Albany, NY – Supporting Governor Andrew M. Cuomo’s education to careers pipeline and commitment to student entrepreneurialism and business growth, eight finalists have been named after the conclusion of the New York Business Plan Competition’s Capital Region semifinal round, hosted at the SUNY Polytechnic Institute (SUNY Poly) Albany NanoTech Complex along with co-hosts University at Albany, Albany Law School, and Sage Colleges. In addition to a team of RPI students enabling safe, high-tech storage of firearms, judges also selected a SUNY Poly student-led company that pitched a plan related to nanotechnology/advanced technology to compete at the final round where teams will compete for the grand prize: $50,000 cash and over $50,000 in in-kind services.

The Capital Region semifinal competition drew interest from twenty-nine teams of students who attend five accredited New York colleges and universities. Teams gathered at SUNY Poly to pitch their industry-disrupting business proposals for a chance to reach the final round and win part of the more than $500,000 in total prizes that are up for grabs this year. Semifinal round competitions in nine other regions across New York have been scheduled to take place during the next two weeks, culminating in the selection of New York State’s top student teams to the final on April 29 when they will go head-to-head.

SUNY Poly startup Kid Sentry took the top spot and is the sole company that competed in the nanotechnology track to move forward to the final. SUNY Poly student Patrizia Spears pitched a small, wearable device that can be placed on children’s clothing and communicates with a parent’s cell phone to alert them if their child has left a certain area; the technology also allows for parents to monitor sun (UV) exposure, for example, to keep children both safe and comfortable in various outdoor settings, such as a busy beach.

Dual:Lock, led by a team of students from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, took the top spot in the products/services track and was awarded the Capital Region Cup for its biometric-based gun safe that allows both the ability to secure any handgun and for specific owner(s) to also gain instant access based on their fingerprints in order to protect their home and family.

Currently in its seventh year, the New York Business Plan Competition has continued to grow since its inception, garnering increased student interest year-over-year. As part of the competition, each team is allowed a set amount of time to explain their innovation, with teams competing against others whose products, services, or developed ideas fall within a similar category, or track. One critical aspect of the competition for participants is the experience of going before panels of national venture capitalists, angel investors, investment bankers, and seasoned entrepreneurs who serve as judges; they provide the student teams with invaluable feedback and a chance to understand how their pitch might be received in the “real world.”

Winners of the Capital Region’s semifinal round by category include:

·         Capital Region Cup Top Team— Dual:Lock – RPI

·         Nanotechnology/Advanced Technology

o   Kid Sentry – SUNY Polytechnic Institute

·         Information Technology/Software

o    Illium VR – RPI

o    TeachMe – Siena College

·         Social Entrepreneurship/Non-Profit

o    Guide - RPI

·         Products/Services

o    Dual:Lock – RPI

o     Coast Designwear – RPI

·         Biotechnology/Healthcare

o   Bloom Health – RPI

o   Nova - RPI

With Title Sponsor SEFCU powering this unique competition, in addition to support from Energy/Sustainability Track Sponsor NYSERDA; Networking Reception Sponsor First Niagara; Friend Sponsors Center for Economic Growth, Albany Medical Center, and Anchor Agency; and support from Heslin Rothenberg Farley & Mesiti P.C., Troywebconsulting, Pinnacle, Schwartz Heslin Group, Inc., Capital District Transportation Authority, and Reitler Kailas & Rosenblatt LLC, this unique, student-centered competition has expanded to become the largest of its kind in New York State and one of the biggest in the United States. It started with only one dozen teams competing for nearly $30,000 in prizes in 2010, and the competition now offers $500,000 in prizes to hundreds of teams.

For more information about the 2016 New York Business Plan Competition, please visit: http://www.nybplan.com.

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SUNY Polytechnic Institute. SUNY Polytechnic Institute (SUNY Poly) is New York’s globally recognized, high-tech educational ecosystem, formed from the merger of the SUNY College of Nanoscale Science and Engineering and SUNY Institute of Technology. SUNY Poly offers undergraduate and graduate degrees in the emerging disciplines of nanoscience and nanoengineering, as well as cutting-edge nanobioscience and nanoeconomics programs at its Albany location and undergraduate and graduate degrees in technology, including engineering, cybersecurity, computer science, and the engineering technologies; professional studies, including business, communication, and nursing; and arts and sciences, including natural sciences, mathematics, humanities, and social sciences at its Utica/Rome location. Thriving athletic, recreational, and cultural programs, events, and activities complement the campus experience. As the world’s most advanced, university-driven research enterprise, SUNY Poly boasts more than $43 billion in high-tech investments, over 300 corporate partners, and maintains a statewide footprint. The 1.3 million-square-foot Albany NanoTech megaplex is home to more than 4,000 scientists, researchers, engineers, students, faculty, and staff, in addition to Tech Valley High School. SUNY Poly operates the Smart Cities Technology Innovation Center (SCiTI) at Kiernan Plaza in Albany, the Solar Energy Development Center in Halfmoon, the Children’s Museum of Science and Technology (CMOST) in Troy, the Central New York Hub for Emerging Nano Industries in Syracuse, the Smart System Technology and Commercialization Center (STC) in Canandaigua, and the Photovoltaic Manufacturing and Technology Development Facility in Rochester where SUNY Poly also leads the American Institute for Manufacturing Integrated Photonics. SUNY Poly founded and manages the Computer Chip Commercialization Center (Quad-C) at its Utica location and also manages the $500 million New York Power Electronics Manufacturing Consortium, with nodes in Albany and Rochester, as well as the Buffalo High-Tech Manufacturing Innovation Hub at RiverBend, Buffalo Information Technologies Innovation and Commercialization Hub, and Buffalo Medical Innovation and Commercialization Hub. For information visit www.sunycnse.com and www.sunypoly.edu.