final report - owlspark · 3 . owlspark 2014 final report founded by students in 2013, owlspark is...

Final RepoRt

R i c e U n i v e R s i t y s ta R t U p a c c e l e R at o R

May 19 – august 15, 2014Willy’s PubRice univeRsity MeMoRial centeRWWW.oWlsPaRk.coM

2 . oWlsPaRk 2014 Final RePoRt

contents 3 . about owlspark

4 . 2014 snapshot

6 . class of 2014

7 . curriculum

8 . skills Development

10 . the Bayou startup showcase

14 . Forward-looking initiatives

15 . sponsors

16 . appendix


Founded by students in 2013, owlspark is a Rice University startup accelerator that fosters innovative business ideas and serves as a catalyst for students and faculty to create sustainable, competitive, technology-based enterprises. it is a leader in promoting multi-disciplinary entrepreneurship through education, mentorship and wide-ranging community engagement.

over the last three years, it is estimated that more than 500 students have been touched by owlspark’s reach. events internal to Rice, such as business plan competitions, venture challenges, elevator pitch competitions, and a number of other entrepreneurial-focused activities have resulted in the launch of several promising Rice startups, all of which benefit from the increased entrepreneurial activities and mentoring services led by owlspark.

about oWlsPaRk


For its second cohort, owlspark reviewed applications from 35 potential startup teams and admitted eight into its summer program. From May 19 through august 15, owlspark delivered an intensive core curriculum based on the lean launchpad methodology, enriched it with specialty business topics, provided access to on-going mentorship, featured office hours with serial entrepreneurs, and organized professional networking events and field trips. Housed in Willy’s pub, owlspark created a unique co-working space for 20 aspiring entrepreneurs that offered inspiration, stimulation, education, and motivation to launch Rice University’s newest startups. Willy’s pub served as an ideal venue for hosting weekly social events that over the course of the summer attracted over 300 of Houston’s most active players in the extended entrepreneurial community.

the success oF oWlsPaRk can be MeasuRed FRoM Many PeRsPectiveseducational outcoMescollectively, our founders experienced a 13% increase in knowledge gain from the start to the end of the program.

educational qualityour founders participated in more than 65 different educational sessions and learned from over 40 unique speakers, totaling more than 160 hours of enriched experiential training.

doMain exPeRtiseOur founders benefited from receiving strategic and tactical guidance from subject matter experts as measured by more than 100 unique mentor engagements.

coMMunity engageMentOur founders benefited from attending 10 separate networking events and 4 separate field trips that enhanced their networking skills and extended their community reach by more than 600 people.

PRogRaM PeRcePtionthe enhanced quality of owlspark’s offerings improved the perception of its overall quality.

coMMunity collaboRationthe collaboration with ReD labs enriched our program through cohesive cooperation, shared resources, increased community

2014 snaPshot


awareness, increased event attendance, and increased mentor impact.

bayou staRtuP shoWcase iMPactOn August 14, the OwlSpark program culminated with the first annual Bayou startup showcase, a joint demo day made possible through our collaboration with the ReD labs and the University of Houston Bauer School of Business. The Bayou Startup Showcase attracted over 420 attendees and people from as far away as norway joined in watching the event as it was live streamed online. as measured by the quality of positive feedback and the 25 percent increased attendance over the last year, the first annual Bayou Startup Showcase was a galvanizing event for the Greater Houston entrepreneurial community.

MayoRal PRoclaMationInitiated by OwlSpark, Houston Mayor Annise Parker proclaimed August 14, 2014 as “Houston Entrepreneurship Day” in celebration of entrepreneurship, the startup community in Houston, and the university accelerator programs that support them.

Media Recognitionowlspark and its startups were also featured in more than 20 stories that appeared in a number of national and local media outlets throughout the summer, including the Houston Business Journal, Houston Chronicle, and Xconomy.


class oF 2014after a rigorous application, vetting, and interview process, the owlspark leadership team and Board of Directors agreed on a cohort of eight teams developing innovative technologies in life sciences, consumer products, energy, social media, and education.

big delta systeMsMaking freeform power sources in any shape or size, and even flexible, to enable the design of beautiful, ergonomic and long-lasting wearable devices.

dibsGenerating beautiful data visualizations on the fly without programming or complex interfaces.

hosPitableproviding a user-centered hospital overbed table which allows patients to eat with dignity, independence, and improved health.

nexus soFtWaReoffering the power of collaborative and intuitive group photo/video sharing to consumers through corners! app.

one JuMPoffering a platform that inspires underserved students to pursue college degrees by connecting them with role models and educational enrichment opportunities.

PRosus healtha robotic arm for wheelchair-dependent individuals that provides increased independence at an affordable cost.

Rebel PutteRa patent-pending, high-performance putter that will let beginning and intermediate golfers never three-putt again.

you hoot Mea web-based geographical social discovery tool that allows users to connect one-on-one via a random video chat service.

80% Male

20% FeMale

2 – 3 MeMbeRs PeR teaM

11 students5 aluMni2 Faculty

2 non-Rice

70% engineeRing

MaJoRs

20FoundeRs & coFoundeRs


one of the largest factors that differentiate University-based accelerators from traditional for-profit accelerator models is the focus on rigorous education and measurable knowledge gained.

the 2014 owlspark curriculum was curated over several months and featured 65 sessions and 40 unique speakers. the curriculum was structured to provide:

lean launch fundamentals and a deep dive into value propositions, customer acquisition, distribution channels, pricing models, and go-to-market strategies;

business fundamentals including market research, product development, business milestones, intellectual property, sales, funding sources, corporate formation, accounting literacy, and financial models;

effective leadership and management principles that focused on educating and developing participants to become inspiring leaders, exceptional team members and confidant entrepreneurs; and,

consolidation of fundamentals and preparation for launch through personal coaching and numerous pitch practices.

We also featured a startup Founders series where local entrepreneurs shared their stories of success and failure, and a weekly leadership lunch series, led by the Rice center for engineering leadership (Rcel), to instill components of leadership, management, negotiation, and team-building through discussions, case studies, and interactive simulations.

cuRRiculuM


skills develoPMentat the end of the summer, the owlspark Founders participated in an exit survey, which asked them to rate the various elements of the program and invited their suggestions for improvement. the overall quality of the 2014 program as either “excellent” or “above average” by all of this year’s Founders. additionally, we created a comprehensive assessment tool to measure the continued development and knowledge gain of our Founders that tracks 60 deeper, hard-to-come-by principles involved in an entrepreneurial education.

knoWledge gain

68%

81%

total coRRect

24%16%

total incoRRect

8%3%

total unsuRe

i’m not sure that

anything can truly

prepare a person

for the whirlwind

process of launching

a technology startup.

However, I am sure

i can’t think of any

better preparation

than owlspark.hoW likely aRe you to RecoMMend PaRticiPating in oWlsPaRk to FRiends, classMates & otheR Rice-aFFiliated staRtuPs?

9.84outoF 10

do you believe the oWlsPaRk PRogRaM adequately PRePaRed you to launch a technology-based staRtuP?

74% yes 32% FoR the Most PaRt 0% no

PRE-ASSESSMENTPOST-ASSESSMENT


PeRcent oF FoundeRs Who Rated “signiFicant iMPRoveMent” oR “ModeRate iMPRoveMent” in the FolloWing skills as a Result oF theiR oWlsPaRk exPeRience

netW

oRki

ng

26

68

53

4253

26

11

68

47

21

coM

Mun

icat

ion

tiM

e-M

anag

eMen

t

nego

tiat

ion

lead

eRsh

iP

PeRcent oF FoundeRs Who Rated the iMPact FRoM the FolloWing oWlsPaRk eleMents as “stRongly beneFicial”

bayou staRtuP shoWcase95 MentoR

MashuP89cuRRiculuM& sessions89 MentoRing84Pitch PRactice84 Red labs

collaboRation56co-WoRking sPace53 netWoRking events

& social houRs47Field tRiPs26 eiR oFFice houRs21leadeRshiP lunch seRies21 launchPad centRal

soFtWaRe tool11

SIGNIFICANT IMPROVEMENTMODERATE IMPROVEMENT


the bayoustaRtuP shoWcase

on august 14, 2014, Rice University’s owlspark accelerator and the University of Houston’s RED Labs accelerator co-hosted the first annual Bayou Startup Showcase. Houston Mayor Annise Parker proclaimed August 14, 2014 as “Houston Entrepreneurship Day” in celebration of entrepreneurship, the startup community in Houston, and the university accelerator programs that support them.

the event offered the opportunity for startup teams from both accelerator programs to showcase their businesses to over 420 successful entrepreneurs, business executives, mentors, accredited investors, and media, as well as fellow faculty, staff, and students from both universities. attendance increased 25 percent from last year, up from 325.

Why attend? peRcentage oF PEOPLE wHO RAnkED THE fOLLOwInG AS “EXTREMELy IMPORTAnT” OR “vERy IMPORTAnT”

86%

suPPoRt houston’s entRePReneuRial systeM

85%

61%

netWoRk With otheRsWhat did attendees think oF the event? PERCEnTAGE Of PEOPLE wHO RAnkED THE fOLLOwInG ELEMEnTS AS “EXCELLEnT” OR “ABOvE AvERAGE”

suPPoRt entRePReneuRs

oveRall quality

quality oF staRtuP teaM Pitches

quality oF shoWcase

98%96%94%


very high quality presentation overall and the pitches were perfect. i found it to be a profound moment in the history of the Houston startup community. The city government with the two universities united under the spirit of entrepreneurship is what will make this city insanely great.

everyone should be proud of this event and how it came off. it was well coordinated and frankly these young teams appeared more prepared then many more mature entities presenting at other venues across Houston. Congratulations.

the most compelling part to me was the branding of the event, and by association, the branding of both schools. this truly generated excitement about the event, and during the presentations. plus, the collaboration between the two institutions was apparent and a huge positive. the entire event suggested that an atmosphere of entrepreneurship continues to build in Houston, and that is pretty exciting.

loved every second of it.

the entire event was absolutely fantastic. i think the quality of the team that planned and executed this event were very successful in bring the Houston community together for a high-impact event that will jump start the city’s entrepreneurial initiatives.

Made me proud of Rice and U of H for the enormous volunteer effort. i really enjoyed the event. excellent way to showcase some of the innovation incubation and how owlspark / ReD labs pair technical innovation with market data and a business plan.

What did attendees say about the event?


geneRating buzzthroughout the summer, owlspark startup teams were featured in local and national media publications including the Houston Business Journal, Houston Chronicle, and Xconomy. In addition, OwlSpark communicated with its stakeholders through weekly newsletters spotlighting a startup team and mentor, and through regular social media interactions with the Houston startup ecosystem.

social Media hits

405 lIkES15% FOllOwER INCREASE IN PAST 3 MONThSTOTAl REACh: 2,300 PEOPlE IN 10 COuNTRIES

542 FOllOwERS25% FOllOwER INCREASE IN PAST 3 MONThS

1,140 SubSCRIbERS37% OPEN RATE (20 – 23% INDuSTRy AVERAGE)20% SubSCRIbER INCREASE IN PAST 3 MONThS

Media hits

CElEbRATING hOuSTON’S STARTuP ECOSySTEM – bAyOu STARTuP ShOwCASE FEATuRES ENTREPRENEuRS Senthil natarajan, Houston Chronicle

hOuSTON uNIVERSITIES lAuNCh STARTuPS, AwESOMENESS AT bAyOu ShOwCASE Benjamin a. ochoa, blog post

STuDENT ENTREPRENEuRS DEbuT IN hOuSTON’S FIRST “bAyOu ShOwCASE” Angela Shah, Xconomy

COllAbORATIVE ShOwCASE bRINGS STARTuPS FROM uh, RICE Joe Martin, Houston Business Journal

TwO ENTREPRENEuR PROGRAMS hElP hOuSTON ESTAblISh ITSElF AS A MARkET FOR NEw IDEAS AND INNOVATION Madison Henry, Houston Business Journal

hOuSTONIANS TO kNOw: ThESE ENTREPRENEuRS ARE ON ThE RISE Joe Martin, Houston Business Journal

ON TOP OF ThE wORlD AGAIN: RICE AllIANCE NAMED NO. 1 uNIVERSITy buSINESS INCubATOR Olivia Pulsinelli, Houston Business Journal


NEw STARTuP ShOwCASE wIll FOCuS ON DIVERSE INDuSTRIES Mark yost, Houston Business Journal

hOuSTON TO GET ANOThER buSINESS PlAN COMPETITION Mark yost, Houston Business Journal

ExPANDING ENTREPRENEuRShIP: RICE’S OwlSPARk TO FORM NATIONAl ACCElERATOR NETwORk Molly Ryan, Houston Business Journal

DIbS’S bIOwhEEl AIMS TO PAINT A DyNAMIC PICTuRE OF lIFE SCIENCES DATA Angela Shah, Xconomy

