IIT Stuart Students Win Intense Chicago Innovation Chase Lightning Round Competition

Last month, IIT Stuart students Santiago Gutierrez Rodriguez (B.S.B.A. ’13) and John Holden (B.S.B.A. ’16) finished in first place in the Chicago Innovation Chase Lightning Round, a unique and challenging program run by Eurekatory NFP and presented at Illinois Tech by the Office of Community Affairs.

Student teams are tasked with creating a product or service around detecting, avoiding, or mitigating medical problems associated with the elderly, including avoiding slips and falls; increasing compliance around medication, drugs or technologies; and recognition and/or treatment of sleep disorders. Santiago and John created a company called “Creative Solutions” around the product “HipAlert — Confidence and Protection Joined at the Hip!”

Several other IIT Stuart students participated in the Chase, including Harshita Iyer, Maya Jordan, and Yoni Pruzansky. Interdisciplinary teams also included IIT students from engineering, architecture, psychology, and computer science.

IIT Stuart Assistant Professor Arjun Chakravarti participated as a volunteer judge in the competition, and John Holden also credited what he learned in Corporate Finance with Professor John Twombly for helping him develop a solid business plan.

Other campus partners who contribute to the Chase include Jeremy Alexis and Rima Kuprys with the Idea Shop, Mohammad Shahidehpour with the Galvin Center for Electricity, and Cassidy Turley with University Technology Park. Undergraduate student Nishanth Samala designed and fabricated the trophies used in the competition.