Past Finalists and Winners: Where Are They Now?

The Intel+UC Berkeley Technology Entrepreneurship Challenge (IBTEC) is designed to showcase global business opportunities that have the greatest potential for a positive impact on society through the deployment of new and truly innovative technologies.

Learn what some of the past finalists and winners are doing now:

Echopixel Technologies 2006 Finalist	A medical imaging company from Mexico offers a new, non-invasive procedure for colorectal cancer screening
Gravitonus, Inc. 2006 Humanitarian Award	A group of Russian doctors develops technology that enables quadriplegics to regain independence
Richcore 2006 Second Prize Winner	A biotech application research company from India develops hygroscopic paper

Echopixel Technologies
http://www.echopixel-viz.com

With early detection and treatment, colon cancer is curable in 90 percent of cases. However, more than 70 percent of the at-risk population does not undergo colorectal cancer (CRC) screening because of the invasiveness of the traditional screening procedure. This method, known as optical colonoscopy (OC), involves rectally inserting a camera into a patient's colon to visually scope for polyps and flat lesions, the malformations that can become cancer. Additionally, recent studies have shown that OC can miss more than 22 percent of polyps and at least 35 percent of flat lesions, which are twice as likely to become cancer.

To improve patient outcomes, Echopixel Technologies, a medical imaging company based in Tijuana, Mexico, has developed Gastro Therapy Planning (GTP), a non-invasive method of CRC screening that uses computed tomography (CT) images to create a detailed, three-dimensional model of a patient's colon, which doctors and radiologists can use to accurately detect cancerous and pre-cancerous tissue. The company's patented stereoscopic, three-dimensional visualization software offers medical professionals diagnostic depth perception, a visual cue that can significantly enhance the ability to identify polyps and flat lesions. Additionally, the GTP approach can improve screening capacity, reduce physician time, and save lives through early detection.

Echopixel Technologies, led by CEO and founder Sergio Aguirre, has garnered prizes for its innovative work in both Mexico and the United States, including First Place in the 2006 Intel Business Plan Competition in Mexico and Finalist at the 2006 Intel+UC Berkeley Technology Entrepreneurship Challenge.

Since IBTEC, Echopixel Technologies has assembled a world-class team of Silicon Valley veterans and radiology industry leaders who have been instrumental in connecting the company with OEM partners such as Philips Medical and Olympus.

Gravitonus, Inc.
www.gravitonus.com

As an orthopedist at a Russian medical facility specializing in spinal cord injuries, Dr. Alex Kosik routinely worked with severaly disabled patients. To help them and other quadriplegics regain some independence and quality of life, Dr. Kosik assembled a team - including Taras Kosik, his brother and a rehabilitation specialist for the handicapped - to develop an Alternative Computer Control System (ACCS). Their company, Gravitonus, produced a device that, when placed in the mouth cavity and manipulated with the tongue, allows the user to operate a computer. As a result, individuals gain not only autonomy from being able to operate wheelchairs and household appliances, but are also able to take advantage of education and employment opportunities.

For their plan to bring the ACCS to market, the Gravitonus team - including the Kosik brothers, Krystyna Kosik, Dmitry Davyaterikov, and Vitaly Kuzmin - won the Humanitarian Award at the 2006 Intel+UC Berkeley Technology Entrepreneurship Challenge.

"The IBTEC award was a major breakthrough," says Dr. Kosik. "We got visibility, support, and worldwide recognition for the Gravitonus name."

Gravitonus, Inc. is now a Virginia-based company with a Russian research-and-development facility dedicated to delivering accessibility solutions to handicapped people everywhere. The company also markets ACCS in other industries, including the gaming market where it can be used as an "instant kill" control device.

Dr. Kosik notes that his business venture has benefited greatly from association with Intel, including "business consulting support from the Russian Intel Digital Health Department." At the 2009 Consumer Electronic Show, Gravitonus unveiled an entirely new system based on Intel Core i7. Additionally, Dr. Kosik has become highly involved in the technology entrepreneurship program run by Intel, serving as a judge in the Business of Innovative Technology competition and as a consultant in the InnovationStudio project with Moscow State University.

Richcore
www.richcoreindia.com*

At the 2006 Intel+UC Berkeley Technology Entrepreneurship Challenge (IBTEC), Richcore, an Indian biotech application research company, garnered Second Prize for its development of and plan to market hygroscopic paper. The technology behind the project allows ordinary paper to absorb moisture from the atmosphere and remain perpetually moist. It has applications in a wide spectrum of industries, including floriculture, horticulture, healthcare, tissue culture, packaging, and food processing.

Since the competition, the Richcore team - Subramani Ramachandrappa, K.Ramachandran, R.N. Sharma, and Sanjay Jha - has secured funding from venture capitalists with the aid of Avendus, an India-based financial advisory firm, and launched its hygroscopic paper venture. Initial marketing efforts focused on the floriculture industry, since the technology proved to be ideal in the creation of artificial flowers that both look and feel like the real thing, but the company has continued to develop applications in other industries as well.

Ramachandrappa, Chairman and Managing Direction of Richcore, says IBTEC was a catalyst in moving the marketing process forward. "Feedback from the IBTEC judges helped us evaluate our plan from many perspectives, and our plan got polished. Exposure to the judges helped us in our funding process and our interactions with venture capitalists." In short, he says, "IBTEC gave us a head-start when we approached venture capitalists as it was like a prelude which qualifies for the first round of talks. We would not have been able to attract a financial advisor like Avendus if we were not well-groomed by our experience at Berkeley."

Today, Richcore is a multi-million dollar company that employs not only regular staff, but also provides work for more than 500 women referred to them by non-governmental organizations promoting sustainable development in India. For example, the company employs more than 300 fisherwomen in the rural district of Jharkhand, India, as flower weavers.

A look back at past competitions

IBTEC 2008 (PDF; 3 pages)
IBTEC 2007 (PDF; 3 pages)
IBTEC 2006 (PDF; 3 pages)