STARTuP SuMMER SChOOl: RICE’S PROSThETITECh buIlDS A RObOTIC ARM Angela Shah, Xconomy

RICE AllIANCE TAPS NORThwESTERN’S hOChbERG TO bOOST ENTREPRENEuRShIP Angela Shah, Xconomy

RICE’S OwlSPARk CREATES NETwORk OF uNIVERSITy-bASED ACCElERATORS Angela Shah, Xconomy

APP GIVES STuDENTS ‘ONE JuMP’ IN ThE RIGhT DIRECTION mtruehilliii, cW39

RED lAbS, OwlSPARk ACCElERATORS PARTNER TO bRING bAyOu STARTuP ShOwCASE TO hOuSTON Danielle Ponder, University of Houston news

RICE AllIANCE FOR TEChNOlOGy AND ENTREPRENEuRShIP NAMED NO. 1 uNIVERSITy buSINESS INCubATOR IN ThE wORlD RICE AllIANCE EARNS TOP SPOT TwO yEARS IN A ROw Jeff falk, Rice University news

RICE, uNIVERSITy OF hOuSTON TEAM uP FOR bAyOu STARTuP ShOwCASE Jeff falk, Rice University news

RICE uNIVERSITy AND uNIVERSITy OF hOuSTON JOIN IN CElEbRATION OF ENTREPRENEuRShIP AT FIRST bAyOu STARTuP ShOwCASE AuG. 14 Jeff falk, Rice University news

RADIO INTERVIEw wITh JAy VINEkAR ON bREAkThROuGh RADIO Michele price, Breakthrough Radio


FoRWaRd-lookinginitiativesas evidenced by the progress made over the last year, owlspark provides value to the students, faculty and extended Rice University community. We are proud to serve as a catalyst for promoting entrepreneurship, to be a provider of enriched experiential learning opportunities, an educational resource for launching Rice-based startups, a portal for engaging mentors and investors from the business and alumni community, and a beacon for external visibility and recognition by the media, the Houston community, and national and international ranking sources.

OwlSpark does more than fill a critical demand for hands-on entrepreneurship experiences – it provides a roadmap for innovation and commercialization. as our students and faculty face a lifetime of technological advances, entrepreneurial opportunities, and personal challenges, their success will likely be determined by their ability to deploy the skills we emphasize – creativity, persistence, passion and resilience. the impact of owlspark isn’t just in the development of emerging business ventures, but in raising the aspirations of our students and faculty across the university. We invite Rice University to continue supporting and promoting our mission through continued funding and permanent space allocation.


sPonsoRs

geneRous aluMniallen gilMeR . Rod Johnson . Michael kane . John sPenceR

16 . oWlsPaRk 2014 Final RePoRt / aPPendix

17 . team Reports & executive summaries

64 . Featured Mentors & speakers

70 . Management team

aPPendix


18 . Big Delta systems

23 . DiBs

29 . HospiTable

35 . nexus software

41 . One Jump

45 . Prosus Health

56 . Rebel putter

60 . youHootMe

teaM RePoRts &executive suMMaRies

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

Business Summary: Big Delta Systems will change the way electronic devices will be designed and utilized by freeing designers and manufacturers from the constraints of today’s batteries. Big Delta Systems has a new manufacturing process that can make power cells in any shape, size, and that can even be made flexible. Starting with wearable technology, Big Delta Systems sees future applications for its freeform and flexible power cells from portable electronics to aerospace and defense, and will generate revenue by outsourcing manufacturing and licensing intellectual property.

Website: www.BigDeltaSystems.com Team: Charudatta Galande, PhD Neelam Singh, PhD Adrian Yao Suman Khatiwada, PhD Shahriar Khan, MBA Contact info: [email protected] Advisors: Pradeep Anand President, SEETA Resources Robert Miller CTO, Paper Battery Co. Wendy Hoenig CEO, H&H Business Development Pulickel Ajayan Professor and Chair, Materials Science & Nano-Engineering, Rice University Capital received to-date: $50,000 Investor to-date: Private angel investor: Michael Kane Managing Director, Caltius Capital Rice Alumnus

Customer Problem: Designers and manufacturers of electronic devices often must design their products around the shape of the battery, because batteries today are limited to only rectangular or cylindrical shapes and often take up to 40% of the volume. Thus, there is high demand for power sources that can be freeform and even flexible. With these freeform and flexible power sources, designers and manufacturers can now improve battery life by using underutilized volume, while also being able to have complete freedom over the design of their products.

Product: Big Delta Systems has a new patent-pending manufacturing process of making power cells using a layer-by-layer additive process. These power cells can take any shape, size, and can even be made flexible. As the technology was invented by the two co-founders at Rice University, Big Delta Systems has secured a 1-year option on the core patent, and will enter into license agreement with Rice in the near future. Target Market: With a technology that is attractive across numerous markets, Big Delta Systems is facing a total addressable battery market of $21 billion in 2018. But in the short term, Big Delta Systems has chosen to first target wearable technology for the fastest time to market. The wearable technology market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 37% and projected to reach a size of $30.2 billion in 2018. Of this market, the addressable battery market is estimated to be $77 million. Customers: Big Delta Systems is initially targeting designers and manufacturers of wearable electronic devices, ranging from infotainment to fitness purposes. Thereafter, Big Delta Systems will enter into the larger battery market of portable electronics. In parallel, Big Delta Systems is already in early talks with NASA to develop wearable batteries for space suits, and has other samples being launched on the next Boeing X-37 flight to outer space for testing. Business Model: Big Delta Systems will outsource manufacturing to bring its own products to market, but will also license certain fields of use of its patent portfolio to generate revenue sooner.

Competitors: Competitors of Big Delta Systems either (1) make standard rectangular or cylindrical cells, (2) use conventional processes to make freeform cells at very high prices, or (3) have new battery chemistries to make freeform and/or flexible cells that sacrifice performance and are unproven.

Competitive Advantage: • Big Delta Systems’ manufacturing process is based on spray coating—a mature process that

is extremely scalable and can be up to three times faster than conventional methods • Big Delta Systems has a new manufacturing process rather than new chemistry—thus it does

not sacrifice performance and reduces risk by using the same proven chemistries used today • The manufacturing process is also adaptable to new battery chemistries—giving Big Delta

Systems unmatched versatility in the battery space


adRian yao . [email protected] tremendously in developing an entrepreneurial

understanding, lingo, and connections that kick started my startup career path.

chaRu galande . [email protected] helped create a structured way of thinking and

connected me to some of the best minds in business. the amount of goodwill in the Houston community for Rice and OwlSpark rubbed off on our company. personally, i learnt more at owlspark than most of my classwork. thanks a ton.

neelaM singh . [email protected] can learn to do business.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

Business Summary: Big Delta Systems will change the way electronic devices will be designed and utilized by freeing designers and manufacturers from the constraints of today’s batteries. Big Delta Systems has a new manufacturing process that can make power cells in any shape, size, and that can even be made flexible. Starting with wearable technology, Big Delta Systems sees future applications for its freeform and flexible power cells from portable electronics to aerospace and defense, and will generate revenue by outsourcing manufacturing and licensing intellectual property.

Website: www.BigDeltaSystems.com Team: Charudatta Galande, PhD Neelam Singh, PhD Adrian Yao Suman Khatiwada, PhD Shahriar Khan, MBA Contact info: [email protected] Advisors: Pradeep Anand President, SEETA Resources Robert Miller CTO, Paper Battery Co. Wendy Hoenig CEO, H&H Business Development Pulickel Ajayan Professor and Chair, Materials Science & Nano-Engineering, Rice University Capital received to-date: $50,000 Investor to-date: Private angel investor: Michael Kane Managing Director, Caltius Capital Rice Alumnus

Customer Problem: Designers and manufacturers of electronic devices often must design their products around the shape of the battery, because batteries today are limited to only rectangular or cylindrical shapes and often take up to 40% of the volume. Thus, there is high demand for power sources that can be freeform and even flexible. With these freeform and flexible power sources, designers and manufacturers can now improve battery life by using underutilized volume, while also being able to have complete freedom over the design of their products.

Product: Big Delta Systems has a new patent-pending manufacturing process of making power cells using a layer-by-layer additive process. These power cells can take any shape, size, and can even be made flexible. As the technology was invented by the two co-founders at Rice University, Big Delta Systems has secured a 1-year option on the core patent, and will enter into license agreement with Rice in the near future. Target Market: With a technology that is attractive across numerous markets, Big Delta Systems is facing a total addressable battery market of $21 billion in 2018. But in the short term, Big Delta Systems has chosen to first target wearable technology for the fastest time to market. The wearable technology market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 37% and projected to reach a size of $30.2 billion in 2018. Of this market, the addressable battery market is estimated to be $77 million. Customers: Big Delta Systems is initially targeting designers and manufacturers of wearable electronic devices, ranging from infotainment to fitness purposes. Thereafter, Big Delta Systems will enter into the larger battery market of portable electronics. In parallel, Big Delta Systems is already in early talks with NASA to develop wearable batteries for space suits, and has other samples being launched on the next Boeing X-37 flight to outer space for testing. Business Model: Big Delta Systems will outsource manufacturing to bring its own products to market, but will also license certain fields of use of its patent portfolio to generate revenue sooner.

Competitors: Competitors of Big Delta Systems either (1) make standard rectangular or cylindrical cells, (2) use conventional processes to make freeform cells at very high prices, or (3) have new battery chemistries to make freeform and/or flexible cells that sacrifice performance and are unproven.

Competitive Advantage: • Big Delta Systems’ manufacturing process is based on spray coating—a mature process that

is extremely scalable and can be up to three times faster than conventional methods • Big Delta Systems has a new manufacturing process rather than new chemistry—thus it does

not sacrifice performance and reduces risk by using the same proven chemistries used today • The manufacturing process is also adaptable to new battery chemistries—giving Big Delta

Systems unmatched versatility in the battery space

OWLSPARK FINAL REPORT Big Delta Systems

1.0 Overall Summary The founding team of Big Delta Systems consists of members mostly trained in technical fields, so the OwlSpark accelerator program was crucial to the successful launch of our company. In general, there were three main areas that we found most helpful from OwlSpark, and they were: exposure, framework, and audience. The sessions that OwlSpark hosted were mostly of very high quality, as the speakers were extremely knowledgeable and generally open to post-session discussions. These sessions were a very useful collection of topics that exposed us to things that we may have otherwise not thought about, and this exposure was crucial in helping us develop the ability to speak in the language of an entrepreneur. While the sessions were organized in a curriculum-like fashion, it was rather difficult to mentally connect the sessions in a logical flow, so the sessions appeared to have been more of a collection rather than a curriculum—albeit a collection of high-quality sessions. Having said that, the first couple of weeks did provide a more solid framework with sessions organized around the lean canvas, and we saw value in the framework that it provided us as a strategy to think about the business. Mainly, this pushed us onto a path of speaking to potential customers and thinking about revenue streams. However, it did seem like there was an overemphasis on the lean canvas in the beginning, and several of the sessions that came later would have been helpful if they were scheduled earlier—especially since many of the later sessions seemed much more valuable. Finally, the OwlSpark accelerator was extremely valuable in being a stage for the startup teams to build an audience. This seemed to prove more useful in attracting investors than mentors as the mentor acquisition process could use improvement on becoming a two-way vetting process (as discussed in our exit interview). The ability for us to have a venue to pitch at the Bayou Startup Showcase, or even Mentor Mashup, was really a way for us to be exposed to the world and get our name out there while also being pre-vetted for legitimacy by an organization such as Rice. This would have otherwise been a very difficult process if we were trying to startup without an accelerator. And with an audience already built, we found OwlSpark to be very helpful in developing and perfecting our pitch so that we put our best foot forward in public. While we have laid out three main areas that we seemed to have taken most from OwlSpark, it is still difficult to quantify and express exactly how OwlSpark helped us move forward. However, the success, impact, and educational value of the OwlSpark accelerator program can often be realized—to an overwhelming extent—once you consider the question “where would I be if it weren’t for OwlSpark?” In our case, we most likely would have fallen flat given our lack of business experience and mindset, and so we greatly appreciate what OwlSpark has done for us.

