News & Events

We excited to highlight the exceptional achievements of our Biomedical Engineering (BME) students at the 2025 Charles and Janet Forbes Business Pitch Competition, hosted by the Ain Center for Entrepreneurship at the University of Rochester.  This year, our BME students stood out among the competition, earning both First and Third Place honors.

🥇 First Place: Glucose Guardian
Alexa Trzpis (BME, BS'25)

In addition to working on her Senior Design project, Mouse Motel, Alexa also submitted her own idea to the Forbes competition: an automated emergency treat dispenser called the Glucose Guardian. The Glucose Guardian is meant to safeguard diabetic pets who are undergoing insulin therapy with a continuous glucose sensor against hypoglycemia, a dangerous condition where their blood sugar drops too low. Hypoglycemia requires direct intervention and can lead to seizures, coma, and death in diabetic pets, so I wanted to automate the prevention process to bring peace of mind to pet owners.

🥈 Second Place: DroneGurus
Guruansh Kohli (CS and Business)
Jack Collings (CHE)
Nate Bogdan (Digital Media Studies)

🥉 Third Place: MeDescover
Ahmet Gurcan (BME, MS'25, CMTI)
Joel DeVries (BME, MS'25, CMTI)
Zack Farnam (BME, MS'25, CMTI)

"LocClip by MeDescover – Preventing Feeding Tube Disruptions"  is a simple yet effective solution, designed to prevent accidental disconnections and dislodgment of low-profile feeding tubes. The LocClip ensures that patients consistently receive necessary nutrients and medication. By minimizing the risk of nighttime disconnections, the LocClip allows caregivers to get the rest they need without having to wake up hourly to check the feeding tube connection.  Just before the team made their pitch, they submitted a provisional patent to the USPTO to safeguard our innovation from public disclosure.

This year’s competition saw a record-tying 14 teams participate — making the accomplishments of our BME students even more remarkable.

The Forbes Competition, founded in 1989 by Charles and Janet Forbes, celebrates entrepreneurial exploration and innovation among engineering students. It continues to be a cornerstone opportunity for students to transform bold ideas into actionable ventures.

Congratulations to all! 

Related Links...

• Ain Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation
  • Forbes Pitch Competition
    
• Design Day 
  • "LocClip by MeDescover – Preventing Feeding Tube Disruptions"
• Center for Medical Technology and Innovation (CMTI) 
• Alexa Trzpis Linkendin
• Joel DeVries Linkendin
• Zachary Farnam Linkendin
• Ahmet Gurcan Linkendin
  
  
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