UCI Beall Applied Innovation Announces Proof of Product (PoP) Fall 2024 Awardees
Proof of Product (PoP) Fall 2024 Awardees Announced!
PoP is designed to provide industry perspective and critical funding to promising research projects — validating and enhancing their appeal to investors and industry.
Congratulations to the Fall 2024 Awardees:
ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE TRACK
William Tomlinson, Ph.D., UC Irvine Donald Bren School of Information & Computer Sciences
An AI That’s a Better Friend
An advanced AI chatbot platform that forms lasting social memories to create more personalized and engaging user interactions. This technology transforms the AI chatbot market by enabling deeply personalized and emotionally engaging interactions through its groundbreaking social memory engine.
GENERAL/OPEN TRACK
Tony Givargis, Ph.D., UC Irvine Donald Bren School of Information & Computer Sciences
Accelerating Terabyte-Scale Analytics Queries
Improving the efficiency of analyzing massive datasets by developing technology that accelerates query performance while minimizing memory usage. This technology significantly reduces operational costs and enhances decision-making efficiency for businesses, enabling faster and more accurate data analytics with a fraction of the computational load.
Brian Paegel, Ph.D., UC Irvine School of Pharmacy & Pharmaceutical Sciences
Phenotypic DNA-Encoded Drug Discovery in Living Tissues
A cutting-edge drug discovery platform that could uncover novel treatments for diseases like cancer and metabolic disorders. This technology has the potential to revolutionize drug discovery by reducing costs, increasing efficiency, and enabling the identification of novel, patentable therapeutics.
Shivashankar Othy, Ph.D., UC Irvine School of Medicine
Novel Combination of Biologics to Expand Regulatory T Cells for Multiple Sclerosis
A groundbreaking therapy for multiple sclerosis using a novel combination of biologics to expand regulatory T cells, which help stop disease progression, reduce inflammation, and promote myelin repair. This technology has the potential to revolutionize multiple sclerosis treatment by providing a cost-effective, single-dose therapy that addresses the disease's root causes.
SUSTAINABILITY TRACK
Catherine Loudon, Ph.D., UC Irvine Charlie Dunlop School of Biological Sciences
Physical Insecticides: Harnessing the Power of Plant Defenses for Trapping Pests
A plant-based material to physically trap bed bugs, offering a sustainable and chemical-free alternative to traditional pest control methods. This technology has the potential to revolutionize pest control by providing an eco-friendly, cost-effective, and scalable solution that reduces reliance on chemical insecticides, appealing to both commercial industries like hospitality and residential markets.
SOURCE: UCI Beall Applied Innovation