluable, laying a solid foundation for Mi Tiara’s journey beyond the program.”

Nexstera Tech  

Penny Lane Case, co-founder and CEO of Nexstera Tech, remembers her excitement when pitching her startup on Demo Day. She felt pre-pitch nerves but was also confident in what her team accomplished over the summer, she said. 

Nexstera Tech is pushing the boundaries of material differentiation and detection through AI-enhanced radar technology and transforming waste management operations. Their initial focus is identifying lithium-ion batteries in curbside buns before collection, aiming to mitigate the billion-dollar risk of battery-induced fires in the waste stream. 

Case reflected on her experience: “My confidence, my technical knowledge and the way I was able to compose my thoughts definitely changed throughout the Accelerator and that translated to my more powerful presence on stage,” she said. 

Case and her co-founders Stefany James and Kylene Landenberger have accomplished some big milestones since the Accelerator. 

Nexstera Tech expanded its data collection operation by renting out a space to house their two labs and hiring three testing technicians. At these labs, they are collecting thousands of scans every week and sometimes over one thousand in one day, Case explained. 

Furthermore, Nexstera Tech retrofit their first prototype on a Waste Connections Recycling vehicle at their San Luis Obispo Facility in December of 2023. They placed it on the oldest truck with the most challenging route to ensure their hardware could withstand the harshest conditions. 

Alongside installing their product, Nexstera Tech joined the CIE Incubator and recently qualified as an AngelCon finalist with five other companies.

AngelCon is an event where six qualified tech startups pitch their business for a chance to win $100,000+ in equity funding. 

“Getting into AngelCon was very reassuring.” Case said. “I love talking about what we do because I have immense confidence in our team and solution coupled with a deep passion for addressing this problem.” 

Case attributes much of her success in learning how to run her company to the support from her advisors and the Summer Accelerator experience, she explained. 

“The Accelerator truly made it possible for us to launch our company. It’s an incredible program full of resources, including valuable workshops and mentorship opportunities, that accelerate personal, business, and technical growth. I am forever grateful for the opportunity I was given as a member of the 2023 cohort.” Case said.

Buy your ticket for AngelCon and support Nexstera Tech on Thursday, May 2nd at 5:00 p.m. at Rod and Hammer Rock: https://angelcon2024.eventbrite.com/?aff=CIEwebsite

Social Spark 

Samantha Moberly, the founder and CEO of Social Spark, expressed gratitude towards the Summer Accelerator for its role in nurturing her startup. She credited the program for transforming her startup from a class project into the beginning of a real business, she said.

Social Spark is a social networking platform aimed to combat loneliness by helping recent graduates and early-in-career individuals create new friendships through in-person events and outings. 

“We started out thinking we already had the start of a business. But, the more we talked to advisors and learned the different components needed for a business, the more we were able to really build a foundation for something that could actually turn into a real company,” Moberly said. 

During the Accelerator, Moberly realized how important it is to work around people when taking on big endeavors like building a startup. One of her favorite parts of the program was working with mentors — who she still frequently speaks to — and other startups to help build ideas, she explained. 

“When you get to spend the whole summer talking to amazing people who have created fantastic businesses and they engage with you like a peer, it really grows your confidence knowing you can actually speak with people like that,” Moberly said.  

After Demo Day, Moberly felt more solidified in Social Spark and confident to answer any questions presented to her. 

Since the accelerator, Social Spark hosted more successful events in the Bay Area, trying out different kinds including single-evening events, single-day events, and day-and-a-half events. She also developed a Social Spark membership where their algorithm matches members based on similarities, forming smaller groups for casual outings. 

Social Spark has been receiving positive customer reviews and customers who return to multiple events. 

Moberly appreciated the Summer Accelerator for providing her tools to operate Social Spark. 

“It took some adjustment ending the Summer Accelerator and no longer having a structured environment every day with check-ins each week. But that’s the important part of the process — moving forward and having the tools to run your startup without as much guidance,” she said. 

“I wouldn’t be where I am today if I didn’t have a full summer to follow my passion and work on ENTEIN,” Burns explained. “The Accelerator prepared me to run my business and gave me the tools and confidence I now use every single day.” 

