Tulane Innovation Institute announces the top ten finalists for $50K Demo Day
The New Orleans Book Festival at Tulane University presented "How to Invest", a Conversation with David Rubenstein and Gary Ginsberg in 2023 at the Marshall Family Commons. The 2025 Book Fest will kick off on Thursday, March 27, after Tulane Innovation Day.
The Tulane University Innovation Institute is pleased to announce the ten finalists for its $50K Demo Day pitch competition, which will take place on Wednesday, March 26, as part of the inaugural Tulane Innovation Day. Held at the Marshall Family Commons in the Goldring/Woldenberg Business Complex on Tulane’s Uptown campus, this event is a cornerstone of New Orleans Entrepreneur Week 2025 (NOEW). The pitch competition will award a $25,000 grand prize, with $15,000 and $10,000 prizes for the second and third-place winners. In addition, the audience can vote for a People's Choice winner, who will receive a cash prize.
Launched in 2024, this competition celebrates entrepreneurial ventures rooted in New Orleans, emphasizing ideas with the potential to make a societal or commercial impact. Last year’s grand prize winner, Informuta, pitched their predictive diagnostic platform leveraging machine learning to assess bacterial infections for antibiotic resistance and anticipate future trends. Since winning, Informuta has secured $1.8 million in additional funding through investments, grants, and pitch contests. Other 2024 finalists included ventures focused on automating the health insurance appeal process with AI, streamlining interview screening in the hospitality sector, and providing topical solutions to alleviate discomfort caused by braided and styled curly hair.
This year’s finalists represent a new group of diverse arrays of industries from Tulane University and the greater New Orleans community:
Chanho Lim — Foundational AI model for biometric signal processing for medical and commercial devices. (Chanho Lim, Tulane Staff, Tulane University’s Heart & Vascular Institute)
Cleaved Diagnostics — A quick and affordable test for detecting cytomegalovirus. (Chandler Monk, Bioinnovation PhD candidate, Tulane University)
Cloud IX — A startup focused on helping survivors of sexual violence on college campuses through an innovative, AI-powered chatbot app. (Isabella Kulstad, Tulane Undergraduate Student, School of Science and Engineering)
EnvySkin LLC — Developed a blemish patch care backed by natural science. (Eleanor Grace Probst, Kiera Stocks, Dawn Siegall, Tulane University Undergraduates)
Feels — A modern fundraising platform incentivizing social media influencers to raise money for charity. (Caitlin Knoepp and Chase Mattison)
FlyFast! — An automated process designed to transfer fruit flies in the laboratory through automation efficiently. (Caique Costa, Tulane School of Medicine, PhD candidate)
Gro Enterprises, Inc. — A climate-smart construction materials manufacturer and installation company focused on creating more sustainable, healthier, and climate-resilient built environments. (Joel Holton)
Milestone Mate — A tech-driven platform empowering families to track and support their children’s developmental milestones. (Shay Claiborne)
RITUALI — A platform that connects wellness users with vetted holistic health practitioners through a proprietary matching process. (Brenna Kane)
SafePush — A patented technology that prevents human error and regulates the flow rate of injections so there are no deaths or catastrophic injuries due to IV pushes being given too rapidly (Tonia Aiken and Jim Aiken, Tulane Alumnus)
Caique Costa, at the Tulane Innovation Institute Open Medical Innovation Challenge (OPEN MIC) Night, Spring 2024
“We are excited to present our second cohort of startups at the $50K Demo Day during Tulane Innovation Day,” said Kimberly Gramm, David and Marion Mussafer Chief Innovation and Entrepreneurship Officer at Tulane. “This showcase not only highlights the entrepreneurial spirit of our university and community but also provides a platform for these ventures to connect with investors and industry leaders.” Gramm continued, “ I hope the entire community comes out to watch them pitch and cheer on their favorite team at Innovation Day!”
To qualify for participation, applicants were required to have engaged in previous programming offered by the Tulane Innovation Institute, such as attending a free educational webinar or other entrepreneurial programs provided by Tulane University. Applicants submitted video pitches to the Green Wave Innovation Network selection committee, highlighting their startups' unique value and potential. During $50K Demo Day, each finalist will have three minutes to present their ideas to a panel of distinguished judges and investors, followed by a live Q&A session.
In addition to the competition, the event will feature a keynote address by Brett Hurt, CEO and co-founder of data.world, co-owner of Hurt Family Investments, and author of Entrepreneur Essentials. In a fireside chat with Tulane President Michael A. Fitts, Hurt will share lessons from his extensive experience as a startup CEO and investor. To RSVP to attend Tulane Innovation Day, click here.
