ECE senior Daniel Gardner's startup won the Dr. Paul Magelli Innovation Prize from the Cozad New Competition. Gardner and PhD candidate Olaoluwapo Ajala were named among the four finalists for the Illinois Innovation Prize.
The Magelli Prize is given to a Cozad finalist that demonstrates potential to grow and create significant value as an entrepreneurial venture. The $10,000 award was presented to the team at the Entrepreneurship Forum on April 26.
Gardner’s startup, Mesh++, looks to use low-cost Wi-Fi transceivers to bring affordable wireless communication to developing countries. He was awarded the top prize at the ECE Senior Design competition and earned a spot in the iVenture Accelerator.
The Illinois Innovation Prize, which is presented each year by the College of Engineering and the Technology Entrepreneur Center (TEC), honors students who have demonstrated a passion for innovation and entrepreneurship through the use of world-changing technology.
Olaolu AjalaAjala’s research is innovating the micro-grid, which powers homes and business in small geographic areas to create stand-alone power systems. His research will make it possible for communities to become interconnected through sharing electricity from a variety of sources. He was inspired to pursue this research by his childhood community in Nigeria, which often lacked sources of power.
Gardner and Ajala were awarded $2,500 each for the Illinois Innovation Prize. MBA candidate Lucas Frye won the award and was presented with $12,500.
To learn more about the Illinois Innovation Prize and the Cozad Competition, read the articles posted on Smile Politely and Chicago Inno.