2.0 Achievements The following detail the achievements made throughout the fourteen-week program:

• Customer Engagements: o 31 Companies Contacted, 8 Responses of Interest, 3 Formal Interviews

• Mentor Engagements: o 32 Mentor Engagements with 17 Mentors/Contacts

• Investor Engagements: o 6 Investor Engagements with 5 Investors

• Prototyping Progress: o First robotic spray machine fully automated for battery manufacturing o Watchstrap battery prototype developed (worn on Demo Day)

• Other Achievements: o Attended SBIR Conference in Washington, D.C. in June

! Gauged interested and spoke with members of federal agencies o Submitted application to Goradia Innovation Prize

! Business plan draft completed ! Still awaiting results

o “Shifted focus” away from UAV market to wearable devices market o Negotiated first angel investment from Rice Alumnus o Built pro-forma cash flow statement o Reincorporated into C-Corp o Signed Option Agreement with Rice for a 1-year option on intellectual

property 3.0 Lessons Learned The following detail general lessons learned:

• Governmental agencies are slow • A customer segment that makes a lot of sense in terms of value proposition and

need may not be the most attractive • Mentor feedback can often be conflicting and it is up to us to digest and

determine our next steps • Manufacturing our own batteries as an OEM is not feasible • A ton about business strategy • A ton about legal ins and outs • A ton about finances and investments • A ton about intellectual property

4.0 Milestones and Goals for next 12 Months

• Continue reaching out to customers • Demonstrate ability to make prototypes that customers request (i.e. jagged

crescent shaped battery, watchstrap battery, etc.) • Find office/external lab space for Big Delta Systems • Raise an additional $450,000 through seed investments and grants • License core patents from Rice

The resources that we will need to achieve those goals primarily include (1) finding an office space for our own development so intellectual property is separate from Rice, (2) capital to buy equipment and fund technology development, and (3) connections to people that can help with potential customers, partners, or investors. OwlSpark was an extremely valuable experience for all three co-founders at Big Delta Systems, and we thank the management team for all of their hard work in making it a reality. We look forward to staying in touch, and to help with any future developments with OwlSpark and the next class of co-horts.


alex bisbeRg . [email protected] was a great introduction to the surprisingly small Houston

start-up community.

Wendy (chenyu) hu . [email protected] very enriching and fun summer at owlspark and a path to the

entrepreneurial community.

aMina qutub . [email protected]

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EASEL, based on our award‐winning design, is aninteractive cloud‐based visualization platform that helpsyou understand data which was previously unintelligible.The multiple interactive visualizations offered by EASELgive you unprecedented power over your data. Identify connections between patients, twitter feeds,

or business transactions using EASEL’s network graph. Discover client trends in buying patterns over time

with EASEL’s connection plot. Track 3D changes in tumors to design drugs using

EASEL’s bio‐inspired maps.

The DiBS Solution: EASEL

Catalyzes discovery and empowers people by interactive visualization

Harnessing the power of data could lead to newdiscoveries across industries like energy, education,marketing, and healthcare.

Problem: Deciphering High‐Dimensional DataProblem: Deciphering High‐Dimensional Data

250 protein levels, 50 clinical characteristics, 40,000cells, 14 weekly cell phone entries recording 30 min ofaerobic exercise, 1 patient. With the advent of rapid‐throughput biomedical technologies, biomedical dataof this sort has become common. What to do with ithas become the challenge.

T H E D ATA D E L U G E

Interactive High‐dimensional data can be explored without complex analyses. Programming Free EASEL’s drag‐and‐drop feature and easy‐to‐use modules empower doctors and researchers without programming experience. Raw Data Sensitive, clinically‐relevant data is left strictly to the interpretation of the medical expert.Cloud‐Based Multiple users can simultaneously work on data and share single visualization projects.

F E AT U R E S O F E A S E L

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Catalyzes discovery and empowers people by interactive visualization

Experts in data analytics & visualization Collective 10 yrs experience in clinical data Start‐up, venture & management experience Data Competition DREAM 8 Winners, DREAM 9

Leads

The DiBS TeamThe DiBS Team

Our 2015 product launch will be supported by a two‐tier revenue model aimed at the healthcare & life sciences visualization market: (1) direct licenses to individual clinicians and researchers and (2) an enterprise license to medical institutes. We have determined a competitive pricing strategy to reach this customer base.

The Market & Market StrategyThe Market & Market Strategy

From Left to Right

• Alex Bisberg• Chenyue Hu • Amina Qutub

IP & MilestonesIP & Milestones

We have five patents pending on visualization and analytic techniques. We are in the phase of beta‐testing Easel with high‐profile labs and researchers at Texas Medical Center. We plan to launch Easel by the start of 2015. Our goal is to acquire 1 enterprise license and 400 customer subscriptions one year after the launch.

Contact Information

Email: [email protected]

Phone: (832)603‐1294

Report on DiBS, Summer 2014 Overall Summary

Over the course of the summer, we learned through Owlspark many of the steps needed to run a start-up company. We also made significant progress on the company: refining our market strategy, adding features to our product, obtaining our first potential clients and identifying the company’s next steps. Below, we summarize our achievements, lessons learned and future goals. Company Achievements (6/2014-8/2014)

We continued to develop our product, Easel, during the summer. Prior to joining OwlSpark, we had a basic two-module product demo, Biowheel. Based on feedback from our potential customers and mentors, we renamed the product from Biowheel to Easel, which is less confusing and encompasses more functionality. We also added a third module, Rectangular Heatmap, as suggested by some users. We successfully implemented the export function in the software which quickly converts the visualization into a variety of images, including png, pdf and svg. With help from designers at Alberry, we redesigned the software interface, which is not only closer to industry standard but also easier to navigate and use.

The mentor mashup was very fruitful for us, from which we were fortunately matched with 16 mentors across industries, including healthcare, software, oil and gas, etc. We were meeting with mentors frequently during the summer (more than one meeting per week on average) and got a lot of feedback and advice. We were mostly engaged with Neal Murthy, who offered us advice on pricing strategies, defining value proposition and marketing. We were also meeting with Adam Wulf, Bryan Haardt and Matt Barnett, from whom we received help on technical problems during developing the product. Sanju Patel was helpful on the customer side that not only helped to set up meetings with Robert Murphy and Cheryl Chanaud at Memorial Hermann, but also walked us through the standard beta-testing and approval procedure at Memorial Hermann. Geeyu Li, Alok Pant, Brad Wilson, as well as Zhan Kakishev, helped to shape our pitch and offered us general guidance.

At the same time, we were actively talking to potential customers and recruiting high-profile labs in Houston to beta-test our product. Our current beta-testers include Erin Fox at UT-Health, Lynda Chin’s group at M.D. Anderson, Pierre Floriano (Sam Hanash Lab) at M.D. Anderson, and Steven Kornblau at M.D. Anderson. Each of these groups has a different focus in research and clinic, covering oncology, epigenetics, epidemiology, etc. Talking to these customers helped us to validate our value proposition, as well as to improve the product design and utility based on their needs.

We have made big decisions this summer that help define the direction of the company, including (1) defining a go-to market (biomedicine) for our product Easel as well as future markets (e.g. energy, education); (2) deciding to work on the big-data visualization platform for MD Anderson’s Oncology Expert Advisor system, in which we have been asked to develop a demo for them in sixty days to vie for a large contract.

In summary, we have accomplished our summer goals including (1) negotiating and close to obtaining an exclusive license from Rice Technology Transfer Office; (2) figuring out the value proposition and reshaping the product to better deliver the value; (3) getting in touch with local hospitals and labs for beta-testing the product; and (4) understanding the lean start-up approach and practicing pitch skills. Lessons learned from OwlSpark This summer at OwlSpark we learned many new lessons applicable to our start-up. Monday lunch sessions with David Nino and Kaz Karwowski gave us valuable insights into leadership and negotiation skills. The case studies were especially important to be able to see these techniques applied in real world situations. We learned tips to negotiate more aggressively when we were looking to make a deal, like naming a higher price than desired. The Everest simulation gave us a taste of decision making to achieve milestones.

We also learned some valuable lessons in investing and finance throughout the summer. Blair Garou gave a great overview about the types and stages of investments. We learned a good way to start funding the company is with a convertible note from an Angel investor or early stage VC. This will delay valuation until later rounds of financing. After a seed round, we could look for series A at an ‘inflection point’ in the business. Inflection points and milestones are key to determining when to seek the next round of funding. Gray Hancock showed us how the division of equity would work after an investment by working through a cap table. This was valuable, as it gave context to the capitalization strategy that our lawyers prepared for DiBS, including allocation of founders stock, which will be vested over three years. Danielle Supkis helped us better understand preparing a proforma to predict the business costs that we will incur. Paul O’Brien gave us important tools for marketing our business online. We learned that we should feed social media to our website. We need a blog to keep a captive audience. Getting users on the site is key to getting subscribers. These are optimal strategies to reach the consumer market, however our tool can also be marketed for a larger enterprise license taking a more personal sales approach. Participating in OwlSpark has also introduced us to the startup community. We’ve learned about start-up sanctuaries like Platform Houston in Rice Village and START Houston downtown. Meet-ups are a great place to find new developers and entrepreneurs. Milestones and Goals (Next 12 months)

The next two months will be a critical period for the company. In the next week or two, we will sign a contract with Rice’s Technology Transfer to obtain an exclusive license on five technologies. We have been given a 60-day opportunity to work on M.D. Anderson’s Moonshot project the Oncology Expert Adviser (OEA) system. Our goal is to deliver a prototype and demo that impresses so that by the end of the 60 days we secure a contract on the OEA System. This contract alone could provide sustainable funding for the start-up, while also providing extensive worldwide publicity for our work, and connections with IBM, Apple and AT&T. Along with this goal, we will continue development of EASEL for use by individuals. EASEL will be launched as a product in early 2015. We also hope to move into a location at the BRC 10th floor or become part of the TMC Innovation Center by January 2015.

Resources Required to Achieve Goals

We are currently bootstrapping the company, and thus working while using minimum resources required to achieve our goals. We would greatly benefit from having office space dedicated to the company at the BRC or at the TMC Innovation Center. Travel funds to present demos at conferences and to

pitch to other potential clients would be ideal. In the near term, and certainly should we obtain a contract this winter, we plan to hire 2-3 programmers with industry-standard experience in JavaScript and database expertise. Lastly, we seek marketing and sales advice; and advice on pricing / negotiation on large software contracts for biomedical clients.

O E A & E A S E LD e v .

P R O D U C T L A U N C H

1 E N T E R P R I S E4 0 0 I N D I V I D U A L S

AUG – OCT 2014 JAN 2015 JAN 2016


aJ velasquez Mao . [email protected] was for me one of the most impactful motivators and

growth factors imaginable this summer. i came in with nothing more than an idea, a caD, and a roommate, and left with life-long mentors, an understanding of how successful businesses are built, a patent, and a plan moving forward. above all, as a result of owlspark’s support, I am more confident and will not let failure deter me.

ben hoFF . [email protected] is unconventional education at it’s best: self-motivating,

expansive, free form, collaborative, challenging and intellectually addicting.

1. American Journal of Nursing, 2000 3. Our own studies, survey of 25 nurses 2. Clinical Nutrition, 2012 4. Journal of Clinical Nursing, 2001

HospiTable Executive Summary Non-confidential

HospiTable 8-20-14

Business Summary: • HospiTable is a medical device startup out of Rice University taking a human-centered approach

to the challenge of bedbound eating in hospitals, long term care facilities and at home. • Mission of allowing bedbound patients to reclaim the act of eating while simultaneously saving

the hospital or care provider money.

Team: Aaron Velasquez-Mao Rice Bioengineering Student Class of 2017

Customer Problem: • Malnutrition affects around 40% of all hospital in-patients and is most prevalent in elderly

populations. 1

• A malnourished patient on average costs 24% more to treat. 2

• Nurses in high-care environments spend up to ¼ of their time hand feeding patients. 3

• Reforms to health insurance are shifting reimbursement to a Pay for Performance model in which hospital Length of Stay (LOS), Hospital Acquired Conditions (HACs), and Readmission Rates are key metrics in determining a hospitals margins and revenue.

2

• The largest factors contributing to eating difficulties are the mechanical challenges of manipulating food on the plate and transporting it to the mouth.

4

Ben Hoff Rice Mechanical Engineering Student Class of 2017 Contact Information: Aaron Velasquez-Mao [email protected] 713-829-3889

Product: • Our device contains 4 fundamental differentiators from conventional tables: Height adjustable

by bedbound patient, Free-Gliding Elbow Support and Spring-Assisted Forearm Support, Tremor-Deadening Handpeice, Tabletop Lazy Susan

• Provisional Patent Filed • Requires Class 1 FDA Approval

Ben Hoff [email protected] 857-222-9254 Advisors:

Target Market: • Consists of Hospitals (640 M), Skilled Care (1.36 B) and Assisted Living (960 M) • Current Market of 2.9 B for tables whose design hasn’t changed in 200 years • Tables have life span of around 10 years

Ayse McCracken President, VillageMD Houston Tom Kraft Director of Tech Ventures Development, Rice Alliance

Customers: • Primary Customer: Materials Acquisition personnel at facility (cost driven) • Secondary Customer: The patient (quality of life driven)

Neal Murthy CEO, Qukku

Sales/Marketing Strategy: • HospiTable will be the first Overbed Table which will be marketed using a cost savings model • Our product will sell in the same price range as a conventional table, yet our preliminary

calculations suggest that each table purchased will save the facility $20,000 per year. • Form direct relationships with hospitals and care facilities.

