RAPTIC Hosts Inaugural Pitch Competition Showcasing Ohio State Innovation

RAPTIC (Research Accelerator Program to Translate, Innovate and Commercialize) successfully hosted its inaugural Pitch Competition on Aug. 31, bringing together faculty, researchers and industry representatives from across The Ohio State University and the broader Ohio entrepreneurial ecosystem, including representatives from Ohio Venture Pipeline, Rev1 Ventures, R1 Capital, CincyTech and the Ohio Technology Consortium. The event highlighted RAPTIC’s mission to accelerate translational research and support the development of technologies with real-world impact.

Sep 2, 2026

The afternoon began with networking and refreshments, followed by a keynote presentation from Dr. Lakshmi Dasi, founder of DASI Simulations, who shared his entrepreneurial journey and lessons learned bringing innovations to market.

Eight faculty innovators then delivered six-minute pitches followed by a two-minute question-and-answer session with a panel of five judges.

Projects represented a broad range of translational research areas, including medical devices, diagnostics, digital health technologies, health services innovation and community-focused solutions.

Following the presentations, attendees had an opportunity to network before winners were announced.

First Place: CTSI Prize ($4,000)
Benjamin Poulose, MD, College of Medicine, was awarded first place for EndoEvolve, Inc. EndoEvolve developed the TevvroST solution to reduce endoscopy-related injuries for physicians performing flexible gastrointestinal endoscopy.

Second Place: RAPTIC Prize ($2,000)
Purnima Dubey, PhD, College of Medicine, received second place for her Intranasal Pertussis Vaccine, a novel approach designed to address key limitations of current pertussis vaccines.

Third Place: RAPTIC Seed Grant
Kai Zhao, PhD, College of Medicine, earned the RAPTIC Seed Grant for SMELL-AID: The First Wearable Solution for Smell Loss, an affordable, noninvasive technology designed to improve smell function without drugs or surgery.

Judges included Oliver Couture, Caroline Crisafulli, Panya Taysavang, Hanping Guan and Mandy Mallott, who evaluated projects based on innovation, commercialization potential and impact.

Raptic pitch Competition Judge panel includes: Oliver Couture, Caroline Crisafulli, Panya Taysavang, Hanping Guan and Mandy Mallott

The competition marked an important milestone for RAPTIC, providing faculty innovators with an opportunity to refine their pitches, receive expert feedback and connect with potential collaborators, investors and commercialization partners. The strong turnout and broad range of technologies showcased the depth of innovation taking place across Ohio State and advancing research discoveries toward real-world adoption.

Julie Johnson, PharmD, is the Director and Principal Investigator at The Ohio State University Clinical and Translational Science Institute.