The start up company Integrated Molecular Innovations (imi) has been awarded the People’s Choice Award and judged the Most Investable Company at a Demo Days competition in Detroit this month.
Owned by Michigan Tech biomedical engineering major Rourke Sylvain, imi is a biosensing venture that empowers individuals to take control of their health through innovative, non-invasive, and continuous monitoring technology.
Sylvain is active in the Collegiate Entrepreneurs Organization (CEO), a student organization supported by the MTU College of Business. In recent CEO-affiliated pitch competitions, including the Rice Business Plan Competition and Central Michigan University’s New Venture Challenge, imi was awarded thousands of dollars.
Sylvain’s awards were the subject of a recent A TV6 News story, which appears below.
Houghton-based startup wins ‘Most Investable Company’ at Demo Days in Detroit
From TV6 News; by Audrey Stetson; published: Aug. 29, 2024
Read the original story.
UPPER MICHIGAN (WLUC) – A Houghton-based startup has big plans to revolutionize health care.
Integrated Molecular Innovations just won two awards. IMI is designing a bio-wearable device that could predict health problems before they happen.
IMI Founder Rourke Sylvain says the quality of peoples’ lives could be drastically impacted by this new technology.
“This health care system that we’re in right now is these reactive diagnostics,” Sylvain said. “We wait to get sick and then we go figure out why we get sick. It’s really critical that we have these technologies that can provide us this information before we even get sick.”
He compares it to the Apple Watch but with better technology for providing users with more precise insights to their health. The device continuously monitors molecular information in sweat.
“Now, our early products will be glucose and lactate sensors,” Sylvain said. “We’ll be targeting endurance athletes that need to monitor their energy levels and their exercise intensity. As the technology advances, we’ll disseminate the product to the masses.”
The MTEC SmartZone hosted its first ever 16-week Advanced Materials and Manufacturing Program Accelerator over the summer. Five groups, including IMI, learned about the early stages of business.
It culminated in a Demo Days competition in Detroit. There, the audience voted for IMI to win the People’s Choice Award and a panel judged the startup as Most Investable Company, based on a variety of factors.
“What does the growth look like for this?” AMMP Accelerator Co-Director Katie Kirsch asked. “How big is the market size? Does the team actually have a very logical and coherent plan in order to meet those milestones with whatever money they would receive?”
IMI will reinvest the $5,000 it won into product development. Kirsch says it was exciting to showcase what innovative technologies can come out of the Keweenaw Peninsula.
This innovation may someday improve our health.