Leo Womack Investor Mark Gilbreth Patent Attorney, Gilbreth & Associates

Business Model:

• Primary revenue will come from sale of Overbed Tables, around 370,000 of which are sold per year

1) Clinical Study to validate Malnutrition Reduction 2) Small sales to Hospitals and Care Facilities for validation. Product manufactured on a small

scale locally. 3) License to larger Med. Device or Furniture Company Competitors and HospiTable’s Competitive Advantage • Large Med. Tech companies Stryker Corp and Hill-Rom are the two major players in the industry. • They offer none of the 4 fundamental differentiators of HospiTable • They do not acknowledge the connection between ease of eating and nutrition

Deborah Mansfield Director of Life Sciences, Houston Technology Center Sanju Patel Lead Analyst, Memorial Hermann, TMC

Ben Hoff and AJ Mao 8/22/14 HospiTable OwlSpark Program Conclusion

HospiTable Final Report for Rice OwlSpark Business Accelerator Part A: General Summary

Prior to the Summer of 2014, HospiTable had identified that current overbed tables were not adequately serving the needs of the hospital population, and assumed that a redesigned overbed table might ease and facilitate bedbound eating. Over the past three months, HospiTable has developed a wide and in-depth knowledge of eating in the hospital and care facility, from the mechanical aspects of getting food to the mouth to the physiological aspect of losing independence, from medical issues with malnutrition, to the economic consequences of underfed patients. Shortly after we began collecting information, we began the design and construction of our device. The appearance and function of our design underwent radical changes. Concurrently, the co-founders of HospiTable learned about go-to market strategies, channels and business models through the OwlSpark sessions, and worked to apply this new knowledge to our soon-to-be-company. Most valuable of all, the co-founders developed a network of business relationships and even friendships across the Houston medical community and startup community. These relationships provided advice, consultation and mentorship through many ambiguous and difficult decisions. The summer ended on a high note, however, as the last week of the program brought about three major milestones and achievements. First, on August 13th, a patent was filed containing claims to all patentable innovations generated by HospiTable, pertaining mainly to the overbed table. Second, on August 14th, HospiTable debuted its newly patented IP and newly developed business model to the Houston entrepreneurial community at the Bayou Startup Showcase. Third and lastly, on August 15th, the team learned that HospiTable will be offered as a technology in the Jones Graduate School of Business’s Commercializing Medical Technologies class, taught by Dr. Tom Kraft and Dr. Mike Evans. Under the likely assumption that the project is selected by a sufficient number of MBA students to constitute a team, continuing development of HospiTable will be carried out by the two co-founders, Ben Hoff and Aaron Mao, along with a team of MBAs specializing in the healthcare industry.

Part B: Achievements

Design and Prototyping - Conception and CAD of Design Concept 1- Inclined Lazy Susan (pre-OwlSpark) - Conception and CAD Drawings of Design Concept 2- Tray Swapper - Conception and rough prototype of Design Concept 3- Arm Brace and Lazy Susan - Conception, CAD Drawings, prototype and patent of Design Concept 4- The HospiTable In- depth description of most recent design concept: Four Core Features:

1) Free-moving elbow support with spring-loaded forearm bar 2) Tremor-deadening hand brace 3) Lazy susan on tabletop 4) Spring-compensated pulley system to enable table height to be changed with very little muscle.

Additional Features:

- Plug and Play Compatible: all accessories (elbow supports, mirror, book stands) can be popped into place using the table’s versatile lock and release ports to allow caregivers to customize table for patients - Easily cleaned, whiteboard maker compatible polycarbonate surface - No electric components- only mechanical. - Base width is adjustable via a simple pin and hole locking mechanism - Ball casters instead of cylindrical casters for improved on-floor maneuverability - Soft and easily cleanable vinyl surfaces for arm rests

Connections and Customer Engagements: One of HospiTable’s largest tasks this summer was developing a network of connections into the medical community to find people knowledgeable in our subjects. The co-founders developed relationships with individual nurses, caregivers, patients, and institutions. The institutions are listed below with a brief summary of who we met with.

- Memorial Hermann Hospital * Met with CEO (Craig Cordola) * Ongoing relationship with Occupational Therapist Focus Group * Met with Materials Management * Met with Clinical Dietician

- TIRR * Met with Food Services * Lunch with Spinal Cord Injury Group * Met with Physical Therapists * Met with Rehab Research Specialist Marcia O’Malley to discuss research study

- Nexus Health (Long term care in woodlands) * Relationship with CEO (Erin Cassidy) * In process of setting up informal device testing - Shriner’s Hospital Motion Analysis Lab

* Met with Rebecca Case, director, and her team including PTs, OTs, MDs, and an engineer.

- MD Anderson * Met with Dr. Hita and various nurses, conducted in-depth review of hospital room table ergonomics.

- Amazing Place * Met with Sally Davis, RN to discuss the possibility of getting feedback from patients on the ergonomics of the table.

Market Segments, Channels and Segments HospiTable plans to license our technology to a larger manufacturer or distributor of medical furniture or assistive devices. However, before we are in the position to license, customer validation is needed. This validation can take many forms. HospiTable has considered a number of alternatives, and two of these alternatives has been chosen as the working plan for moving forward. However, to make a final decision, more in-depth market and channel analysis must be conducted. Alternatives are listed below with a brief description.

Individual Sales through Med Device Vendors:

There are many online vendors who sell med devices to the general public, which is most often individuals who need that specific device. Barriers to entry are low, however, so are price points. Similar tables to those that Memorial Hermann pays $600 for sell for $80. HospiTable anticipates difficulty in this area because the HospiTable will likely be far more expensive than anything else on the market. (Anticipated HospiTable sale price 1-2k). The value proposition is centered around quality of life and dignity for the patient, and time savings for the caregiver.

Direct Sales to Hospitals and Care Facilities: Barriers to entry are high due to vendor vetting procedures and preferred vendor arrangements. However, price points are in the same order of magnitude as HospiTable. The value proposition is centered mainly around malnutrition-related cost savings, which according to our calculations can be upwards of $20,000 per year per table. The table can be marketed on a cost savings basis.

Research Study: Expensive to fund and timely, a research study would be a large commitment and lengthen our time to market. However, it is an incredibly effective way to add credibility to the cost saving impacts of HospiTable. If HospiTable is shown to reduce malnutrition by virtually any statistically relevant amount, then sales will be far easier to make. This study will fill an important void in HospiTable’s cost saving calculations.

New Facility Builds and Expansions: The founders did not have sufficient time to investigate this option.

Goals and Benchmarks Accomplished

- Memorial Hermann Relationship - Interest from Investors (Houston Health Ventures) - Patent Filed - Product Design Concept Validated

Part C: Lessons Learned from OwlSpark

The opportunity to participate in the OwlSpark Business Accelerator has imparted countless lessons on the founders of HospiTable. The most pertinent to HospiTable in particular are listed below.

1. TALK TO THE CUSTOMER. VALIDATE THE NEED. 2. Everything comes down to money. Products either save a finite number of dollars or add a finite number of dollars worth of value to the customers. Yes, it is the basis of capitalism, but sometimes its easy to lose sight of this while blinded by the coolness of new technology. 3. Time is just as important as money. The ability to move and adapt quickly is priceless. The inability to pivot is often a death sentence.

4. Relationships and connections are built on trust, reliability and passion for the work you’re doing.

Part D: Milestones and Goals for the next 12 Months Work with MBA Students in Commercializing Med Tech Class (September - December) * Identify specific go-to-market strategy * Purchasing Requirements for Hospitals vs. Nursing homes * Develop pricing structure

Test Prototype at Amazing Place and Nexus Health (September) Finalize Design with Design For Manufacturer, and Manufacture Small Run of Tables (October) Research Study to Prove Impact on Malnutrition (January - June) Market Table to Hospitals: (June - August)

Part E: Resources Required

1. Seed money for prototyping 2. Grant for research study 3. Working Space 4. FDA Advisor 5. Mentor in Medical Insurance Reimbursement 6. More connections to customers 7. PR. Articles, buzz, ect.

Cornersby Nexus Software


andReW WeatheRly . [email protected] i’ve ever learned in a 3 month period. ever.

blane toWnsend . [email protected] learned more at owlspark than i have in my entire life.

WilliaM FeRnandez . [email protected] gave me the tools to accomplish my business goals. i

feel confident enough in my abilities that I believe any business endeavor i take on from now on will be a success.

Executive Summary – Nexus Software Overview

Nexus Software is a small tech startup that focuses on producing social media applications. The current production is Corners a social media platform that allows private and public photo/video sharing in a few to few setup.

Problem and Solution Social Media today is about instant gratification. There is not a current platform today that allows a consumer to relive and share moments in real time with other users in a few to few setup. Corners allows groups of people to collaborate on photo albums and collectively document all of their memories together in one location.

Opportunity There are no social media apps on the market currently that can do what we do. There are apps that share the photo-sharing element like Instagram, Facebook, and Snapchat, however, they are not group based and are more of a singular experience rather than a collaborative.

Competitive Advantages The primary competitive advantages that we hold over our competition are: 1) We allow group photo and video sharing that can be captured and stored all in one space. 2) We allow real time photo updates of events that groups are partaking in. 3) Our servers use mongoDB which makes scaling easy.

Business Model • B2B: We allow events like South By Southwest to purchase an access code that they can distribute freely among

attendees of their event. These attendees will take pictures and record the events that take place, which will allow real time updates for people who are attending the event or missed the event. This elevates the experience for the people attending and creates buzz for those who could not make it. This not only helps support us financially but in order for people to view these updates they will need to download the app thus generating users.

• Non-for profit: Once we hit a critical mass we will allow non-for profits who use our app to add a donation button to their group for free. We will take a 10% cut of all donations that come through our platform.

• Advertising: Our average user would receive upwards of 10-15 photos a day from friends. If we integrated having

paid advertisement sent directly as short videos to users, a profit can be made. This would provide a direct avenue for companies to reach one of the hardest demographic, teenagers, who have historically been a target few advertising models could hit. Our users wouldn’t be put off by the occasional ad for companies that they already enjoy.

• In-App Purchases: Having users have the option to buy certain in-app items is another way to profit. Emoticons and other pre-made images could be sold in bundles for pennies on the dollar to users to buy these products in mass.

Financials

• Server Space: Paying for the creation and upkeep of servers is the most costly variable cost. As users skyrocket, so will the cost of server space. Luckily, the profit will also go up as companies get interested in buying advertisement.

• Transfer Costs: The cost of transferring the photos to and from devices is the other variable cost. These occur any time a user looks at a photo or video and uploads anything. These costs are very small, but can add up.

• Additional Team Members: Once we have any users and expansion, we will need to hire additional coders on a salary rather than sweat equity.

Nexus Software Final Report

By: Andrew Weatherly

a) The summer was amazing. I can say with confidence that it was the best

summer that all of us had. Will told me before that he had more fun and

learned more and grew more as a person this summer than any before.

Blane told me that he learned more this summer than he had in his

ENTIRE life beforehand. Granted that may be a bit extreme, but he stood

by it when questioned. The combination of doing something that we love

and having a great atmosphere made the summer unforgettable. 10/10

would recommend to future applicants. Kerri, Lindsay, and even Jay were

all great at what they did. They made the experience much better than it

would have been. Kerri’s jokes at the end got pretty terrible, but other than

that good summer. I don’t know how Owlspark will run without Jay and

Lindsay next year. I feel bad already for the future teams.

b) All of our achievements as a company occurred during the summer. None

beforehand. First was customer interviews. This may not seem like an

achievement, but it was the first time we had ever just gone and talked to

random people about our app to get feedback. This was crucial towards the

building of it. We interviewed a couple different focus groups of sorority

girls. Will would go up to Fort Worth and sit down with a relatively new

group every time. In total we ended up getting feedback from about 50

sorority girls throughout the summer. Feedback from other Owlspark

groups was also surprisingly helpful. Charru (I don’t know how to spell his

name) was a huge help for our big design change. Their support

throughout the program was also influential in keeping our spirits high.

The next big achievement was incorporating. This legitimized us more

than we could have imagined. Knowing that we were a legal entity re-

motivated us. After that was the release of our beta. Getting 30+ people to

download the unfinished/barely working version helped us craft our app a

lot. Following that was getting the app to be mandatory for TCU rush.

Although this is still ongoing, we have had some good results so far.

Releasing onto the app store was definitely the biggest milestone of all,

however. We had some people who we didn’t tell download our app. This

was an incredible feeling because it meant that random people found some

value in something that we had created. In terms of personal milestones, I

completely learned how to do front-end web development due to

Owlspark. I can code at a professional level on HTML and CSS. Go to

cornersapp.co to see for yourself. As far as mentor engagements go, we

had a couple incredible mentors. Karl Maier and Adam Wulf were

instrumental in the development of both our company and us as people.

