UT Tyler Students Recognized for Business Ideas

April 15, 2024 | Hannah Buchanan

The University of Texas at Tyler announced results of its third annual Business Model Competition, which highlights the entrepreneurial ideas of UT Tyler students.

“Our third Business Model Competition was a great success, featuring a wide range of early-stage innovations, from agricultural technology to financial technology to public safety,” said Brandon Reynolds, ETX Launchpad director. “The event is designed to provide validation and insights to help students transform their ideas into successful ventures.”

Graduate electrical engineering students Maliha Kabir of Bangladesh and Arayan Anand of India placed first and earned $4,000 for their “Hopbot,” a hybrid autonomous robot used for soil and crop monitoring.

Mckenzie Lionel Joseph Prince of India, a graduate computer science major, placed second and earned $2,000 for his “LupusNexus,’’ an app targeted to provide holistic care and improve the lives of Lupus patients.

Graduate electrical engineering student Elvis Sangmen of Ghana placed third and received $1,000 for his “Yeux,’’ a device that utilizes saliva to better indicate overconsumption of alcohol to assist in preventing alcohol-related deaths.

The competition, conducted through UT Tyler’s ETX Launchpad as part of the ETX New Venture Day, was open to UT Tyler students of all majors. Eighteen entries presented by individuals or teams were judged by a panel of East Texas entrepreneurs: Amber Owen, Cadence Bank-Tyler Market president; Randall Childress with Childress Wealth Management; and David Stewer, a businessman and longtime entrepreneur.

The ETX Launchpad at UT Tyler works to improve economic development through entrepreneurship and innovation programs. Programs and competitions provide mentoring and funding opportunities to ensure that viable new ventures accelerate and scale more quickly. For more information, contact Reynolds at breynolds@uttyler.edu, or visit uttyler.edu/research/centers/east-texas-entrepreneurship-center.

With a mission to improve educational and health care outcomes for East Texas and beyond, UT Tyler offers more than 90 undergraduate and graduate programs to nearly 10,000 students. Through its alignment with UT Tyler Health Science Center and UT Health East Texas, UT Tyler has unified these entities to serve Texas with quality education, cutting-edge research and excellent patient care. Classified by Carnegie as a doctoral research institution and by U.S. News & World Report as a national university, UT Tyler has campuses in Tyler, Longview, Palestine and Houston.