21 Teams Tackling Innovations in Quantum, Healthcare, AI, and More Take First Steps Toward Commercialization

Published on Friday, May 9, 2025

The I-Corps program is designed to empower scientists, researchers, and students to test the commercial potential and impact of their research and ideas

Twenty-one teams from across the University of Chicago and local institutions participated in the Polsky Center I-Corps program this year – identifying and addressing real-world problems in seven weeks, work that might otherwise take months or years.

The Polsky Center’s I-Corps program is offered through partnership with the Great Lakes Region I-Corps Hub and provides participants with opportunities to expand their network and gain insight from industry stakeholders on the commercialization pathway, identify potential partners for future technical and business development, and receive individualized coaching.

Participants also work to access additional NSF funding, including a potential $50,000 through the National I-Corps program, prepare for SBIR/STTR or other commercialization grants, and engage with other programs at the Polsky Center.

Polsky Center I-Corps Teams Spring 2025:

Amino Cosmetic Peptides // Amino Cosmetic Peptide’s technology addresses the need for skin health solutions to combat aging and reverse skin damage.

Team members: Anna Metlushko, student, Northwestern University; Doruk Cesan, student, Northwestern University

Chandelier // Chandelier is developing a hybrid post-quantum encryption (PQE) platform that integrates quantum-resistant algorithms with existing cryptographic systems.

Team members: Eric Prosser, student, Chicago Booth; Chandler Lawrence, student, Chicago Booth

Conscious Cladding // Conscious Cladding is developing a new 100% recycled architectural product specifically designed for the circular economy.

Team members: Dillon Pranger, student, IIT; Cody Norman, student, IIT; Jordan Campbell, unaffiliated with the University; Eric Roberson, unaffiliated with the University

Early View Analytics // Early View Analytics is creating a suite of neurobiology-inspired behavioral tests with the goal of identifying people who are at risk of developing Alzheimer’s Disease (AD) or other forms of dementia.

Team members: Drew Sheets, student, Biological Sciences Division, PME; Marlene Cohen, faculty, Pritzker School of Medicine

NeuroFlex // The NeuroFlex project seeks to create advanced wearable wristbands for stroke patients that monitor EMG activity from both wrists during various physical activities.

Team members: Pinar Toptas, student, Biological Sciences Division; Keith Skaggs, student, Biological Sciences Division; Adem Imamovic, student, Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering; Senthooran Kalidoss, student, Pritzker School of Medicine

PhotonID // PhotonID is providing solutions for the physical modeling of molecular systems to industry partners based on modern AI technology.

Team members: Kai Li, postdoc, Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering; Jessica Ji, student, Harris School of Public Policy and Law School; Poojan Wagh, Chicago Booth alum

Protein Based Spin Qubits // The team’s technology enables the use of organic molecular fluorophores that are already ubiquitous in bio-imaging experiments as optically addressable spin qubits.

Team members: Jacob Feder, student, Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering; Ben Soloway, student, Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering; Jacob Parrot, unaffiliated with the University

RMD Sciences, Inc. // RMD Sciences, Inc. is developing a novel Alzheimer’s disease (AD) therapy using Microbiota Accessible Carbohydrates (MACs) to selectively enrich Parabacteroides distasonis (Pdi), a gut bacterium.

Team members: Akihito Taira, unaffiliated with the University; Kazuhiro Shimomura, unaffiliated with the University

Tilden Therapeutics // The team is commercializing revolutionary drugs to address the deadly process of tumor spread during stage IV cancer, responsible for 90% of cancer-related deaths.

Team members: Kent Schecter, student, Biological Sciences Division, The College; Ayaan Saddiqui, unaffiliated with the University

TrustNav // TrustNav aims to detect Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) spoofing using an auxiliary sensor (AS).

Team members: Samer Khanafseh, faculty, IIT; Birendra Kujur, student, IIT; Sahil Ahmed, student, IIT

Polsky Center I-Corps Teams Fall 2024:

Alarmin Labs // Therapeutic that can relieve symptoms of T cell mediated autoimmunity, including but not limited to celiac disease.

Team members: Joey Federico, student, Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering; Michael Jaharis, student, Biological Sciences Division

Astir Therapeutics // Astir Therapeutics has developed a computational method to infer cell state transitions and identify marker genes by decomposing the intertwined dynamic processes contained within single-cell RNA sequencing data.

Team members: Frank Gao, student, Physical Sciences Division; Hyo Jeon, student, Chicago Booth; Chengxi Yang, student, Physical Sciences Division; Ujjwal Sahni, student, Biological Sciences Division

BarQu // BarQu is developing quantum identifiers and sensors (Q-IDs) – that will simultaneously track and monitor hundreds of thousands to millions of individual cells using persistent fluorophores as quantum barcodes and sensors.

Team members: Geneva Anderberg, student, Biological Sciences Division; Uri Zvi, student, Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering; Leonardo Araujo, student, Chicago Booth.

CatalyzeQ // The team is developing a platform that integrates all design phases incorporated with CO2 reduction catalysts production.

Team members: Ruijie Zhu, student, Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering; Andrew Qin, student, Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering; Theodore Houser, student, Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering.

Lazarus Therapeutics // Lazarus Therapeutics is a significant advancement in targeted cancer therapies, potentially offering safer, more effective and precise treatment options for patients.

Team members: Jeff Blethen, student, Chicago Booth; Colleen Foley, student, Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering; Elaine Lee, student, Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering; Xiaoyuan Zhong, student, Biological Sciences Division.

MesoRNA // The team has developed the multiplex small RNA sequencing (MSR-seq) platform for RNA-seq library preparation.

Team members: Olivia Zbihley, student, Biological Sciences Division; Grace Hynes, student, Biological Sciences Division

PANCS // Developing a method to quickly and reliably engineer molecules that can specifically bind a given protein (aka affinity reagents).

Team members: Christopher Basile, staff researcher, Physical Sciences Division, Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering; Matthew Rusk, student, Chicago Booth

Parasol // Parasol has A novel percutaneous minimally invasive catheter to completely occlude the left atrial appendage (LAA) with a gel-based material to reduce the risk of stroke in patients with atrial fibrillation (AF).

Team members: Atman Shah, faculty, Biological Sciences Division; Rahil Abbu, student, Biological Sciences Division; Margaret Metzger, student, Chicago Booth

Precise Fermions // The team provides end-to-end software for computational chemists to execute workloads on analog quantum computers (AQC).

Team members: Qiaohang Wang, student, Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering; Christopher Kang, student, Physical Sciences Division; Soumik Ghost, student, Physical Sciences Division

QuantumAstra // The Qlarity Project leverages advanced quantum mechanical principles, particularly those involving NV centers, to develop high-sensitivity applications across various sectors.

Team members: Lalitha Nallamothula, unaffiliated with the University; Venkata Balaji, unaffiliated with the University; Sai Kumar Bommineani, unaffiliated with the University; Vishnu Veeravalli, student, Physical Sciences Division

TrustVector // We are building a comprehensive AI monitoring solution that is designed to integrate with certification standards (e.g. IEEE SA CertifAIEd, NIST AI RMF).

Team members: Sonja Petrovic, unaffiliated with the University; Shahrzad Jamshidi, unaffiliated with the University; Liam Moynihan, student, Chicago Booth; Rong Guo, student, Chicago Booth

Teams including faculty, students, staff, and alumni from the University of Chicago, Argonne National Laboratory, Fermilab, the Marine Biological Laboratory, and Chicago-area universities may apply for the program. No previous business or entrepreneurship experience is required.

Questions? Contact Ellen Zatkowski at ellen.zatkowski@chicagobooth.edu.