TensorMaker 

Following the Summer Accelerator, Avi Peltz, former founder of TensorMaker, moved to the San Francisco Bay. 

TensorMaker was a platform that made building machine learning applications fast, easy and accessible to everyday developers.  

Since living in San Francisco, Peltz reconnected with co-founder of BioGlyph and first-place winner of Innovation Quest 2023, McClain Kressman. Avi Peltz is now working full-time as CTO at BioGlyph. 

BioGlyph streamlines the process of biologic, or medicine, development and iteration — as well as user modification tools — allowing researchers to easily shift between visual, markup and serial representations of medications developed from living organisms. 

Té Piña 

Business administration seniors Mathew Reis and Benjamin Arts were excited to join the 2023 Summer Accelerator to leverage its resources and grow their startup Té Piña, a pineapple-based beverage that provides consumers with a healthier alternative to energy drinks. 

“During the Summer Accelerator, you’re able to get mentorship, money, support and connections to really accelerate your business,” Arts said. “You grind out the work and can see your business progress every single day,” Arts said.   

Arts and Reis attributed both their company growth and business understanding to the mentorship they received during the program.

“I went into my last quarter of school after the Summer Accelerator with more proficiency and efficiency in my classes,” Reis said. “I was able to be more responsible and business-oriented.” 

Following the Summer Accelerator, Arts and Reis have continued their work on Té Piña while delving deeper into the startup world. 

Since January, Reis has been working for Quickie Delivery Co, a startup delivering convenience store essentials to college students quickly, affordably and sustainably. 

“Because of the mentorship and expertise I gained in the Accelerator, Quickie Delivery Co, a past Summer Accelerator team, saw my potential and decided to bring me on to run their finances and do their books,” Reis explained. 

Similarly to Reis, Arts also became involved in another startup. He co-founded Mr. Turtle Laundry, a refillable laundry detergent machine placed in grocery stores and laundromats. 

With Mr. Turtle Laundry, he won first place at the Cal Poly Entrepreneurs Startup Marathon, a 54-hour-long event where innovators create interdisciplinary teams and develop a business over the weekend. 

“Without my experience around Té Piña, I would have been lost in this project,” Arts said. 

For Té Piña’s future plans, the co-founders intend to make the most of their current resources, putting aside further developments until they have the necessary funds. 

Reis and Arts believe Té Piña is a promising venture, enjoy running the company, and are eager to dedicate more time on it in the future, they said. 

Leaving the corridors of Google behind in February 2023, Colby DeRodeff made a bold move into the startup world with Abstract, a cybersecurity platform aimed at empowering enterprises to detect and thwart breaches. 

Transitioning from the comfort of a tech giant to startup co-founder and CEO, DeRodeff’s commitment to safeguarding businesses from cyber adversity underscores his dedication to innovation and security in an ever-evolving landscape. 

After working generally in the cybersecurity space for 11 years and acquiring valuable knowledge in the field, DeRodeff wanted to start his own company focused primarily on cybersecurity.

“This problem space is near and dear to my heart,” DeRodeff said. “I think there’s better ways to do cybersecurity these days than has been done in the past, and so I figured I’d give it a shot.”

Abstract boasts a team of 15 professionals spread across the globe. DeRodeff focuses primarily on technical aspects, while Ryan Clough, co-founder and chief product officer, oversees product development and engineering. They have an international go-to-market worker in London, another in Dubai for the Middle East and three team members in Colombia, handling development. The remainder of the team is based in the U.S. spread across New York, Atlanta, Texas, the Bay Area and San Luis Obispo.

“I think the reason customers tend to look to us is because we’ve been doing this for a long time, and we’ve seen a lot of the mistakes that have been made in the past,” DeRodeff said. “A lot of the newer companies that don’t have that experience are repeating some of the mistakes that we made back in 2005/2006, so we’re trying to take all those lessons learned and roll that into the cybersecurity platform that customers are looking for that’s going to leapfrog the current solutions that are out there now.”

Joining the CIE Incubator program in 2023, through the virtual track, has been invaluable to Abstract, DeRodeff said.

The CIE Incubator helps develop early-stage startups into financially secure and scalable enterprises. Entrepreneurs in the program are provided with mentorship, funding opportunities and other resources to develop their business. 

