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ASU Innovation Open announces 2021 semifinalists

ASU Innovation Open has announced the semifinalists Arizona State University’s most exciting pitch competition. These top collegiate innovators will pitch their ventures for a chance to win up to $300,000 in cash prizes, including two $100,000 grand prizes. The virtual event will be Friday, February 5, 2021.

Powered by ASU’s Ira A. Fulton Schools of Engineering, Avnet and Breakthrough Energy Ventures, ASU Innovation Open is designed advance student-led startups harnessing the power of entrepreneurship to tackle the world’s most challenging problems. Throughout the competition, ASUio sponsors and supporters will provide critical venture mentorship, coaching and funding to the competitors whose ventures focus on conscious capitalism.

This year, ASUio saw the highest number of applicants in the competition’s five-year history. And as the competition grows, its applicants reflect the increasing diversity among young innovators in the entrepreneurial space. This year, 60% of the ventures applying for the ASUio are minority-led, and women are at the helm of a full third of the startup teams.

In February, 30 semifinalist teams will pitch their leading-edge hard tech and IOT solutions to a panel of startup and industry leaders whose expertise spans areas like artificial intelligence, autonomous transportation, agricultural and climate technology, health care, photovoltaics, wearable technology and more.

The 2021 ASU Innovation Open semifinalists are:

• AAVAA – Carnegie Mellon University
• Ai-Ris LLC – Texas A&M University
• Atomic AI – University of Pennsylvania
• Aurign – Georgia State University
• Aurora Medical Systems – Northeastern University
• Beyond Acoustic Technologies – University of California, Los Angeles
• blip energy – Northwestern University
• Cynteract GmbH – RWTH Aachen University
• Eden GeoPower, Inc. – Massachusetts Institute of Technology
• EqualComm LLC – Arizona State University
• Eyesbox AI – Arizona State University
• Floe – Yale University
• FloWaste, Inc. – University of Notre Dame
• Harmony Desal – Massachusetts Institute of Technology
• Healixir Health – University of Utah
• Ichosia Biotechology – Northeastern University
• Ithemba, LLC – Johns Hopkins University
• Mount – Northeastern University
• Nitricity – Stanford University
• Notos Technologies – McGill University
• Nutrivide Inc. – Rutgers University
• Optical Waters LLC – Arizona State University
• Padma Agrobotics LLC – Arizona State University
• PhenoLogic – Michigan State University
• Sahara Cloud, Inc. – University of California, Los Angeles
• SeebeckCell Technologies – University of Texas
• Sensory Robotics – University of Pennsylvania
• SteeroFlex – University of California, San Diego
• Verdant. Innovatives – University of Maryland, College Park
• ZeroDK Inc. – University of Pittsburgh School of Dental Medicine