Biomedical Engineering News

Rourke Sylvain Places in High Tech Growth Category

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Congrats to Michigan Tech’s New Venture Challenge Competitors!

Array of logos from finalist teams.

Central Michigan University (CMU) and Michigan Tech collaborate each year to offer Michigan Tech students a chance to compete in CMU’s New Venture Challenge (NVC). This gala event provides an opportunity for students at both universities to present their new ventures and to network with prospective investors, mentors and partners. Student contestants compete for over $60,000 in prizes and in-kind services.

On Friday (April 21, 2023), two Michigan Tech teams—Bayle Golden, a graduate student in engineering management, and Rourke Sylvain, a graduate student in biomedical engineering—pitched their innovations in the seven-minute pitch category at NVC and won. Congrats go to both teams! NVC awards are as follows:

  • Bayle Golden (engineering management) won first place in the Social Mission category and received $10,000. Golden won an additional $10,000 for Best Overall Venture for a total of $20,000!
    • “At STEMPOWER we are working to create an integrative STEM experience for young girls through a physical toy line and online STEM community. We believe that we can change the STEM landscape and empower an entire generation of youth.”
  • Rourke Sylvain won third place in the High Tech High Growth category, receiving $2,0000. Sylvain’s pitch was “imi (integrated molecular innovations),” an electrochemical biosensor for T4 detection.
    • “imi revolutionizes health care by eliminating the need for centralized clinical testing. We develop bio wearable devices that provide patients the ability to monitor their hormone levels continuously.”

Congratulations to our Husky Innovate student teams for all their hard work! We are proud of your perseverance and determination to take your ideas to the next level. Your solutions have the potential to make a positive impact for so many.

In preparing for the NVC, the students participated in a number of Husky Innovate workshops and prep sessions. Thank you to the Husky Innovate Teaching Team and the MTEC SmartZone, specifically Jason Mack and Patrick Visser, for their guidance to our teams. A special thanks to Michigan Tech alum Joe Corso ’77 (B.S. Electrical Engineering) for coaching our students and sharing his time and entrepreneurial expertise.

Thanks go to Jim Baker, associate vice president for research administration, and Len Switzer, associate director of partnerships for Enterprise and Senior Design, who attended NVC to support teams, represent Tech and build connections. Thanks to our Husky Innovate sponsors: the Pavlis Honors College, the Office of Innovation and Commercialization, and the College of Business, for their commitment to our students. Lastly, thank you to CMU and our host Julie Messing, director of the Isabella Bank Institute for Entrepreneurship, for the warm welcome and continued partnership.

By Husky Innovate, Pavlis Honors College.

Michigan Tech Entrepreneurs Pitch Off-Site This Week

Two Michigan Tech student teams will pitch their innovations at offsite pitch competitions this week. Jordan Craven will pitch Sizelogic at TCNewTech and Rourke Sylvain and Ali Dabas will pitch imi at the prestigious Rice Business Plan Competition. Best of luck to both teams!

Jordan Craven is the founder and CEO of Sizeologic. Sizelogic is committed to improving the online clothing retail industry by providing a comprehensive solution that makes it easier for customers to find clothes that fit them perfectly. Craven is in her fourth year of studying management in information systems and computer science at Michigan Tech. View her TCNewTech collegiate pitch tomorrow (May 9).

The TCNewTech University Pitch Showdown is part of the Northern Michigan Startup Week, a weeklong celebration of entrepreneurship, innovation and the startup community in Northern Michigan.

Rourke Sylvain, founder and CEO of imi (integrated molecular innovations), and Ali Dabas, imi’s co-founder and CTO, are pitching a biowearable device that revolutionizes healthcare by eliminating the need for centralized clinical testing. Their device will provide patients with the ability to monitor their hormone levels continuously.

Sylvain is currently completing an M.S. in biomedical engineering and an M.S. in data science and is transitioning into the Ph.D. program for biomedical engineering at Michigan Tech. Dabas completed a B.S. in biomedical engineering (’23) and has an associate’s degree in math and science.

At the Rice Business Plan Competition, they will present their elevator pitch on May 11 at 6 p.m. and participate in the live finals 15-minute pitch on May 13 at 12 p.m., both of which can be watched on YouTube or at the Rice Business Plan Competition website.

By Husky Innovate, Pavlis Honors College.

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