 “The sense of community and seeing the struggles other people are having also helps a lot with your own mental state as you’re doing this, because it’s pretty crazy and a lot of pressure,” DeRodeff said. “Being able to get out of the house and get into an open environment with lots of founders who are doing different things is super motivating.”

The program has connected Abstract with a diverse range of professionals who have played a pivotal role in guiding the startup through the intricacies of the landscape.

“Our lead mentor Jeff Erramouspe is great to work with. I think of our relationship as an accountability check,” DeRodeff said. “We’re running fast, and he reminds us to hold on, take a step back, and see if we actually did the things we knew we were supposed to do. It’s also a relationship where we collaborate on different ideas like go to market, sales and financials.”

Unlike many of the interactions in business, DeRodeff said he was pleasantly surprised and grateful with the CIEs staffs’ genuine willingness to assist without any hidden agendas. 

DeRodeff recounted an instance when he used the wrong template for employment offers, causing issues with state laws. Unsure how to fix it, he turned to Judy Mahan, Cal Poly CIE Senior Economic Development Director, who promptly connected him with someone to revise the offer, ensuring compliance with California law and other state regulations. Notably, there were no hidden fees involved; DeRodeff explained how their sole intention was to provide genuine help—a rarity in his experience, he said, where most interactions come with ulterior motives.

When asked “what’s next for Abstract?” DeRodeff quickly replied “Well, a lot.”

Abstract has reached their minimum viable product (MVP) stage in their product design and are working on installing it with their design partners.

“It’s an interesting and tough process. We’re taking software that’s been developed in our labs and tested on our own systems, and now we’re trying to convince an enterprise customer to go install it into their environment. We can plan and plan, but when it gets to that day, there are things that happen that we couldn’t have planned for, so you have to readjust and go back to the drawing table.”

The startup is also planning the launch of the company and the general availability (GA) of their software in April. As the company keeps progressing and hitting new milestones, DeRodeff said it’s important to “celebrate the little victories” to maintain morale and momentum.

Meet Karen Tillman, the Cal Poly Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship’s newest employee as the Interim Executive Director. Tillman formerly worked as Chief Communications Officer at Oracle, Cisco, GoDaddy and Brex and brings more than 25 years of experience from the tech world. Growing up in San Luis Obispo and traveling through work, Tillman has found her way back to her community. 

Tillman recently sat down with us and discussed her passions and excitement for her new role: 

Q: You’ve had some big roles: Vice President at Oracle, Chief Communications Officer at Cisco, Senior Vice President at GoDaddy, and Chief Communications Officer at Brex. So, what intrigued you about working within Higher Education and why did you choose San Luis Obispo? 

In my tech career, I traveled a ton and I lived in the Bay Area for a little. But, for the most part, I’ve always lived in San Luis Obispo. The reason I wanted to change to this role specifically and work in higher education was that even though I worked on some amazing projects, I always felt pretty disconnected from where I lived. I’m pretty extroverted — when I go downtown, I love running into everyone I know. But, I wanted to understand what it felt like to work and live in the same community. I hope that some of my previous experiences will help shape the work that I do here on behalf of the University and local region. I always knew that I wanted to work at Cal Poly and I sort of rattled through the years’ different iterations of what that could look like. But this ended up being such a great fit.

Cal Poly has such an awesome community, the institution is so impressive. What the CIE is doing has to be one of the best in the U.S. and I think that the best days of the CIE are ahead of us!

Q: What is something that has surprised you about working in higher education? 

This wasn’t necessarily surprising, but when you actually experience it, it’s pretty amazing, which is the depth of knowledge in different areas at Cal Poly. I’ve sat in on some talks around campus, attended classes on various topics, and learned about so many different things — it’s totally mind-blowing. Every time I go to a talk, I always come out thinking: why didn’t I major in that, why didn’t I major in Social Science? It’s so eye-opening, the schools of study are so immense and fascinating. Where people specialize – how they do it and how people find their niche also fascinates me – I just love that part of the process. 

Q: What does the future look like for economic development in San Luis Obispo? 

