RALEIGH – More than 600 people packed into NC State’s Stewart Theatre for the 2019 Lulu eGames on Wednesday night.

This year, around 35 finalists were selected out of 148 entries to compete across five categories: Arts Venture, Built on Cloud, Social and Environmental Impact, Design and Prototype and New Venture.

In total, officials handed out more than $100,000 in prize money.

“My hope is that they will, at least some of them, be able to launch their companies, and the prize money that they won tonight is going to help them down that road,” Dr. Tom Miller, senior vice provost for Academic Outreach and Entrepreneurship, told WRAL TechWire.

“Think and do, that’s what we’re all about at NC State.”

Lulu eGame judges L-R: Quinten Farmer, Jamelle Eugene, JiNan Glasgow George and Christoph Kepper.

Started back in 2009, Lulu eGames is run by NC State’s Entrepreneurship Initiative with the goal of helping startups coming out of NC State with early-stage capital.

In recent years, the competition has become something of a startup generator with past winners going on to become full-fledged companies. Examples include Triangle startups Undercover Colors, Bee Downtown, Offline Media, Trakex and Frill Clothing.

Cloud, arts, social, prosthetics … NCSU startups share $100,000 in Lulu eGames competition

Check out Wednesday night’s winners:

New Venture

  1. OpenGait Prosthetics – OpenGait has developed a complete prosthetic kit for above-knee (AK) amputees that will unlock access to mobility and independence to so many in need.
  2. Reborn Clothing Co  — Reborn transforms surplus textile waste and branded apparel into higher-value products.
  3. Green Bleach V — Green Bleach is developing a unique new disinfectant that is both fully effective against the most robust pathogens and is non-toxic for humans. Team: Graham Howell, Angela D’Orio, Paul Kester, Kevin Hasbun

Design and Prototype

  1. Chirp — Chirp is an IoT-enabled Smart Home device that leverages a combination of sensors guided by a proprietary algorithm to monitor the stove and immediately address threats to help reduce emergency response times by an estimated 50 percent. Team: Andrew Bowker, Praneet Mocheria
  2. OpenGait Prosthetics — OpenGait has developed a complete prosthetic kit for above-knee (AK) amputees that will unlock access to mobility and independence to so many in need. Team: Aaron Fleming, Lindsay Sullivan
  3. eyeBot – eyeBot is a device that creates a cheaper, faster, and more convenient eye examination for people. Harivansh Mareddy, Rody Braswell, Jonathan Lindsay, Christian Lee, Jie Gao

Social and Environmental Impact

  1. OpenGait Prosthetics — OpenGait has developed a complete prosthetic kit for above-knee (AK) amputees that will unlock access to mobility and independence to so many in need. Team: Aaron Fleming, Lindsay Sullivan.
  2. Portal Technologies – Portal is a countertop device that allows brands to access new audiences through the power of automated retail. Team: Malay Shah, Goutham Subramanian, Hartley Leroy, David Lovato, David Schuler
  3. Vital Guide — Vital Guide allows hospital staff a solution to provide improved medical care and allows improved patient management to emergency waiting room patients. Team: Chris Fesmire.

Startup Flux Conversions won first prize in the category, Built on Cloud. Team: Micah Ulrich, Justin Care, Andrew Erhart, Clay Dowdey, Cody Bierdermann.

Built on Cloud

  1. Flux Conversions — Flux is developing a kit that will convert any automatic transmission powertrain to a hybrid-electric powertrain. Team: Micah Ulrich, Justin Care, Andrew Erhart, Clay Dowdey, Cody Bierdermann.
  2. eyeBot  — eyeBot is a device that creates a cheaper, faster, and more convenient eye examination for people. Team: Harivansh Mareddy, Rody Braswell, Jonathan Lindsay, Christian Lee, Jie Gao
  3. Vital Guide — Vital Guide allows hospital staff a solution to provide improved medical care and allows improved patient management to emergency waiting room patients. Team: Chris Fesmire

Arts Venture

  1. iScribble — iScribble is an interactive, drawing based web-application that allows individuals from all over the world to come together and collaborate on a digital canvas, allowing artists to communicate as a team while individually honing their design skills in a manner unlike other design applications on the market. Team: Tea Blumer
  2. Wrapped  — WRAPPED is an all-inclusive headwrap company that provides ready-to-wear and custom wraps that empower customers through self-expression, while also challenging social stigmas. Team: Toni Contini
  3. STEAM-E — Through a scholarship-based summer camp immersion, STEAM-E NC seeks to bridge the gap between the 25,000 students in rural Appalachia who do not have equal access to STEM, arts and entrepreneurship education. Team: Grace Williamson, Dana Lanner, Pinelopi Kouloglou

Judge’s Choice

  • Reborn Clothing Co  — Reborn transforms surplus textile waste and branded apparel into higher-value products.

Audience Choice

  • OpenGait Prosthetics – OpenGait has developed a complete prosthetic kit for above-knee (AK) amputees that will unlock access to mobility and independence to so many in need.