Adam had a keen insight into the app world and Karl was great for our

marketing. Getting their feedback and advice throughout the program was

definitely a competitive advantage over our competitors (see those startup

buzzwords!). But actually they were a huge help. Would highly

recommend them to anyone in next year’s program, or anyone else for that

matter. In terms of decisions that we made, naming was the big one.

Anyone who ever went to Owlspark was asked for naming ideas for a

period of about 4 weeks. This decision took up a huge amount of Will’s

time. Eventually “Corners!” came from a bad joke that Blane made when

we were at our wit’s end. It stuck after extensive customer interviews,

however. The main goal that we had for the summer was to have a

released app. We accomplished the goal. We didn’t really know enough

about business to have other goals. About midway through the summer we

added a goal to have about 1,000 people on our app by the end. Right now

we are sitting at just above 600, so we are well on our way. Funding is a

more long term goal, obviously, and not something that we dreamed of

attaining until down the line.

c) Lessons learned during Owlspark could be a paper on its own. We knew

roughly nothing when we came into Owlspark. I could write a good 5

paragraph essay on each session we had throughout the summer, as they

were each extremely valuable in their own way (except the humor in

marketing one). Throughout the summer we learned how to run a

business. Everything else is just a subset of that really. I can throw around

cliché startup lingo like MVP, cloud, SEO, and others and not just be using

meaningless words anymore. Everything and anything we know about

business is due to Owlspark in one way or another. As mentioned above

the big quantifiable lesson that I personally learned was HTML, CSS, and

Javascript. Blane got really good at back-end server programming. Will

got really good at talking to random people, and succinctly explaining our

idea. We were all either bad or terrible at this before Owlspark.

d) Milestones for the next 12 month include almost exclusively users. The

only value that we add to the world is through users. Right now we are

sitting at around 600, and getting about 50 more a day. Accelerating that

growth is the only priority. Ideally, if we get enough growth, funding can

come into the question. Through Owlspark we gained a couple avenues

into Silicon Valley for funding. These will be extremely valuable if we get

to the point where it is needed. Obviously it’s only needed if we get the

users though. To reiterate and iterate, we need users. All the users.

Without them we are dead in the water. Another metric we are focusing

on as well is customer engagement. By that I mean people actually using

the app after they download it.

e) Resources required to achieve the goals are publicity. If we had an

unending marketing fund we would be able to get all 7 billion humans on

our app. Short of that, we need funding for servers and funding for

marketing. What this means is that we need funding for videographers,

and funding for putting that video around the internet. If we could make a

viral video that would help a lot, but you can’t bank on that. Publicity is

the name of the game though. Resources to get more of that are all that is

needed initially. Anyone who writes popular blogs, popular iOS review

websites, etc. are all invaluable. Any contacts there would be super

helpful. Getting people to download it is key. Although we are working on

design, we definitely need help with UX. Getting it to be more intuitive

has been a struggle for us all summer. We have gotten better at it, but still

not optimal levels.


shiRoy asPandiaR . [email protected] gives you the connections, tools, mentorship and

knowledge to take your best idea and to turn into a reality.

Juanita PaRRa . [email protected] owlspark i was able to see a tangible and growing result

for my startup, while being able to grow as a person as well. the startup world is so much more powerful than i thought and i am glad to have seen that through owlspark.

kaRthik sooRa . [email protected], owlspark has been the catalyst to our future

success.

Executive Summary

Business Summary: One Jump connects underserved students to enrichment opportunities - internships, pre-college summer camps, research experiences, and community service programs - to help them take the leap to college. Problem: Only 1 in 10 low income students will graduate from college. There are many high achieving underserved students who could attend enrichment opportunities that will help them attend college, but they don’t know their importance, nor the process of application. !Product/Services: We inspire and connect students through testimonial videos, social media, and teachers/counselors to a database of enrichment opportunities and a crowd funding platform. We offer a one-stop shop that inspires, connects, and funds underserved students seeking enrichment opportunities. !Sales/Marketing Strategy: One Jump’s website will extend beyond an aggregation tool for opportunities by eventually becoming the “Common Application” for major enrichment opportunities nationwide. After a pilot year in Houston, we aim to scale nationally and become a part of Teach for America (TFA) training for HISD, KIPP, and Yes Prep charter schools. Then,we will launch at each of the 46 TFA regions nationwide and train nearly 8,000 teachers every year on how to use One Jump’s platform and its features, connecting thousands of students. !Business Model: • Colleges spend between $100 - $2,000 to recruit a single diverse undergraduate

student. One Jump can provide them with valuable data on these students they currently do not have, but desperately want through transcripts, recommendation letters, SAT scores, and extracurricular activities.

• Many enrichment opportunity providers have trouble acquiring applicants because these providers only spend roughly 5% of net revenue on marketing. By embedding into our platform, providers save time finding applicants since they will be on one common platform.

• Urban school districts are currently facing extremely low college graduation rates. They would encourage students to use this platform in order to increase the number of college graduates. !

Competitive Advantage: • One Jump will provide students access to the biggest online database of

opportunities available in the state of Texas. • One Jump’s platform will provide a common application for all opportunities,

as well as text message notifications. • One Jump’s team has access to better channels of distribution for its platform

through Teach for America, YES Prep, and KIPP. • One Jump’s user acquisition strategy utilizes testimonial videos of students who

have similar backgrounds with that of our users. The videos are to inspire and motivate our users to apply to the opportunities and pursue a college career.

• One Jump is targeting an untapped market of underserved students.

Website: www.onejump.org !Team: Timeer Amin: NASA contractor, Rice Computer Science !Shiroy Aspandiar: Harvard ED School, Principal Management track, Teach For America Alumnus, consultant for HISD and TFA, Teacher of the Year 2013: Eastwood Academy High School !Juanita Parra: Student at Georgetown McDonough School of Business Class of 2018, Wharton Leadership in the Business World Class of 2013, 2014 Outstanding Young Women Award by HISD’s Board of Education !Neeraj Salhotra: White House intern, Teach For America Corps member, Yes Prep Charter Network teacher, Rice University Alumnus, Rhodes Finalist !Karthik Soora: Teach For America alumnus - HISD, Rice University Alumnus, Fulbright Finalist, National TFA Teacher of the Year Semi-finalist !Contact Info: Phone: (501) 952 - 5363 E-mail: [email protected] Twitter: @onejumpnow facebook.com/onejumpforward !Advisors: Ruth Lopez - Turley, Associate Director of Kinder Institute for Urban Research, Harvard PhD !Mike Feinberg, Co-Founder of KIPP, TFA Alumnus !Target Market: Pre-K -12th grade students, an estimated business market of $8 billion. !Capital received to-date: $14,265 !Capital seeking: $150,000

One Jump Report

Owlspark was incredible in helping us catalyze our idea and get it on the road to progress. Before Owlspark, we thought of a nonprofit as the sole route towards accomplishing our goal. We had the drive and vision towards achieving a goal, but Owlspark helped us acquire the skills and vocabulary to spell it into action.

The classes from Owlspark were instrumental in terms of informing us on how best to

learn the fundamentals of building our product and business. We learned how to structure our business, work effectively, make contacts, and literally do anything we wanted to in terms of our business.

We spent mentor mashup making connections with mentors who were interested in our

idea. Then, after we were connected and learned about the Lean Startup model, we began contacting them to gain feedback on our idea. From them, we realized the value of a for profit entity and began identifying specific revenue streams that would be instrumental in helping us become sustainable. We also used the space to begin building our product, as well as getting introductions to leading nonprofits and mentors throughout Houston. We also began crafting a business plan and founder’s agreement, as well as gaining mentors and advisors throughout Houston.

The pitch itself was instrumental to helping us craft our narrative and introduce us to

investors, particularly those affiliated with Rice University. We are following up with them post our pitch.

● We have one team of angel investors who is interested in investing up to $60,000 dollars.

● We have over 900 opportunities added into a database of transformational enrichment opportunities.

● We have 4 opportunities that are interested in embedding their applications into our platform.

● We have over $14,000 through crowdfunding on Indiegogo. ● We have four news articles that have been written about us in the media, ranging

from CW 39 to the IndoAmerican Times. ● We have had 2,340 visits on our indiegogo campaign web page. ● We have over 1000 Facebook followers and 300 Twitter followers. ● We have 4 Alpha test school site partners. ● We have connections to a potential 600 teachers and 75,000 students through

future partnerships with Teach for America Houston and KIPP.

● We have 5 videos that we’ve filmed of underserved students who’ve taken part in enrichment opportunities to take the leap to college.

Perhaps the most important lesson the One Jump team learned during Owlspark was the

importance of conducting customer interviews and evaluating our hypothesis for revenue streams. We labored over whether or not our product served as a MVP and what we found was that the quicker we could get our product out in the hands of customers for feedback, the better our solution would be. The lean model freed One Jump to gain valuable feedback and to iterate quickly while turning our hypothesis into customer validations.

Furthermore, One Jump learned via Owlspark the importance of being coachable and for seeking out the appropriate mentors. Without their help our team would not have been able to execute our pitch successfully and developed our business model to such a degree that it attracted investor interest.

In the next 2 months we plan to finish the beta version of our website. It will have several functionalities that will allow for students to be able to sign up and find opportunities based on their specifications, ex: I'm a freshman from New York who would like to attend a week long program about Engineering offered only in Texas schools. The student would be able to check off all of those specifications and find that specific opportunity. In that same time frame the database of over 900 opportunities aggregated will be reviewed so that every opportunity that we add to our website is legitimate enough and not a scam. Then in the following 2 3 months we plan to work with our four partnered schools to beta test our website. During this time we will obtain feedback about any necessary changes or improvements about the site. Not only that, but we will also implement our user acquisition strategy to see the amount of users yielded from our strategy and find out if it needs any modifications. In the next 3 months, we will add the remaining opportunities onto the database (since only about 100 are actually on the site right now), while fixing and improving the website. The ten videos will also be finished by this time and ready to be up on our site. We also hope to get permission from certain students to have their photographs showcased on our website. In the next 2 months, we will work with four interested opportunity providers and embed their applications onto our website. Lastly, in the last two months we hope to have a product that is worth presenting and discussing with angel investors. We aim to meet investors and secure the backing to work fulltime on One Jump.


seRgio gonzalez . [email protected] has provided me with the tools and connections i need

to not only build a start-up, but also to maintain and grow the business.

niMish Mittal . [email protected] a team we gained valuable business knowledge, mentorship,

and were given the opportunity to make tremendous progress by focusing exclusively on our business for 13 weeks.

Redefining What it Means to be in a WheelchairProsus Health is a startup company that is committed to designing assistive technologies to help individuals with disabilities. Our flagship product is a low cost wheelchair-mounted robotic arm that can provide wheelchair bound individuals the freedom to live their lives more independently

TEAMBackgroundOur device allows individuals to reach, grab, manipulate, and retrieve objects up to 4.5 ft. away and weighing up to 3 lbs; which allows them to reach the highest shelf on a standard kitchen cabinet, and lift most common household objects. This technology, and the vision for Prosus Health, were developed for our first client at Rice University in Houston, TX. as part of a freshman-level design course in 2011.

Over the last 3 years, the executive team of Matthew Nojoomi, Nimish Mittal, and Sergio Gonzalez has worked extensively to create a full-scale, fully functional, prototype. This prototype has undergone rigorous testing, an independent industry safety review, and has been beta tested with our first client for the past 6 months.

Next Steps

Nimish MittalBusiness Development

Sergio GonzalezSoftware Development

Matthew NojoomiProduct Development

Pr sushealth

Current StatusProsus Health is currently in the process of redesigning the device based on user and potential customer feedback for function, aesthetics, and manufacturability. We are also in the process of finalizing a 10 patient pilot study with the Texas Institute for Rehabilitation Research (TIRR) where we will quantitatively demonstrate the benefit of our technology over multiple age groups and disease segments.

We will soon be seeking private equity investments in the total of $250K to fund intellectual property costs, secure counsel for regulatory approval via the FDA Class I 510(k) pathway, and start small scale production. In order to continue using the prototyping resources at Rice University, Prosus Health has not yet incorporated. However, if necessary, incorporation can be accomplished at any time.

[email protected] r-arm.com

Prosus Health – Owlspark Summer 2014 Work Summary Written 8/1/14 by Nimish Mittal and Sergio Gonzalez

Overview

Over the course of 10 weeks, Prosus Health has benefited significantly through the involvement of the Owlspark Student Accelerator Program. As a part of the program, we have gained valuable knowledge about the fundamentals of business and accounting, built a network and rolodex of more than 40 mentors and potential partners, refined our go-to market strategy, and validated the need for our product through customer interviews.

