Evansville trio wins Innovate WithIN pitch competition finals
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A group of students from Signature School and New Tech Institute in Evansville took the top prize in this year’s Innovate WithIN pitch competition state finals. Held at Butler University’s Schrott Center for the Arts, 10 teams from high schools throughout the state competed for thousands of dollars in funding and scholarships.
The finalists, who each won regional competitions around Indiana, took part in a six-week bootcamp to refine their business ideas with the assistance of industry experts.
They also had the opportunity to work with mentors during an innovation challenge at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
“Each year it just keeps getting bigger and better. And throughout this competition, I keep getting compliments where people say ‘I didn’t know they’d be this good’,” said Don Wettrick, CEO of the STARTedUP Foundation, which administers the competition. “Well, they are this good. Each year these students blow our judges and audiences away. We’re beyond excited to have their hard work be showcased.”
First place went to Caseflood.ai, founded by Ethan Hilton, Emily Rudolph, and Tolen Schreid from Signature School. The trio has created a platform that serves as a multilingual AI receptionist for lawyers, designed to effectively qualify potential clients reduce the unpaid time lawyers spend on initial consultations.
The trio will receive $25,000 in funding provided by the Buckingham Foundation, $10,000 each toward a 529 education fund, 50 hours of pro bono marketing services, and scholarship offers from STARTedUP’s university partners.
Second place went to SafetyGlow, an LED-powered, retractable device that attaches to the back of semi-trailers and alerts other drivers of disabled trucks on the highway. Ashton Verbish from Hanover Central High School will receive $5,000 in funding and 25 hours of pro bono marketing services.
Third place went to ShellSafe, founded by Pragathi Arunkumar from Carmel High School, who developed a firearm detection sensor that can notify school resource officers via a mobile app when a firearm is detected. Arunkumar will receive $2,500 in funding and 25 hours of pro bono marketing services.
The foundation says the finalists will travel to Washington D.C. at the end of the money to receive coaching from businesses and meet with industry leaders, entrepreneurs and government officials.
“It’s invigorating, encouraging, and inspiring to hear firsthand from young entrepreneurs who are proving that age really doesn’t matter when you see a problem,” said Gov. Eric Holcomb. “I love the high expectations they have of themselves. These students all over Indiana are contributing to our economy, so I’m glad that this continues to grow entrepreneurship in Indiana at every age, and that the state is not just placing a premium on it, but we’re putting our money behind our mouth and supporting it.”
The other teams that made the finals are:
- Hydroxy: Lenea Elliott, Matthew McKeehan, Colten Mitchell | Perry Central Jr-Sr High School
- Epipatch: Max Ledingham, Alexander Lu, Adithyan Naren | Carmel High School
- PinPoint Allergy: Genesis Austin, Jayden Brosman | Speedway Senior High School
- Wringo: Connor Gomez, Ameen Musleh, Vasili Papageorge | Munster High School
- SkyGuard: Luke Herring | Southwood Jr-Sr High School
- CayPops Bakery LLC: Caylyn Pruitt | Columbus North High School
- Bluer Waters: Tucker Harris, Tyler Harris, William Trask | Floyd Central High School