The University has had pockets of economic development for years and some really cool projects. When President Armstrong made my role a position out of his office, it was because he saw there was so much opportunity in our region right now. For instance, the Morro Bay wind area and the three wind developers that are looking to build the first deepwater offshore wind installation in the US. We need to think, how do we as a community come together to not only shape these opportunities in alignment with our regional goals and values but also drive economic growth? We always have to think about how we can keep our community vibrant, innovative and alive. A lot of that comes from economic development. So, when you think about projects even in other spaces like Space Commercialization, Precision Manufacturing and Ag Tech, these are huge opportunities that could create massive jobs in our region which is also a huge opportunity for Cal Poly. 

In some respects, it’s an embarrassment of riches and I don’t know which amazing opportunity to focus on first because there are so many that have so much benefit for us! This is a very rich area to develop and over time it will become clear what paths are going to be the most beneficial. 

Q: Describe your perfect day. 

My husband and I wake up at five every day, by design. We love it because we sit and have coffee for an hour and stare out the window at Madonna Mountain. Then, I would go take my dog Frida out to run — we usually go to Madonna Mountain or Poly Canyon. Then, I would come back and have brunch somewhere yummy. After that, I would take a nap — a perfect day would have a nap. Then, in the afternoon, I would go up to our horse ranch in Creston and take my horse and maybe another horse out on a ride. Then, I would sit out with some friends, have wine in the backyard and look at the sun going down in Creston. That would really be a perfect day.

Q: What do you admire most in other people? 

Authenticity. I don’t know how you have a real relationship with somebody who isn’t authentic to who they are. I’m not interested in someone’s status. People who are completely themselves are fascinating and I love learning about who they are, what motivates them, what they love and what they don’t love. So, I think authenticity and vulnerability — vulnerability is kind of necessary to be authentic — are the things I deeply admire and am attracted to. I enjoy it when things don’t feel produced or forced. 

Q: What is something that you are passionate about and why? 

That’s part of my problem, I tend to swing back and forth between a few different passions. My family is an obvious one, I have a 19-year-old daughter at the University of Oregon. We have that kind of relationship where we just click and I cannot say how much I have loved being her mom. It’s been the best thing I’ve ever experienced. 

I’m also extraordinarily passionate about anything outdoors. I work with a nonprofit horse rescue that rescues Mustangs, so that’s probably where I spend the vast majority of my concentrated time. Our ranch has over 20 rescues right now and we adopt them, train them, then adopt them out to other homes. It’s pretty heartbreaking what we do to wild horses and so wild horse advocacy is something that I’m super interested in. 

I’m also really interested in women in technology issues, women’s rights issues and social activism. 

Q: What is a movie you could watch every day and why?

Pride and Prejudice. If I wake up too early and I can’t go back to sleep, I watch Pride and Prejudice. I was a literature major in college and I love the story. I love the way it budges around social classes and the role of women. It’s an extraordinarily progressive concept, especially for when it was written so I love that. 

Q: If you started a business, what would it be?  

I used to want to run a cheese shop. I love understanding what people are doing and how they are looking for cheese to be in their life. Then, I like matching them with the right cheese. In fact, at some point, I registered a domain called The Cheese Algorithm, which was basically matching somebody to cheese. 

The other thing I started at GoDaddy was a reverse mentorship program. I was blown away by how beneficial it was for people earlier in their careers to mentor more senior people. I always thought that would be just an amazing nonprofit to start in some capacity. 

Q: What makes you passionate about entrepreneurship?

Entrepreneurship defies logic in so many ways. I do not have an entrepreneur’s brain myself — I think I have an innovator’s brain but not an entrepreneur’s. The bravery and courage it takes to become an entrepreneur, it astounds me. I have an insane respect for those who are willing to walk that path because it’s not an easy one and it takes a special human. 

Spending almost three decades in Silicon Valley and seeing the actual impact and results of those who are brave enough to walk that path is amazing. When I started at Oracle, it had 40,000 employees and when I left Oracle, it had 120,000 employees. Cisco had 75,000 employees when I Ieft. You don’t know how people will do it but they make it work and end up employing hundreds of people around the world and powering governments, cities and corporations. It’s just mind-boggling what entrepreneurship and technology can do.

I have never lost my passion for the transformational power of technology. I think the pure nature of what many people try to do through entrepreneurship and in technology specifically is a marvel.