Ten University of Windsor researchers took centre stage on August 21 at the inaugural Innovation Fellowship Final Pitch Competition, showcasing research-driven ventures with the potential to create meaningful economic and social impact.
Held at the Windsor Armouries, the event marked the culmination of a 14-week venture development program supporting early-stage founders, creators and researchers through mentorship, advisory support, workshops, networking and seed funding.
The inaugural University of Windsor Innovation Fellowship cohort.
Selected from nearly 70 applicants, the inaugural cohort brought together five faculty members, four PhD students and one postdoctoral fellow from disciplines across the University of Windsor. Their research-driven ventures addressed opportunities spanning artificial intelligence, robotics, cybersecurity, cancer research, medical imaging, gender-based violence prevention, smart agriculture, structural engineering, medical isotope production and electric vehicle battery reuse.
Throughout the program, fellows explored market validation, intellectual property protection and commercialization planning. Windsor-area business leader Shane Kilpatrick supported the cohort as entrepreneur-in-residence, while WEtech Alliance served as a program delivery partner, providing business advisory services and connections to the regional innovation ecosystem.
The final showcase brought the fellows before a panel of judges:
- Dr. Barbara Crow, University of Windsor
- Cam Crowder, Redstick Ventures
- Yvonne Pilon, WEtech Alliance
- Myka Burley, Michigan Central
- Debbie Landers, Future Now / NACD.DC
Innovation Fellowship Final Pitch Competition judges, alongside program mentors and members of the Research and Innovation team.
The evening concluded with $17,500 in additional funding awarded to three ventures:
- First Place — $10,000: Dr. Dan Xiao, for a low-cost magnetic resonance imaging device designed to determine whether a chicken egg has been fertilized.
- Second Place — $5,000: Dr. Brian DeVeale, a pooled tumour approach to improve preclinical oncology evaluation and clinical trial success.
- Third Place — $2,500: Nathan Drouillard, for a novel method of amplifying weak optical signals using laser spectroscopy to measure chemicals of interest in the Great Lakes.
Innovation Fellowship award recipients Dr. Dan Xiao, Dr. Brian DeVeale and Nathan Drouillard.
The inaugural Innovation Fellowship demonstrated what becomes possible when researchers are given the resources, mentorship and community connections needed to move promising discoveries closer to market.
The program was led by the University of Windsor’s Research and Innovation team, sponsored by Intellectual Property Ontario and delivered with support from WEtech Alliance
Keep your eyes peeled later this month for more exciting news from the University of Windsor’s Research and Innovation team related to entrepreneurship and commercialization.
