Our judges have selected the top-16 teams for the inaugural High School Utah Entrepreneur Challenge, a statewide idea competition for students ages 14-18. The top teams have invented everything from medical devices to video-game consoles. Below is the complete list of finalist teams. Winning teams will receive $22,000 in cash and prizes. The competition is hosted by the Lassonde Entrepreneur Institute at the University of Utah and sponsored by Zions Bank.
All are welcome to meet the teams at the Final Event & Showcase on Saturday, May 14, 2016. The day’s activities conclude with the public showcase and awards ceremony at 3-5 p.m. Attendees will be able to vote for what team should win the People’s Choice Award and $1,000. Meet tomorrow’s change-makers, entrepreneurs and inventors!
Top-16 Teams
BackPal – Layton
Backpack Pal is a backpack insert that helps students keep their backpacks organized to hold more books and more easily find their school supplies. The Backpack Pal can be inserted into any backpack and helps redistribute weight to reduce strain on a wearer’s back.
Breathe Easy – Academy of Math, Engineering and Science (Salt Lake City)
Breathe Easy will provide masks that are stylish and crafted to filter air pollution. With interchangeable cartridges to ensure the mask is always filtering at its highest capacity and stylish designs, Breath Easy will allow consumers to stay safe from pollution no matter the air quality.
EcoGo – Salt Lake City
EcoGo is an app with a simple goal: reduce the number of personal vehicles on Utah roads. EcoGo encourages users to utilize alternative transportation through the use of social competition where they will be able to post and share with their friends how they have used alternative transportation. Additionally, EcoGo will use gamification to allow users to earn coupons, discounts and gift cards in exchange for using alternative transportation.
Electro-Surgical Pouch – Jordan Academy for Tech. and Careers & Bingham High School (South Jordan)
The Electro-Surgical Pouch is an innovative surgical instrument that combines two existing instruments. It will reduce time, money and risk of contamination. The ESP was originally designed for use in a laparoscopic cholecystectomy to both dissect the gallbladder off the liver bed and remove the gallbladder from the abdomen.
Energy-Generating Stationary Bike – West Jordan
By adding generators to stationary bikes consumers will be able to generate electricity while exercising. This energy can be used to power parts of your home so exercising can be both physically and monetarily rewarding.
iCityCenter – Karl G. Maeser Preparatory Academy (Lindon)
iCityCenter is an app that will help reduce recycling costs and help inform consumers how they can recycle. The app will feature a calendar informing consumers of recycling pickup dates, and users receive rewards from local businesses for recycling. iCityCenter aims to help cities reduce waste and increase recycling.
Life Band – Hillcrest High School (Midvale)
Life Band is a sensor-equipped exercise headband allowing users to track their movement with GPS, listen to music, and even track for concussions and alert emergency services if necessary. Life Band will come in a variety of colors to suit every consumer’s tastes.
LIT Signs – Venture High School (Marriott-Slaterville)
LIT Signs are portable, programmable, event traffic signs that can provide specific communication to direct movement flow and give instructions. They are full-color LED displays that can show animated movements. A picture with movement tells much more than a few words. The signs give clarity and certainty to all people needing flow directions quickly.
Microcade Systems – Park City High School
Microcade is a full plug-and-play arcade system. While most arcade systems today take extensive setup, the Microcade would be an easy-to-use arcade system supporting multiple consoles and small enough to fit anywhere unlike a full-sized arcade cabinet.
Modular Magnetic Cables – Judge Memorial Catholic High School (Salt Lake City)
Eliminate cable waste and minimize the volume of cables you own by using magnetic cables with interchangeable “bits.” Cables would come in many different sizes and be chainable so you can have cables in the size you actually need. Rather than buying a set of new cables for a device with a new cable type, just change the bit on these cables and you’ll be good to go.
Motor Design – Itineris Early College High School (West Jordan)
Motor Design is an innovative new design for an electric motor designed to reduce friction and increase efficiency of electric motors. By increasing the efficiency of electric motors the amount of energy required to run the motor can be reduced and subsequently the amount of pollution caused can also be reduced.
Invasive Mussel Management System – Park City High School
Quagga and zebra mussels are overtaking the lakes nationwide, and it’s a problem. Invasive Mussel Management System will scan a unique code on each boat at a boat check to see where boats have been and to clarify whether or not a boat must be cleaned. With this, more boats will be cleaned and less mussels are spread.
PhoneCheck – Orem
PhoneCheck will offer full mobile checkout. By scanning items and paying via the app, there will be no need to go to a cash register. At the end of their shopping journey, customers may present their receipt when leaving, streamlining their shopping experience.
Service in a Click! – Bingham High School (South Jordan)
Service in a Click will help students find volunteering opportunities through an easy app interface and website aimed to reduce the amount of time searching for volunteering opportunities. Potential volunteers will be automatically matched with organizations via an algorithm, ensuring a perfect match. Service in a Click will help students be more involved, spend less time searching and more time volunteering.
Strut Clothing Referral – Canyon View High School (Cedar City)
Women all over the U.S. have a difficult time shopping for clothes that fit properly. Strut is company that will match women to stores in their area and online that carry clothing that will complement their body shape. Strut’s mission is to help ladies find clothing that makes them feel beautiful and confident in a way that saves them time and money.
Teen Made – St. George
Teen Made aims to be the hub for teens to get their start in the business world and the place for the world to invest in teens — from shops to project, from teen-to-teen course to live Q&As. Everything is focused on teens following their passion and living their dream.
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