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The H. Albert Napier Rice Launch Challenge
April 20, 2022 @ 5:30 pm - 9:00 pm CDT
Free
Join Lilie and support Rice student ventures at the H. Albert Napier Rice Launch Challenge (NRLC) Championships on Wednesday, April 20th! Six student finalists will pitch their ventures for the chance to win a share of $75,000+ in equity-free funding!
Don’t miss out on watching student pitches, networking with like-minded entrepreneurs and innovators, and voting for your favorite venture to win the Audience Choice Award.
Attendance is open to Rice students, Rice alumni, friends of Rice, and the whole Houston entrepreneurial community! Seats are limited, so get your tickets while you still can!
Competition starts at 5:30PM with a reception to follow at 7PM.
BROUGHT TO YOU BY
Liu Idea Lab for Innovation & Entrepreneurship (Lilie)
Rice Alumni | Entrepreneurs & Innovators (RAEI)
THANK YOU TO OUR SPONSORS
Dacia and Lanham Napier, in honor of Al Napier
The Liu Family, in honor of Frank Liu Jr.
MBA alumna Runsi Sen ’04
MEET THE FINALISTS
AutoEdge
Alfredo Costilla ’23 (Innovation Fellow from Professor Xia ‘Ben’ Hu’s DATA Lab), Daochen ‘Frank’ Zha ’23, and Kwei-Herng ‘Henry’ Lai ’23 are the founders of AutoEdge, an AI-powered quality assurance platform that helps small and medium manufacturers to quickly detect defects and provide clear actionable items to fix inefficiencies.
Berman Foods
Delaney Berman ’22 is the founder of Berman Foods, which crafts irresistible artisanal plant-based cheeses and spreads from wholesome, nutritious ingredients.
EpiFresh
Neethu Pottackal ’24 (Innovation Fellow from Professor Pulickel Ajayan’s Lab) and Aasha Zinke ’24 are the founders of EpiFresh, whose healthy and sustainable protein-based coating doubles the shelf-life of fruit and vegetables, reducing waste by delaying decay as it moves from the farm to your fridge.
GradGenius
David Akpakwu ’23 and Chinedum Peter Ezeakacha ’23 are the founders of GradGenius, designed to give the end-user a one-stop-shop experience to selecting schools based on personal interests.
Guildata
Stephanie Pons ’22, Kurt Reece ’22, Ryan Jensen ’22 are the founders of Guildata, which provides global health organizations with data that shows the greatest return on investment, by reduction in morbidity and mortality, for public health interventions in a non-disease centric approach.
Helix Earth Technologies
Rawand Rasheed ’23 (Innovation Fellow from Professor Daniel Preston’s Lab) is the founder of Helix Earth Technologies, helping save our planet by helping power plant operators reduce their plant water use and subsequently reducing their overall operating costs.