The Standard Chartered Women+Tech grand prize-winning team CareerDay with Zahn Innovation Center Managing Director Kesia Hudson (2nd from right). From left: Katherin Solis, Natalia Torres, Sheyla Perez, Hudson, and Giovanni Xique Moyotl.
Innovative pitches by student startups from The City College of New York and other CUNY and SUNY schools won big in CCNY’s 2025 Zahn Innovation Center Incubator Venture Competition. Eighty-two thousand dollars in prizes went to the budding inventor/entrepreneurs to develop their ideas.
The startups competed for grand prizes of $15,000 each in four categories, with each second-place finisher receiving $5,000. In addition, one team in each category received a $500 demo day audience choice award.
Following are the categories and final pitch results (all CCNY unless indicated):
Zahn Software
Grand prize winner ($15K): Chat With Menu Team (Baruch College) - helps restaurants offer clear, adaptable menu options that cater to dietary preferences, allergens, and individual tastes, leveraging technology to ensure a safe, efficient, and personalized dining experience for every guest. Team members: Felix Gonzalez, senior, computer information systems; Lia Emerson, junior, business management.
Second place ($5k): Banister Learning - personalized, gamified, interactive AI-powered learning. Team members: Pragyam Tiwari, sophomore, computer science & mathematics; Vishnu Vijayakrishnan, sophomore, physics.
Zahn Social
Grand prize winner: WattSage - transforms ordinary windows into power-generating assets with solar harvesting curtains, blending energy efficiency and modern design for sustainable living. Team members: Hiba Ouadii, junior, electrical engineering; Ryan Ramnauth, senior, electrical engineering.
Second place: Amor For - an accessible communications agency and platform for community-driven folks and brands. Team members: Nichimyo Rich, masters of professional science (MPS) candidate in branding and integrated communications; Zaakirah Medan, MPS candidate, branding and integrated communications program on PR track.
Kaylie Hardware
Grand prize winner: CardiaLink - a wireless EKG acquisition and EKG lead management system that reduces setup time by 50% and improves patient care through rapid diagnostics and enhanced portability. Team members: Abdelrahman Ahmed, graduate student, translational medicine; Hassan Ahmad (College of Staten Island), senior, engineering science; Shaedil Dider, junior, electrical engineering; and Yahia Abdalla, junior, biomedical engineering.
Second place: LOOM - enhance the experience of users during active recreational activities. Team members [all electrical engineering]: Anthony Rodionov, junior; Ashraf Alam, junior; Mohammed Islam, junior; and Tanveer Hassan Khan, freshman.
Standard Chartered Women+Tech
Grand prize winner: CareerDay - AI-powered platform that guides students in selecting the right major, courses, and career path through personalized roadmaps, mentorship opportunities. Team members: Sheyla Perez (Queens College), junior, math and design; Giovanni Xique Moyotl (Queens College), senior, economics; Natalia Torres (Baruch College), sophomore, computer information systems; and Katherin Solis (Stony Brook University), graduate student, computer science & political science.
Second place: EvalRX - advancing AI in healthcare with inclusive data insights for equitable outcomes for all. Team members: Mohani Adem, senior, biomedical science; Nicole Rodriguez (Baruch College), senior, data analytics & new media arts.
Demo Day Audience Choice Winners ($500 each):
Zahn Social
Cineduca - increases the visualization of the LatinX stories through an educational Spanish platform cineduca (film library) that includes other resources such as lesson plans and handouts for teachers and students.
Zahn Software
QuickBites - a student-led food delivery service that provides busy college students with affordable, time-effective, and eco-friendly meal delivery while supporting local businesses through low commissions and campus-focused partnerships.
Kaylie Hardware
CardiaLink - a wireless EKG acquisition and EKG lead management system that reduces setup time by 50% and improves patient care through rapid diagnostics and enhanced portability.
Standard Chartered Women+Tech
EcoBuild - a marketplace that connects professionals in the construction industry with surplus and reclaimed building materials, reducing waste and promoting sustainability.
Support for the Zahn Innovation Center Incubator Venture Competition is provided by, among others, endowments established by the late Irwin Zahn and Harvey Kaylie, both distinguished CCNY alumni; and by Standard Chartered.
Click here to read about the Women in Tech (WiT) Incubator Competition.
About the Zahn Innovation Center
The Zahn Innovation Center, a program of the Office of Institutional Advancement, Communications and External Relations, is at the heart of entrepreneurship at the City College of New York. It inspires a diverse community of changemakers to develop transformative ventures.
About The City College of New York
Since 1847, The City College of New York has provided a high-quality and affordable education to generations of New Yorkers in a wide variety of disciplines. CCNY embraces its position at the forefront of social change. It is ranked #1 by the Harvard-based Opportunity Insights out of 369 selective public colleges in the United States on the overall mobility index. This measure reflects both access and outcomes, representing the likelihood that a student at CCNY can move up two or more income quintiles. Education research organization Degree Choices ranks CCNY #1 nationally among universities for economic return on investment. In addition, the Center for World University Rankings places CCNY in the top 1.8% of universities worldwide in terms of academic excellence. Labor analytics firm Lightcast puts at $3.2 billion CCNY’s annual economic impact on the regional economy (5 boroughs and 5 adjacent counties) and quantifies the “for dollar” return on investment to students, taxpayers and society. At City College, more than 15,000 students pursue undergraduate and graduate degrees in eight schools and divisions, driven by significant funded research, creativity and scholarship. In 2023, CCNY launched its most expansive fundraising campaign, ever. The campaign, titled “Doing Remarkable Things Together” seeks to bring the College’s Foundation to more than $1 billion in total assets in support of the College mission. CCNY is as diverse, dynamic and visionary as New York City itself. View CCNY Media Kit.
Jay Mwamba
p: 917.892.0374
e:
jmwamba@ccny.cuny.edu