About USF I-Corps

USF student invents lumber alternative using recycled plastic
August 4, 2022
While lumber was widely unavailable and prices were soaring to historic highs during the coronavirus pandemic, a University of South Florida mechanical engineering student was developing a cost-effective alternative. Now funded by the National Science Foundation, doctoral student John Cotter is manufacturing a recycled plastic building material that can replace structural lumber. John Cotter was an Entrepreneurial Lead (EL) for a Spring 2022 USF I-Corps team and a Summer 2022 national NSF I-Corps team.

USF I-Corps alumni in the news!
June 22, 2022
USF graduate student John Cotter spoke about his latest invention, a reimagined agriculture fence post, in a recent Fox13 news story, “Inventors Hall of Fame highlights stars of Florida Innovation.” John Cotter was an Entrepreneurial Lead (EL) for a Spring 2022 USF I-Corps team and a Summer 2022 national NSF I-Corps team. Dr. Norma Alcantar, a recent Florida Inventors Hall of Fame inductee, was also featured; Dr. Alcantar was the Principle Investigator (PI) for a Fall 2015 national NSF I-Corps team and a Fall 2020 USF I-Corps team.

USF students compete in Florida Blue Health Innovation Challenge
May 16, 2022
The Florida Blue Health Innovation Challenge is a statewide competition open to students from every college and university in the state. Mitchell Harrah, a biomedical engineering doctoral student, took second place and $5,000 for Baldr Medical. Baldr Medical is a skincare imaging and detection device that helps diagnose early stages of skin cancer using AI. Mitchell Harrah and Magdalena Harrah were Entrepreneurial Leads (EL) for a Spring 2022 USF I-Corps team.

Tampa Bay’s CADE winners develop innovative technologies
March 29, 2022
SPKL, LLC, which received the 2021 CADE prize, was developed by Dr. Ashwin Parthasarathy together with a middle school friend. Dr. Parthasarathy was the Principle Investigator (PI) and Karthik Sriram, a USF alum was the Mentor (M) on a Spring 2020 USF I-Corps team. NEWgenerator, which received the 2014 CADE prize, was developed by Dr. Daniel Yeh. Dr. Yeh was the Principal Investigator (PI) for a 2015 national NSF I-Corps team and a Spring 2016 USF I-Corps team.

WEC Projects secures first order for NEWgenerator off-grid sanitation system
March 14, 2022
The USF NEWgenerator hits a major tech transfer milestone as commercial partner & IP licensee WEC Projects (Pty) Ltd of South Africa secures their first order to provide the off-grid sanitation solution for a school in Eastern Cape. Dr. Daniel Yeh was the Principal Investigator (PI) for a 2015 national NSF I-Corps team and a Spring 2016 USF I-Corps team.

USF professor launches augmented reality startup to help bilingual students
January 13, 2022
Dr. Sara Smith, along with startup veteran Murewa Olubela, launched MARVL in April 2020 to help dual-language students learn English through augmented reality elements, all without leaving their classroom. Dr. Sara Smith was a Principle Investigator (PI) and Murewa Olubela, a USF alumni, was the Entrepreneurial Lead (EL) for a Fall 2020 USF I-Corps team and a Spring 2021 NSF national team.