The Blackstone Launchpad Innovation Competition is an annual event that welcomes all of Ualbany’s entrepreneurs regardless of their past experience or how developed their business idea may be. This event is held in an effort to encourage young entrepreneurs with startups and help to fund their businesses as well as bring them to life. This year our winners will receive $3,000 and 10 hours of legal consulting/service as a 1stplace prize, $1,000 and 10 hours of legal consulting/ services for 2nd place, and $500 as well as 2 hours of legal consulting for 3rd place. These prizes were graciously provided by our multiple donors: Richard Dublin, Gary Goldstein, Eric Leander, Kathryn Zox, William Newman, and David Siegfeld. Additionally, this event would not have been possible without the help of our judges: Sam Mere, Bruce Toyoma, David Siegfeld, Eric Leander, Gary Goldstein, Jim Harris, Judi Mather, Kevin Owens, Lee Perry, Robert Braathe, Stephen Hartmann, Jamal Rasoully, Rich Dubin, William Newman, Kathryn Zox, Neal Packer, and Sheldon Goldstien, who courteously offered their time.
This year’s competition, while virtual, had an exceptional turnout with Tatyana Tarasevich’s Sulfluor Polymers winning 2nd place and Yarid Asher’s Eorbi Inc. taking home 3rd.
The 2021 Innovation Competition winner, Allix Coon, is a 3rd year PhD student here at Ualbany and is the cofounder of her company, ChemDetect. Coon is now the fourth female winner in a row, following Marielle Aprorite, April Meerson, and Amanda Dolan. Coon’s business, ChemDetect, aims to tackle the massive global problem of illegal logging, which is the process of harvesting, transporting, buying and selling of timber in violation of national and international laws. ChemDetect utilizes the chemical footprint of wood to identify its species by taking a sample the size of a match, sparing companies from unknowingly having restricted wood in their possession thus saving them from expensive fines and potential legal action. The test itself only takes around fifteen seconds to complete, as opposed to the current methods, which can take weeks to months, and are more costly and invasive.
“Having a resource like the Blackstone Launchpad at the Ualbany campus is incredible as a student entrepreneur. I am so thankful for all of the guidance I have received from them thus far. My recent participation and win in their innovation competition allowed me to gain real-world experience for future competitions and excites me for what will come next for our company ChemDetect” -Allix Coon.
We’d like to thank everyone who participated in this year’s competition. We are constantly impressed with the startups that Ualbany’s entrepreneurs present us with and are already looking forward to next year.