For the 24th year, the Rice Alliance for Technology and Entrepreneurship hosted its Rice Business Plan Competition, facilitating over $1.5 million in investment and cash prizes to the top teams.
The 42 startups competing this year, which were announced earlier this year and included teams from around the world, participated in the three-day event that culminated in a reception on Saturday, April 6. The companies were divided into five categories: Energy, Cleantech and Sustainability; Hard Tech; Life Sciences and Healthcare Solutions; Digital Enterprise; Consumer Products and Services.
“We award the competitors $1 million in prizes, prizes that serve as foundational capital to launch their startup,” RBPC Director Catherine Santamaria says at the awards gala. “That’s a large number of prizes, but the biggest thing our startups leave with is a feeling of generosity and community from this room. This community is always ready and willing to help our founders and support our vision for the competition by investing time, money and resources in these student innovators.”
While all participating teams received $950 for being selected, several teams walked away with thousands in funding, cash, and in-kind prizes. Here's which companies won big.
MesaQuantum, Harvard University — $335,000
MesaQuantum is developing accurate and precise chip-scale clocks. While not named a finalist, the company secured the most amount of funding across a few prizes:
- $250,000 OWL Investment Prizes
- $60,000 nCourage Courageous Women Entrepreneur Investment Prize
- $25,000 Jacobs, Intuitive Machines and WRX Companies Rising Stars Space Technology and Commercial Aerospace Cash Prize
Protein Pints, Michigan State University — $251,000
The big winner of the night was Protein Pints, a high-protein, low-sugar, ice cream product from Michigan State University. Not only did the company win first place and the $150,000 GOOSE Capital Investment Grand Prize, as decided by the more than 350 judges, but it won a few other investment prizes, including:
- $100,000 The Indus Entrepreneurs (TiE) Texas Angels Investment Prize — Protein Pints, Michigan State University
- The Eagle Investors Prize
- $1,000 Anbarci Family Company Showcase Prize
- Mercury Elevator Pitch Competition Prize (Best in Consumer Products)
- An invitation to Entrepreneur Magazine's elevator pitch show
Osphim, RWTH Aachen University —$201,000
Osphim, a data acquisition and monitoring platform from Germany, won these prizes despite not being named a finalist:
- $200,000 Goose Capital Investment Prize
- $1,000 Anbarci Family Company Showcase Prize
- Mercury Elevator Pitch Competition Prize (Best in Digital)
Somnair, Johns Hopkins University — $200,000
Taking second place and a $100,000 from David Anderson, Jon Finger, Anderson Family Fund, Finger Interests, Greg Novak and Tracy Druce was Somnair is a novel non-invasive neurostimulation device for the treatment of obstructive sleep apnea. The company also won:
- $100,000 Houston Angel Network Investment Prize
- Mercury Elevator Pitch Competition Prize (Best in Life Science)
- An invitation to Texas Medical Center's Accelerator Bootcamp
- An invitation to Entrepreneur Magazine's elevator pitch show
Icorium Engineering Company, University of Kansas — $171,000
Icorium Engineering Company — a chemical engineering startup developing technologies to make sustainable, circular economies a reality for refrigerants and other complex chemical mixtures — won fifth place and a $5,000 prize sponsored by Norton Rose Fulbright, EY, Chevron Technology Ventures and Shell Ventures, as well as:
- $100,000 OWL Investment Prizes
- $40,000 nCourage Courageous Women Entrepreneur Investment Prize
- $25,000 from Finger Interests, the Anderson Family Fund at the Greater Houston Community Foundation, Greg Novak and Tracy Druce
- $1,000 Anbarci Family Company Showcase Prize
- Mercury Elevator Pitch Competition Prize (Best in Energy, Sustainability)
- An invitation to Entrepreneur Magazine's elevator pitch show
Informuta, Tulane University — $70,000
Informuta's proprietary technology leverages DNA sequencing to predict if bacteria will respond to different antibiotics or, for the very first time, develop future resistance thus causing treatment failure. The company won fourth place and a $5,000 prize sponsored by Norton Rose Fulbright, EY, Chevron Technology Ventures and Shell Ventures.
$40,000 Pearland EDC Spirit of Entrepreneurship Cash Prize- $25,000 from Finger Interests, the Anderson Family Fund at the Greater Houston Community Foundation, Greg Novak and Tracy Druce
EndoShunt Medical, Harvard University — $55,000
EndoShunt created a rapid, targeted blood flow control device to be use in emergency or trauma settings. The company won sixth place and the $5,000 prize, sponsored by Norton Rose Fulbright, EY, Chevron Technology Ventures and Shell Ventures, as well as:
- $25,000 Southwest National Pediatric Device Consortium Pediatric Device Cash Prize
- $25,000 from Finger Interests, the Anderson Family Fund at the Greater Houston Community Foundation, Greg Novak and Tracy Druce
Power2Polymers, RWTH Aachen University —$50,000
Tackling the challenge of forever chemicals, Power2Polymers is creating safe alternatives free of forever chemicals. The German company took third place and the $50,000 investment sponsored by Finger Interests, the Anderson Family Fund at the Greater Houston Community Foundation, Greg Novak and Tracy Druce. The company also won the Mercury Elevator Pitch Competition Prize (Best Overall).
D.Sole, Carnegie Mellon University — $30,000
D. Sole won the wild card ticket to the finals and took seventh place. The company is advancing the development of remote patient monitoring in podiatry with foot insoles designed for the early detection and monitoring of diabetic foot complications, such as ulcers and deformities. They also won $30,000 from Finger Interests, the Anderson Family Fund at the Greater Houston Community Foundation, Greg Novak and Tracy Druce.
Other prizes:
- $25,000 New Climate Ventures Sustainable Investment Prize went to Oxylus Energy from Yale University
- $25,000 Dream Big Ventures Latino Entrepreneur Investment Prize went to Dendritic Health AI from Northwestern University
- $25,000 NOV Energy Technology Innovation Cash Prize went to LiQuidium from the University of Houston
- $25,000 Urban Capital Network Diversity Investment Prize in Partnership with South Loop Venture Investment Prize went to TouchStone from University of California, Berkeley