2026 New Venture Competition Finalists Announced

The George Washington University's Office of Innovation and Entrepreneurship (OIE) announced the finalists for all five tracks of the 2026 New Venture Competition, a nationallyrecognizedevent for student entrepreneurship.

The finalists emerged from a field of 215 teams in round one and the 65 who made it onto the semifinals. Nine of the 10 GW schools were represented in the first round of the competition.

There are at least five finalists each in all five vertical industry tracks: the Consumer Goods and Services Track; Business Goods and Services Track; Healthcare and Life Sciences Track; Social Innovation Track; and the newFood Innovation Track, created from a partnership with OIE and the Global Food Institute. The top three winning teams from each track will be announced during the awards ceremony.

Additionally, three winners were announced for the Explorer Track, which appeals to students with early-stage ideas and are curious to learn more about entrepreneurship. The Explorer Track ended at round two.

After pitching to judges on April 22, finalists will have the opportunity to present their ideas via elevator pitch at an awards ceremony open to the public and free of charge from 6-8 p.m. on April 23 in the Jack Morton Auditorium. The winners will be announced that night.

Here is a breakdown of each of the 26 finalists in the vertical five tracks, with descriptions of their ventures as provided by OIE:

Consumer Goods and Services Track

• AirLock: A combination bike lock and air pump designed for convenience and portability. From Columbian College of Arts and Sciences student Teddy Jack and GW Law alumna Joe Edell, J.D. '09.
• Baseline: A financial planning platform for young adults managing shared expenses and future goals. From GW Business student Sravani Mannava.
• Dear Curls: An AI-powered app delivering personalized haircare routines. From GW Engineering student Judy Marouf and GW Business students Riya Bundele, Rand Attallah, Heidi Amin and Fatimata Diagana.
• Shoe Shields: Weather-resistant cleat covers for athletes. From CCAS student Samuel LaRussa, as well as Erin Reeve.
• Simply Joined: A furniture brand using traditional joinery for durable, nail-free designs. From GW Business student LiSha Powell.

Business Goods and Services Track

• AssetReady: An AI platform helping property owners assess and mitigate climate-related risks. From GW Engineering student Jay Dharmendra Parmar and GW Business alumnus Nicholas Elger, M.B.A. '23.
• Brāv Buddies, Inc.: A communication intelligence platform for emergency response coordination. From GW Engineering student Josephine Tientcheu and GW business student Jonathan Maschio.
• CC'D: A marketplace connecting brands with emerging creators using a proprietary scoring system. From CCAS student Margaret Pizzi.
• DebTera: An operations platform for cannabis retailers that integrates fragmented data systems. From GW Engineering student Raina Jacob and alumna Khushi Thakkar, Elliott School of International Affairs alumnus Skye Blanks, B.A. '21, as well as Eric Roque.
• Kaizen Analytics: A performance analytics platform for track and field coaches. From GW Business student Ozioma Scott, as well as Olujimi Scott.

Healthcare and Life Sciences Track

• ClinicFlow: A platform improving coordination and communication in hospital care teams. From SMHS students Dylan Gao, Anna Lee, Kason Kreis, Kevin Rao and Vincent Sinfuego.
• GlucoStep: A smart sock for diabetic patients that monitors health metrics and predicts complications. From SMHS students Michael Friedman, Shakthi Ramasamy, Mohammed Ahmed, Mir Saif Hossain and Niranjan Behera.
• LucidSono: An augmented-reality system for ultrasound training. From SMHS' Molly Ruttenberg and Nirmal Ravi and GW Business' Aditya Loganathan.
• Planck Technologies, LLC: A portable brain-monitoring system for detecting injury in military and emergency settings. From GW Engineering student Kevin Horrigan.
• VAMP: A mobile platform encouraging blood donation among college students. From CCAS students Tim Kardi, Lizzy McGillen and Stefanie Podolny, as well as Ahlay Hussain and Faysal Alameddine.
• Victory Lane: A marketplace connecting patients with flexible, on-demand physical therapy services. From Milken Institute School of Public Health students Brook Moses and Ciel Vidale, GW Business alumna Margaret Pittman, as well as Faisal Hussein and Zo Amani.

Social Innovation Track

• BarterBrAIn: An AI-powered student marketplace enabling secure peer-to-peer trading. From GW Engineering students Prithvi Saran Sathyasaran, Keerthirajan Senthilkumar and Anaswara Raghuthaman.
• Leave No Trace of Clinical Research Waste: Redistributes surplus medical supplies to underserved clinics. From Milken Institute School of Public Health students Riley Lima and Deeksha Ravi, GW Business student Aditya Loganathan, and SMHS' Andrew Meltzer and Daniel Shpigel.
• Nova Hospitality: A travel platform connecting users with eco-lodges and community-run properties. From GW Business student Chelsea Acheampong.
• TenCall: A voice-first language learning platform connecting users with visually impaired tutors. From Sienna Yu.
• WYNflair: An adaptive fashion brand creating stylish clothing for people with disabilities. From GW Business student Elene Nikolava, as well as Giorgi Jalagonia.

Food Innovation Track

• AlgaeNRoll: A chemical-free microalgae harvesting system enabling low-cost, scalable production of nutrient-rich biomass. From CCAS student Zishuoguo Li, GW Engineering student Anisa Anjum, and GW Engineering's David Fierli and Robert Capanna.
• Bio Shield: Converts winery waste into an edible coating that extends produce shelf life and reduces plastic use. From Shalva Iashvili.
• FreshStream AI: Uses IoT sensors and predictive modeling to prevent food spoilage during transport. From Shugyla Seidylda, Gulnar Imasheva, Maksat Turmakhan, Sandugash Abukhan and Yelena Shabanova.
• ResQfood: A marketplace where businesses sell surplus food as discounted "mystery boxes." From Luka Lominadze and Giorgi Svanidze.
• Savor SNAP: Machine-learning tools that reduce payment errors in SNAP and improve food assistance delivery. From GW Business student Eamon Walsh, as well as Shalin Bhatia.

Explorer Track Winners

• HighEnroller: Provides contract-based staffing for clinical trial sites, allowing principal investigators to convert fixed staffing costs into flexible, enrollment-based expenses.
  From GW Business student Aditya Loganathan and SMHS' Daniel Shpigel, Andrew Meltzer, Randall Lee and Nicholas Melucci. First place ($1,500)
• View Point [v.]: A B2B marketplace transforming cafes into shoppable art galleries, connecting artists with venues through a subscription-based platform. From CCAS student Sophia Noto and GW Business students Talal Tamimi, Sofia Corral and Mukul Seem. Second place ($1,000)
• CareCompass Health: Integrates dementia-specific care navigation into hospital systems to reduce readmissions and caregiver burnout. From Milken Institute SPH students Riya Bagi and Sydney Hillman. Third Place ($500).