FDA Approval

Information acquired through meetings with Janice Kruse (FDA consultant), Joanna Nathan (currently in FDA process), Nhan Nguyen (FDA consultant), Michael Wandell (FDA Expert), and Michael Lowe, in addition to our own research, is summarized below:

FDA Clearance: Class 1 and Class 2 devices which need FDA validation are said to be cleared not approved Clearance is based on two main principles - safety and efficacy. Safety is determined based on the quality of engineering documentation, demonstration of adherence to design and manufacturing safety standards, data from safety testing, a comprehensive failure and risks analysis, and a manufacturing facility that is has been reviewed and approved to manufacture to the required safety standards specific to the device. Efficacy is dependent on the specific claims that are made with regards to the impact and performance of the device on the consumer. This information is typically validated with clinical data, not necessarily in the form of large clinical trials, which prove that the device meets the claims that are made. This is especially important in a 510k application because the claims made by the new device have to be substantially equivalent to the claims made by the device which is chosen as a predicate. FDA Process: Before submitting any documentation to the FDA, the FDA provides companies with the opportunity to schedule a pre-submission meeting. In this meeting, a representative of the FDA will sit down with your company, go through your documentation, give you feedback, and provide guidance about the process and likely classification of your device. The estimated timeframe for having this meeting after the request is processed is approximately 90 days. While it is important to engage the FDA early, this opportunity can only be used once in a submission process so it is important to be extremely prepared before the meeting.

After altering your FDA strategy based on feedback from the pre-submission meeting, a formal submission is filed. There will be some back and forth with the FDA during the review process, but altogether the average clearance time for current devices is approximately 3 months. Our FDA Strategy: Based on information received in a phone conversation with one of our competitors, Kinova, their device was cleared by the FDA for use in the United States. Therefore, this device is most likely the one that we will use as a predicate. However, the MANUS arm is another wheelchair robotic arm that is currently not being produced, but was FDA approved that we could use as a predicate. We need to confirm this, but based on prior information, the Kinova device was cleared as a Class 1 device. Given that it will most likely be our predicate, we can assume that our device will also most likely be classified as a class 1. Because we have very little background with FDA approval, it will be vital that we contract an experienced FDA consultant and a Design for Manufacture firm (DFM) that can provide us with the appropriate documentation. Potential FDA Consultants:

-‐ Janice Hogan o From DC, has worked with Michael Lowe in the past

-‐ Omedtech o Houston Firm

-‐ Emergo o Houston Firm

-‐ Nhan Nguyen (Lotus Biopartners) o Works with Novak Druce

-‐ Carmelina Allis o Freelance FDA consultant o Has over 10 years experience working with the FDA

-‐ Janice Kruse Intellectual Property Information regarding intellectual property was obtained through meetings with Suni Sukdaung (IP Laywer) and Dr. Maria Oden (Director of OEDK) Rice Policy During the summer, we encountered a few policy obstacles within Rice regarding our intellectual property. While Rice University policy is that undergraduates own 100% of the IP associated with any invention that is not directly related to payment, we ran into some issues upon filing the invoice for our provisional patent. Initially, a stop was put on our payment to Novak Druce because Rice funds could not be used to fund a patent not owned by Rice. However, the funds we were using were our funds that we had earned by winning a grant application. After much

deliberation and a meeting with the Rice lawyers, the stop was finally lifted on our payment. I believe a precedent was also set to allow undergraduate teams and individuals to fund their own patents with money that they bring in to Rice. In terms of our intellectual property strategy not much has changed over the summer. We have already filed our provisional patent and have until April 25th ,2015 to raise the funds to convert the patent into a non-provisional patent. IRB Application and Pilot Testing at TIRR

Information regarding the details of our IRB application with TIRR were obtained through meetings with Dr. Ann Saterbak (mentor), Dr. Gloria Gogola (mentor/ Shriners Hospital), and Dr. James Chang (TIRR)

IRB Application

Over this summer, we have created an initial protocol for testing the device. However, the protocol needs significant revision because all of the scales and questionnaire’s that will be used should, if possible, be based on a pre-existing standard.

Additionally, our team needs to select a PI for the study because we do not have the needed qualifications. Our two options are Dr. Saterbak and Dr. Gerard Fransico (CMO of TIRR). There are benefits and drawbacks in both cases. Dr. Saterbak will have to create a guest account and does not know the staff or facilities of TIRR very well. But she is easy to contact, and she will retain all of the data collected in the trial as PI. Dr. Gerard is well respected at TIRR, knows the staff and facilities very well, but is also very busy and hard to get a hold of.

Finally, it will be important that we show the IRB board that the device is safe so that we can get approved under the non-significant risk designation. Otherwise TIRR will have to consult with the FDA before approval which will increase the approval time.

The current wait time for IRB approval at TIRR is a minimum of 3 months. In order to get approval and complete testing before graduation we will need to submit for approval by October 1st.

Additional Requirements for Pilot Testing

In addition to completing the IRB application for TIRR there are a few other things we must take into consideration in order to successfully pilot our device at TIRR. In order to start a pilot study both TIRR (which goes through UT Health) and Memorial Herman must approve the study. TIRR evaluates the rational for the study, the quality of the protocol, and the risk associated with the study. Memorial Hermann approves all of the administrative constraints associated with the study. One large concern both for us and for Memorial Hermann, is the requirement to provide liability insurance. Most likely, Rice will not supply the needed liability insurance, so we will

need to provide one. This also means that we will have to incorporate and show the ability to acquire appropriate insurance before the study can be approved. In addition to insurance, there are costs associated with using the facility, physical therapist time, and any sort of compensation provided to the patients. There is a small possibility that these costs could be waived if deemed minimal. However, if not Prosus Health will need to raise the funds to support these costs.

Incorporation

Information regarding incorporation is based on meetings with Michael Blaney (Corporate Lawyer), Vicki Colvin (former Vice Provost at Rice Univesity), Dr. Maria Oden (Director OEDK), and various investors

At some point, relatively soon, Prosus Health will need to incorporate to obtain liability protection and secure funding through investors, competitions, and crowd funding. When we do that we will probably lose access to the prototyping resources at the OEDK. There is a small chance we can get an extension to use the resources from the new Vice Provost of Research, but we have not discussed that with Dr. Oden yet,

When we do decide to incorporate we will have to make a decision between an LLC and a C-Corporation. Although an LLC is easier and cheaper, a Deleware C-Corp seems to be the structure of choice for most investors.

Manufacturing

Information regarding manufacturing is based on meetings with Goran Haag (CEO of Champion Fiberglass), Tommy Cooper (Cooper Consulting), Mark Henrichs (Greater Houston Manufacturing Association),Chris Church (Macrofab, and (Thomas Kraft (mentor).

Prototype Manufacturing

In order to complete our pilot study with TIRR we will need to manufacture production level prototypes. Goran Haag has graciously offered to work with us to manufacture at least a few of the protoypes. His factory has the machining capability to build any hardware that we need. However, we will probably have to find another manufacturer to produce our electronics. One possibility in that area is Chris Church and his new startup microfab, which specializes in low volume electronics production.

Design for Manufacturing/Industrial Designer

In order to optimize the product design for cost, size, and aesthetics as well as build the proper safety and build documentation we will need to work with a design for manufacturing firm or an industrial designer. Tommy Cooper runs a medical device specific industrial design firm here in Houston called Cooper consulting. While he may not necessarily be the firm that we use, he can

give us an idea of what we need to have ready before we approach an industrial designer and approximately what the costs will be.

Commercial Manufacturing

While it is often popular to manufacture products overseas, the volume that we will most likely be producing the devices in makes this option extremely inefficient. Therefore, we will almost definitely be manufacturing the product somewhere domestically. It was also brought to our attention by Chris Church that even within the domestic market it is much more convenient to have a manufacturing facility that is within driving distance of your office (few hours). There are often quality control issues during the manufacturing process and it is much easier to ensure the quality of your product as well as fix any mistakes if you can physically go to the manufacturing facility and work with the setup.

Because we will be manufacturing in extremely low quantities, it will be important to build a relationship with a manufacturer early so that we can minimize our costs. One good way to do that is to ask for a discount on the first few production cycles (while the company is still building traction) in return for exclusive rights to manufacture the product for a certain period of time.

Customer Feedback and Design Recommendations

Information regarding customer Feedback and Design Recommendations is based on customer interviews with over 20 individuals who are wheelchair bound.

Need for the Device

Every single individual we interviewed with the exception of one or two expressed an absolute need for a robotic reaching aid that could help them reach objects both off of the ground and from cabinets. While there are definitely some possible alternatives for such a device, none of the current products offer the degree of assistance that these individuals are looking for. For individuals with severe upper body musculoskeletal restrictions there are no real current alternatives outside of wheelchair mounted robotic arms. For those that do have upper body mobility but have lower body restrictions, the two most common current solutions are mechanical reachers and assistance dogs. Assistance dogs make great companions and are expensive, but usually subsidized by insurance. However, they can only help pick up objects off of the ground; they cannot help reach anything outside the upper reach limit of the individual.

In addition to a need for such a device in the home or at work, one of the most common use cases described by potential customers was in a shopping setting. Going shopping in a wheelchair can be especially difficult because stores are not built to accommodate people with disabilities. One of the biggest issues they had was that sometimes when you are shopping you want to look at an item closely, but you aren’t sure yet if you want to purchase it. When you ask someone to help you in that situation, they can sometimes get annoyed that you are asking them to put the object

back. If it happens multiple times the situation is compounded, and in situations where the person helping is a store worker on commission the pressure can be extremely high.

Design Recommendations

• The reach length of the device should definitely be large enough to grab objects off of the highest store shelf or a standard kitchen cabinet.

• Wheelchairs can already be difficult to maneuver through tight spaces, the device should not increase the width of the wheelchair as much as possible.

• The device must be mounted in a way that it does not interfere with the users line of sight • The device should be strong enough and adept enough to pick up (most commonly

referenced objects) plates, bowls, cutlery, peanut butter jar, and can of food. • The device should be aesthetically minimal • An additional joint for rotation that would allow the arm to hold for example a cup of

water in front of an individual’s face would be extremely helpful for extreme upper body musculoskeletal conditions

Crowdfunding

Information regarding crowdfunding is based on a meeting with Ben Gaddis (T3 Austin) and personal research.

Given the media attention that we have gotten and the story that we have, it makes a lot of sense for our company to do a kickstarter project.

There are two different styles for doing a kickstarter project with a device for individuals with disabilities.

Style 1

We can do a kickstarter where we do not offer the product at all. If we elect to choose this style, most successful campaigns partner with some sort of sponsor who is famous. This sponsor usually designs some sort of merchandise, provides an experience, or unique access to them or their memorabilia. This gives donors an additional incentive to donate in addition to the satisfaction of donating to something beneficial

An example of a kickstarter that used a similar approach: Whill https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/whill/whill-worlds-most-advanced-personal-mobility-devic

-‐ You’ll notice that they were only moderately successful. But if you look at their famous sponsor, you’ll also notice that they are only moderately famous.

-‐ Possible sponsors o Kid President: Youtube star – represents OI o Neil Young (his son has cerebral palsy)

! For example of his pull https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/topherwhite/rainforest-connection-phones-turned-to-forest-guar?ref=rolling_stone_andy_greene

Style 2

We can do a kickstarter where even though we are selling a product for people with disabilities, we offer the device as a high end reward. We can leave it up to the backers imagination on how exactly they plan to use the device if they don’t have a disability.

An example of a kickstarter that used a similar approach: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/886924859/eyespeak-beyond-communication

Market Strategy: Brief overview of go to market strategy

Phase 1

Once we have the redesign done, we will focus on launching a kickstarter campaign to fundraise the funds that we need to complete our pilot study with TIRR and go to a DFM firm. Once we have a market ready product we will begin selling the device as a consumer product with absolutely no medical related claims. This will make marketing the device a challenge, but it will help us build a small set of early adopter, which will help us refine our offering and build brand credibility and awareness.

Simultaneously we will be collecting the data that we need to approach the FDA for clearance. We will hire an FDA consultant and attempt to get FDA clearance.

Phase 2

Once we have been cleared, we can switch our strategy and begin selling the device as a medical device. This lets us sell through the pre-existing market of custom wheelchair manufacturers who handle distribution, installation, and servicing.

Company core competencies

As a company our focus will be on providing unparalleled customer service. We will outsource manufacturing and distribution, but once the product is delivered we will handle all customer relationship aspects of the business. This strategy will help us keep our overhead costs low, but still specialize in the crucial aspect of the business. Focusing on customer service allows us to build a reputation with the customers and create a potential market to introduce secondary products to the same customers.

Our customers will be our biggest assets.

Key contacts

Disabilities

-‐ Cristen Reat: Cristen is the director of the assistive technologies labs for the Houston branch of Easter Seals, which is the largest NGO associated with helping individuals with disabilities in the country. The assisitive technologies labs (there are 3 in the Houston area) are locations where individuals with disabilities can come demo different assistive devices to see if they are worth purchasing. The idea is that these devices are usually very expensive so Easter Seals can purchase one or a few and then let patients make a more accurate judgment on whether or not they want to buy them. Cristen is extremely well connected to the disabilities community in Houston, and a great resource to access the other branches of Easter Seals nationwide

-‐ Other Potential Contacts: o Diane Murrel: She is a social worker at Texas Children’s, organizes a lot of

different support groups, and runs a power wheelchair soccer team in Houston o Angelia Cantillon: Director of Operations at the Christopher Reeve Foundation o Rajesh Pagadala: He is a well-connected RESNA member and is the director of

Assistive Technology Services at the Georgia Vocational Rehabilitation Agency o Wade Wingler: Extremely Well connected in the Assistive Technologies

community and is the Director of the Assistive Technology department at easter seals crossroads in Indiana

Incorporation

-‐ Michael Blaney: Michael is a corporate lawyer who has agreed (just verbally) to help us set up our corporate structure either pro-bono or for a very small fee

Wheelchair Industry

-‐ Michael Duenas: Michael is an assistive technologies professional at Numotion Mobility which is one of the largest custom wheelchair manufacturers in the country

-‐ Potential Contact o Todd Novak: Sales Manager at Permobil

Life Science Investment

-‐ Leo Womack: Leo is the most well-known life science angel in the Houston startup community. Even if he does not directly invest in us, getting his support will be key to getting any sort of funding from the life science community in Houston

Short Term Future Tasks

-‐ We need to update our business plan (will be finished by the end of the summer) -‐ We need to build a new website that is associated with the company and begin to brand

the company on all future press releases and on social media o We should use a wordpress engine this time and connect the website to Google

analytics to help us monitor its effectiveness -‐ We need to rebrand the actual arm – R-ARM is too difficult for most people to say -‐ We need to finish the IRB application

o Decide when we need to incorporate based on the requirements for the application


yize zhao . [email protected] most rewarding experience at Rice University.

Ray siMaR . [email protected]

Rebel Putter, LLC Executive Summary OwlSpark - 2014

Business Summary: • Rebel Putter is the world’s first multi-sensory real-time feedback high-performance putter. It

will let you never three putt again. • Rebel Putter brings to market the first member in a family of high performance putters.

Website: rebelputter.com (reserved but not currently used.)

Customer Problem: • Half the shots in golf are made with a single club, the putter. And putting correctly is

remarkably difficult. • Being able to provide multi-sensory feedback to develop muscle-memory for the correct stroke

will dramatically improve a players game and their satisfaction.

Team:

Ray Simar – Co-Founder, President, Rice Professor in the Practice, ECE.

Yize Zhao – Co-Founder, Senior Engineer, Rice ECE masters student.

Product/Services: • The Rebel Putter contains a sophisticated electronic system including a motion sensor,

microcomputer, guidance laser, audio feedback and Bluetooth link. • The Rebel Putter is fully USGA size and weight compliant. • The Rebel Putter team members have filed a provisional patent. They are working with Rice to

license the IP in this provisional patent.

Contact info: Ray Simar [email protected] 713 446-7338 Yize Zhao [email protected]

Target Market: • In the U.S. there are 24 million golfers • They spend $3.5 billion on new gear, annually. • They purchase 1.25 million putters every year.

Advisors:

Lukeman Cole

Melanie Jones

Tom Kraft

Sanju Patel

Erik Welsh Customers: • We are initially targeting serious golfers. This includes men and women, as well as juniors.

Funding and Investors Currently the project is funded with private funds.

Sales/Marketing Strategy: • Rebel Putter will initially be sold online. There are a number of putter and club manufacturers

who use this model, to great success.

Competitors and Competitive Advantage: • The golf world has a large number of devices to help improve the golfer. The space is very

fragmented. Electronic devices include the Ping putting cradle and iPing app. • There are currently no putters with integrated electronics and feedback systems.

Rebel Putter OwlSpark Report

Summary of Our Experience OwlSpark was a great experience for Yize Zhao and myself. The content of the curriculum was excellent. A great set of instructors brought the material to life. We were able to make significant advancements in terms of developing our business strategy and refining our technology. Many thanks to Kerri Smith and her wonderful team for making this happen. We will remember the lessons learned and apply them to our startup.

Achievement During OwlSpark, Rebel Putter was working on two paths concurrently:

1. Making progress on the technology 2. Developing an initial go-‐to-‐market strategy

Technology Accomplishments The technology development picked up where the senior design team left off. The printed circuit board that Yize had begun to design last spring was brought to completion during OwlSpark. Yize was, as a Rice senior returning to work on his master’s degree, supported by the OEDK with a work table near the OEDK electronics lab. Yize had several design reviews. We were fortunate to have Erik Welsh, a Rice alumni working with Mango Communications, able to attend these review. Erik provided excellent feedback on the design itself as well as solid recommendations for developing the overall design. Toward the end of OwlSpark, we were able to release the Printed Circuit Board (PCB) for manufacture. And four boards were fully populated. Initial board functionality has been demonstrated. Other key technical developments included:

1. A new putter head design to support the new PCB design. 2. A new putter handle design that is modular and allows for easy

experimentation with different feedback mechanisms. 3. A new putter shaft, made from carbon fiber and containing a high-‐speed data

cable. 4. A new low-‐power Bluetooth interface

Go-‐To-‐Market Strategy The LEAN focused curriculum provided us with an excellent framework for the process we are using to develop and refine our initial product. The value proposition led us to the key phrase “never three-‐putt again”, a simple way to capture the essence of the pain of our customers and the benefit of addressing it. We built a key relationship with Emily Gilbreth, a member of the University of Houston women’s golf team. Emily agreed to be one of our early adopters. We also began identifying vendors for key components of our prototype. We identified five key vendors, all of whom are based in the Houston area:

1. MacroFab: PCB assembly 2. Exaktheit: CNC putter head milling 3. Goodgrips: Custom putter grips 4. Aixiz: alignment laser 5. Texas Instruments: microcomputer

Lessons Learned Key positives:

1. The LEAN canvas does a great job of pulling together key concepts. 2. Importance of the MVP.

Our original plan had been to add another person to the team who, like Yize, had been an original member of the senior design team. But his plans changed and he was not available for the summer. This made it more challenging to reach some of our goals.

Milestones and Goals for the Next 12 Months We are working on pulling together a new prototype, using the key vendors we identified. Once we have that prototype functioning, we will build several more and provide them to our early adopters. As we receive feedback, we will do multiple iterations over the fall and spring semesters. Our goal is to do an initial market introduction next summer.

Resources Required The current plan is to boostrap the program. By carefully selecting our key partners, we will be able to avoid large capital expenditures. All of our key vendors will be able to support our needs for our early prototypes and for early production.


John PoehlMann . [email protected] summarized MBa over the course of a summer. owlspark

teaches the necessities to run a small company.

Ross WinshiP . [email protected] taught me skills in areas i wouldn’t have learned

otherwise. i completely feel that i have the entrepreneur bug/itch that makes me think in different ways and causes me to stretch my thinking. nothing will ever compare to the experience owlspark provided me with this summer.

YouHootMe: OwlSpark Final Report I came to Rice University in order to be successful after I graduate. OwlSpark was the most beneficial experience since I have been at Rice. I have learned and networked with people in the field I wish to work in. I have also experienced taking an idea and learning the steps needed to scale that idea into a company. OwlSpark was like a summary over the course of a summer of what you would learn from getting an MBA. The program featured all of the necessities to start a successful company. When we first got there it was interesting to hear and see ideas from other StartUp teams. The pub in the centrally located RMC was a great location, space, and also put off good vibes for a summer of StartUp. The first few weeks seemed more class like, but we were informed that they would be previously. Having real world experienced people come in and discuss the ups and downs of launching their ideas was extremely valuable. Also the interaction with others from the Houston StartUp scene was interesting and helpful. Everyone was extremely friendly and everyone tried to help or give feedback to other teams. I thought this grouping of people all interested in Tech and StartUps was awesome. I always read StartUp type news and always loved staying up to date on current trends and what other new products, companies, or apps were doing. It was great to have a community of people familiar with current news in the field, and the ability to bounce ideas and news off of. As an example being a football player most conversations I have do not include topics like: how dumb it is Facebook is trying to make a snapchat clone called slingshot, or I can’t believe that “Yo!” app got a million dollars in funding, or many other tech related conversations. Although I read and knew about all of these things there was never anyone to discuss and converse with about these ideas, until OwlSpark. It was nice being in a niche group for the summer that was interested in the same things as me. The overall experience this summer was fantastic. The only complaint is the lack of social media mentors/speakers that could come in. It is not OwlSpark’s fault because we are in Houston, an entrepreneurial scene that mostly consists of oil and gas applications and medical devices. Kerri connected us with Tom Kraft, and Tom put us in contact with Sean Rieger. Sean was critical in helping us develop our value proposition and gave us real world experience in marketing that we crucially needed. At mentor mashup we met Adam Wulf, a local app developer. Adam was a critical mentor who talked us into pivoting to only allowing college students with a .edu email account access to YouHootMe. Other mentors include Matt Barnett who broke down html5 peer-to-peer connectivity and gave us technological advice to help us affor to scale YouHootMe. Kathrina Buttenburg helped us develop our mission statement/slogan “discover people” also building our brand. Kaz told us his story of what facebook was really like in its earlier years at MIT and how we could take steps to grow similarly through video chat to college students.

Jason Carter a computer science major developed a list of Rice University coders that we could contact that would even be capable of programming YouHootMe. This list led us to Xilin Liu who is now a co-founder of YouHootMe and capable of devoping an app in the future. Xilin is also well connected with other potential coders as he is Director of Technology at Rice’s Student Association. During our EIR sessions gray was like market like crazy to college athletes who travel all over the country and have a large social media presence. Jeff Reichman of JanuaryAdvisors mentored us to really hone in and gain momentum in a major area since we are live video chat we will need a critical mass to be on in the same area at the same time to gain traction.Melanie Jones of Surge discussed with us the need for targeted facebook and twitter ads to college students in a certain area. We have since achieved building a working website at youhootme.com. We have undergone beta testing and have conducted over 200 customer surveys. Through doing customer interviews we have added an IceBreaker feature, decided to add @usernames similar to twitter, add a suggested friends box, to do cities and college towns instead of universities, and to not display how many people a user is following just how many followers. We have met goals of finding an in house coder, meeting potential investors, getting accepted for RackSpace’s StartUp offer (funding of $24,000 worth of server costs over the next 12 months), developing a go to market strategy, and meeting key mentors and connections in the Houston area. Lessons learned during OwlSpark. First thing every startup should do is create a 10 question, survey monkey and text the link to every contact in your phone. Save yourself the trouble and difficulty. YouHootMe is swinging for a “grand slam” when really we could have just been trying to get “on base”. It would have been much easier to do another idea that that did not need a login or the need to create an account. Also asking someone to create another account is a lot to ask in this cluttered social media age. Chances are the user already has five other social media accounts. Apps like tinder and YikYak were easily accessible and underwent huge growth because of the ability to use the social discovery as soon as you download the app without creating an account. An idea that did not need to create an account and could be made into an app would be much easier to capture your market. Because the App Store is a pre existing successful distribution channel that could easily be accessed by masses more quickly. It is a catch 22 because without profiles, the social network will not be worth as much or as sustainable, but you will have faster growth. Also when you don’t have a log in or a sign in process you allow anyone to log on. And since we are a video chat we definitely want to be able to control that. Milestones for the next 12 months is acquire 10 major areas, and have over 400,000 users. Completely win over college students in the Austin area by January. And get

funding of $50,000 by December. Also to get 20 college aged celebrities to use YouHootMe. Get featured in an article, blog, or tweet, of a major Tech publication and a college humor site. Also to be seen as a good brand of geographical social discovery.


FeatuRed MentoRs

Pitching coachesto prepare startup founders for the bright lights of the showcase, we scheduled weekly pitch practice beginning halfway through the summer program and daily pitch practice the week leading up to the showcase. We invited a mix of communications experts, venture capitalists, and entrepreneurs to serve as pitch practice mentors so teams could receive feedback from several perspectives. teams benefited from 13 pitching coaches, including:

Paula deWitte, Phd . ceo & co-FoundeR, PaRticle size engineeRing

kiM kiMMey . lectuReR in coMMunication, Jones gRaduate school oF business

keith kReueR PRinciPal, Redhouse associates

beth o’sullivan . senioR lectuReR in coMMunication, Jones gRaduate school oF business

david schubeRt . executive diRectoR, houston aRea tRanslational ReseaRch consoRtiuM

Jeanne-Mey sun . staRtuP stRategist

david tobin, Phd . senioR lectuReR in coMMunication, Jones gRaduate school oF business

& sPeakeRs


Matt bell . PResident, in2 oil and gasMatt has diverse international experience in oil and gas exploration and production, corporate venture capital, and oil and gas equipment manufacturing and supply, which includes technical expertise in well construction and remediation. His specialties include technology development and commercialization, deal structuring and negotiation, entrepreneurship, start-up ventures, technology accelerators and incubators, oil and gas well completions technology, and oilfield explosives and perforating.

bridging the generational divide . 5.0/6.0enjoyed the discussion of generational values, overall culture, and how he applied it to startups and founders.

danielle suPkis cheek . FoundeR, d. suPkis cheek, PllcDanielle assists businesses in developing segregating of duties with their existing resources, including internal audit controls or other issues of the audit process. She is a Certified Public Account in the State of Texas, a Certified fraud Examiner from the Association of Certified fraud Examiner, a Certified valuation Analyst from the national Association of Certified valuators and Analysts, and has a Certificate in International financial Reporting from the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants in the United kingdom. Danielle earned her Bachelor of arts in political science, economics, and policy studies from Rice University and her Master of science in accountancy from the University of virginia.

doug eRWin . chaiRMan & PRinciPal, Redhouse associatesDoug is dedicated to helping entrepreneurs accelerate the growth of early-stage information technology startups. He is a serial entrepreneur with an extensive track record in leading both early and late-stage technology companies. in each he develops a blueprint for building the business, creating a unique corporate culture, expanding the company’s footprint and delivering shareholder value. Doug served as chairman and ceo of the planet, the chairman and ceo of pentasafe technologies, and executive vice president and chief operating Officer of BMC Software, Inc. Doug holds a degree in economics from Duke University.

accounting considerations for startups; sMe office hours . 5.7/6.0Awesome! I thoroughly enjoyed Danielle’s presentation style. She simplified things to the point that it was

obvious. Danielle was a great speaker, used fact and experience to convey her points. very enthusiastic; she made accounting less boring than expected. 10/10.

startup Founders series . 5.8/6.0Best speaker so far this summer. His storytelling of his innovative tactics to motivate people was awesome.

great speaker. Fun guy.


R. Michael evans, Phd . lectuReR in ManageMent, Rice univeRsityMike volunteers and mentors extensively with OwlSpark, the Houston Technology Center, and SURGE Accelerator, and is also a Lecturer in Management in the Rice University Jones graduate school of Business. From 1990 until 2005, Mike served as Director of subsidiary operations at the electric power Research institute in palo alto, california, and served as an executive in several of its subsidiaries. Mike has undergraduate degrees from Rice University and M.s. and ph.D. degrees from stanford University.

blaiR gaRRou . Managing PaRtneR, MeRcuRy FundBlair has significant experience in operating, investing in and advising startup companies, particularly in the software industry. Blair helped launch and was the Director of operations for the Houston Technology Center (HTC) and led the formation of the Houston Angel network. Blair is a licensed cpa in the state of texas and received a B.s. in Management with special attainments in commerce from Washington & lee University.

bRyan haaRdt . co-FoundeR & ceo, decisio health, inc.Decisio Health is an early-stage Healthcare IT company initially focusing on clinical decision support for trauma and emergency medicine. prior to Decisio, Bryan served as the chief Operating Officer for Prognosis Health Information Systems, Inc. and founder and CTO of Cgate Health, Inc., a Mercury fund portfolio company. Bryan graduated Cum Laude from the University of Houston where he was a distinguished student and member of the Honors College studying artificial intelligence and neural-networks.

lean canvas/business Model introduction; identifying the Problem and the solution; the value Proposition; Features and benefits; the importance of the elevator Pitch; the executive summary; distribution channels . 5.6/6.0

Best session yet. the make-up of what an elevator pitch has in it is crucial! informative.

Pitching Well; the color of Money . 5.7/6.0Blair was the bomb.com. He was very engaging. very helpful and more interactive than others. very straight

forward. informative. great presenter. gave good examples. comprehensive. interesting.

creating high efficiency teams (scRuM); Working Well as a team; eiR office hours . 5.4/6.0it was very easy to stay engaged during Bryan’s lecture; he’s very energetic. i enjoyed hearing about the order

of communication and authority in a start-up. He made very good points, and listed real life experience stories. enjoyed learning how to handle relationships and develop the culture within a start-up. i liked seeing the “sprint process” visualized. I liked how tied this was to real-life management.


alternatives and competition; business costs; business timelines; entrepreneur scorecard; ten things to Remember in Planning (to assure realistic expectations); Markets and customers; operating Plans . 5.0/6.0

Tom is amazing and this presentation was full of essential information. He gave great experience that went along with the presentation. learned a lot about investor communications. good, simple list, easy to understand. slides had a lot of text, but great info. tom is always one of my favorite speakers.

evaluating Market opportunities; capital structure and valuation; eiR office hours . 5.6/6.0i enjoyed the real life examples. enjoyed learning about market capture, and how users are valued. learned a

lot about the strategies to analyze markets (top to bottom vs. bottom to top).

gRay hancock . co-FoundeR & coo, decisio health, inc.Decisio Health is an early-stage Healthcare IT company initially focusing on clinical decision support for trauma and emergency medicine. gray is a member of the Rice alliance Roundtable advisory Board and the British american Business council Board of Directors. Gray holds an MBA from the Rice University Jones Graduate School of Business, a Masters of Public Health from the UT School of Public Health, and a BS in Biology from washington and lee University.

toM kRaFt, Phd . diRectoR oF technology ventuRes, Rice alliance FoR technology and entRePReneuRshiPtom’s academic background covers mechanical and electrical engineering at stanford University, and math and business from Ucla, before his doctoral program at Rice. tom holds 19 Us patents and has founded several medical device and medical robotics companies after being part of the design team for the nasa Mission control center. at Rice, tom focuses on increasing collaboration between MBa candidates and the science and engineering departments at Rice in order to launch commercial ventures.

Mike loWe . ceo, oRthoaccel technologies, inc.Under Mike’s leadership, orthoaccel completed numerous rounds of institutional private equity financing, developed and commercialized its flagship product, obtained several clinical trial-based regulatory clearances including US fDA and Health Canada, established partnerships to manage supply chain logistics and manufacturing, and executed an international market introduction which has seen product volume of over 7,500 units ship to nearly 30 countries, including over 650 orthodontic offices in the United States in just over one year. Mike holds a Bs in Biology from louisiana state University and an MBa from the Rice University Jesse H. Jones Graduate School of Business.

Product development Planning . 5.4/6.0great contact for medical devices! i enjoyed [learning about] the different versions of his product and how it

evolved over time. He knew what he was talking about, which was useful.


MaRy helen o’leaRy . diRectoR oF Financial RePoRting, MeRcuRy FundMary-Helen has 20+ years of experience as a financial manager in a variety of entrepreneurial companies, both private and public. she was the cFo at sURge, a seed accelerator, and Sternhill Partners, a Houston-based venture capital fund. She served as the cFo of sungard energy systems, where she helped manage a major turnaround of the business. Mary-Helen also provides part-time CfO services for early-stage companies and offers her time working with entrepreneurs through various workshops and events. she is a former board member of the Houston Angel network.

Paul PRyzant . PaRtneR, buRleson, llPPaul has 30+ years of experience as a corporate and securities attorney and works regularly with entrepreneurs, angel investors, private equity funds and their portfolio companies. His practice includes mergers and acquisitions, securities, private placements, technology and corporate governance. paul earned his undergraduate degree from the Wharton school of the University of pennsylvania and his law degree from the University of texas at austin.

linda sPain . cFo, visualaselinda has served on the board of directors of numerous early-stage companies, including oxane Materials, orthoaccel technologoes, lasergen and lumedyne technologies. she has broad experience in multiple industries and has held executive positions with responsibility for business development, mergers/acquisitions and divestitures, finance, strategic alliances, and sales and marketing. she has participated in numerous transactions ranging in size from under $1 million to more than $1 billion. linda received her bachelor’s degree from Rice University and is a co-founder of the Houston Chapter of the national association of corporate Directors.

Financial Modeling basics for startups . 5.3/6.0

corporate Formation and organization . 5.4/6.0the story telling to either set the stage or prove a point was very helpful. Better than most speakers we’ve had.

great to hear what/what not to do in terms of raising money for your startup.

corporate governance . 5.3/6.0genius. When acquiring investors, all the info provided is needed. the speaker provided extremely important info

that every group needs. very knowledgeable. Definitely needs to come back.


Jay steinFeld . FoundeR & ceo, blinds.coMAfter starting a small chain of window coverings retail stores, Jay launched Blinds.com in 1993, which became the world’s largest online window coverings store that he sold to the Home Depot in 2014. Jay was listed as a ‘Top 60 CEOs in Social Media’ and is an Ernst and young Entrepreneur of the year. He writes a weekly Inc. Magazine column called Chief Effective Officer, which is about becoming a more effective leader, and speaks regularly on the power of positive (and profitable) company culture.

PatRick talley . FoundeR, stoRies, etc.Patrick is a fourth generation Houstonian with 32 years of technology sales and marketing experience. He is a serial entrepreneur and has closed over a quarter of a billion dollars in high margin enterprise sales and services, mostly to fortune 500. He has spent time at notable companies such as Landmark Graphics, Trilogy Software, Halliburton, Baker Hughes and stories etc.

startup Founders series . 5.4/6.0always good to hear a successful startup story. awesome!

sales strategies for startups . 5.5/6.0very good at giving real world examples in an appealing, reflective way. Engaging guy; had some great

thoughts. He was an awesome speaker. Really learned a lot. Great dialogue about selling products; awesome information. knowledgeable. Bring him back.


keRRi sMith . Managing diRectoRkerri is the Managing Director of OwlSpark, and Associate Managing Director of the Rice alliance for technology and entrepreneurship. she has broad experience in developing programs and strategies that help maximize the success of technology-based startups. Her experience includes entrepreneurship, startup acceleration, educational programming, and technology licensing and commercialization. At Rice, kerri first served as the Assistant Director of the Office of technology transfer, then later joined the Rice alliance for technology and entrepreneurship where she plays a lead role in accelerating technology-based startups in the areas of energy/clean tech, life science and information technology. she received her B.s. degree from northern illinois University and conducted graduate studies at texas a&M University.

lindsay deneault . assistant Managing diRectoR oF oPeRationslindsay oversaw owlspark’s summer curriculum, built relationships with community partners and mentors, and coached participating companies. she has a B.s. in Biomedical engineering from virginia Commonwealth University and an MBA from Rice University’s Jones graduate school of Business. prior to coming to Rice, lindsay worked in civil litigation where she analyzed the value of new cases, performed due diligence, and managed the client relationship throughout the litigation process. Through her internships with the Houston Area Translational Research Consortium (HATRC) and the Rice Alliance for technology and entrepreneurship, lindsay transitioned those skills to the medical industry where she assessed healthcare products for commercial potential and worked with physician entrepreneurs to build a business around their technology. lindsay looks forward to working hands-on with the owlspark companies to ensure they have the resources they need to progress toward their next milestone.

Jay vinekaR . assistant Managing diRectoR oF MaRketing & coMMunicationsJay has more than 12 years of experience in Marketing, communications, and Business Development within multiple industries, including oil and gas, energy, finance, education, and non-profit. He has a BBA in finance from the University of Oklahoma and an MBA from Rice University. Having run his own marketing firm for five years, Jay moved from San Diego to Houston in 2007 to develop Rice University’s international presence and build stronger relationships and collaborations with top-tier universities around the world, as well as with multi-national corporations that are involved in developing innovative technologies. Jay enjoys mentoring and working with entrepreneurs and is very active in the Houston startup community as well as Houston’s interactive marketing community. for OwlSpark, Jay oversaw all internal and external marketing and communications, and coached participating companies.

ManageMent teaM


inteRn Rolesdesign & MaRketing

owlspark webpagesevent signagepowerpoint templatescreated and designed multiple slide decks for

various presentationslogos and business cards for startup teamsindiegogo campaign pageWearablesinformation graphicsassisted startup teams with marketing strategy, branding and

product designauthored weekly mailing pieces and blog posts detailing

owlspark activitiesDrafted outward-facing communication pieces curated data for use in slide decks

oRganizationalassisted with development of mayoral proclamationowlspark website maintenancegeneral operationspub set-up and tear-downMaintained supplies and refreshments for startup teams and guestsassisted with catering logistics including delivery, setup,

purchasing, and bookkeepingassisted with event and speaker session set-up assisted with and moderated pitch practice sessionsserved as timekeeper at the Bayou startup showcaseassisted startup teams with business development, as necessaryphotographed events and activitiesorganized and analyzed owlspark pre-assessment datacreated speaker feedback forms and aggregated data

into spreadsheetassisted with creating a speaker and advisor demographics

excel databaseManaged and updated social media presence on Facebook

and twitterManaged “back room” audio operation for the Bayou

startup showcaseMaintained database and mailing lists

R i c e U n i v e R s i t y s ta R t U p a c c e l e R at o R

final report - owlspark · 3 . owlspark 2014 final report founded by students in 2013, owlspark is...

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