South Dakota Mines Entrepreneurs Secure Nearly $40,000 During State’s Giant Vision Business Plan Competition

South Dakota Mines innovators once again proved they are a driving force behind South Dakota’s next big ideas, capturing three of the five top awards in both the student and open divisions at the recent Governor’s Giant Vision Business Plan Competition and earning nearly $40,000.

Competing against entrepreneurs from across the state, Mines faculty and students dominated in the state’s premier business plan competition, an event designed to spark innovation, launch startups and fuel job growth across South Dakota.

For more than a decade, Mines students, alumni and faculty have received top honors at the competition. “At South Dakota Mines, world-class engineering and entrepreneurship go hand-in-hand,” said Beth Lambeth, associate vice president of research, innovation and entrepreneurship. “Our students and faculty are taking ideas out of the lab and turning them into real ventures that can strengthen South Dakota’s economy and bring new technologies to market.”

Parker Pombrio, geospatial technology certificate graduate student, took home first place in the student division and $5,000, for Devana Videre, a company he started with Mines classmates David Pienta, materials engineering and science graduate student, and Jeremy Friedrichsen, senior computer science major. “We are grateful for the platform the South Dakota Governor’s Giant Vision Competition created to showcase emerging innovation and connect founders with a broader community that supports entrepreneurship and technology development,” Pombrio said.

Devana Videre is developing a new sensing modality that enables real-time mineral identification during exploratory drilling, allowing operators to make immediate decisions and reducing delays associated with traditional laboratory assays.

“By optimizing where and how drilling progresses, Devana Videre aims to lower exploration costs and accelerate resource discovery,” Pombrio said.

Clive Uy, senior mechanical engineering major, won third place and $3,000 for MedSum, an AI-powered online platform revolutionizing the medical summarization process for social security disability lawyers. Uy developed the concept with Jacob Vostad, senior chemical engineering major, and Raleigh Martin, senior mechanical engineering major.

“This competition was an incredible opportunity to not only showcase our technology and business model, but also network with industry professionals, legislators and other regional stakeholders,” Uy said. “MedSum would not be here without the staff at Mines. From customer discovery and financial modeling to competition preparation, our team has benefited immensely from the support that Mines offers to entrepreneurs.”

The third Mines student winner was Joseph Tunge, a sophomore biomedical engineering major, who brought home $2,000 for his innovation SlumpScan, a concrete sensor and software that helps small contractors reduce labor costs and improve the quality of their product through measurements on hydration, mix consistency and temperature.

“In my short time at Mines, I have been blown away by the opportunities available to aspiring entrepreneurs to access mentorship and funding to pursue their ideas,” Tunge said. “The willingness of professors, local entrepreneurs, and the teams at Elevate Rapid City and Wildfire Labs to meet with and guide me has been invaluable.”

Mines faculty also won first, third and fourth for their innovative ideas.

Tanvi Govil, Ph.D., assistant professor in the Karen M. Swindler Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, took the open division top honor and $20,000 for Carbon-ENZero, a technology representing a breakthrough in converting fossil fuel emissions into green energy solutions. Using advanced enzymes as powerful biocatalysts, the process permanently captures carbon dioxide from industrial flue gases and converts it into minerals. Specifically engineered enzymes are designed to perform under extreme conditions, including high temperatures, elevated pressures, acidic environments and exposure to toxic metals. Govil’s innovation grew out of technology first developed deep underground at the Sanford Underground Research Facility. With the potential to reduce industrial carbon emissions, Govil’s innovation could redefine the future of the power industry.

“We are extremely pleased and honored to have been awarded the top prize in the South Dakota Governor’s Giant Vision Competition,” Govil said. “We are also supremely grateful for all the support and assistance provided by the university. It truly made the difference. We are blessed at South Dakota Mines to have a tremendous environment that promotes world-class technology combined with an entrepreneurial spirit.  

Rajesh Shende, Ph.D., interim department head and professor in the Karen M. Swindler Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, and his team won third place and $5,000 for their company AdvancedCarbonX , LLC, an innovation that converts corn stover, the stalks and residue left after harvest, into high-quality, battery-grade carbon materials that can could power the next generation of electric vehicles and AI data centers.

Shende said university support was integral for moving the technology from laboratory to commercial impact. “Through strong faculty mentorship, entrepreneurial guidance and a culture that encourages translational research, the university provided critical support in transforming scientific discovery into market-ready solutions,” he said.

Mines support, combined with collaboration from the Governor’s Office of Economic Development and the Giant Vision Competition, strengthened the startup's growth trajectory by providing visibility, strategic networking opportunities and access to key resources.

Tugba Ozdemir, Ph.D., Mines assistant professor of nanoscience and biomedical engineering, won fourth place and $3,000 for Hyaluropsy, LLC, a South Dakota-based company built around manufacturing a liquid biopsy filter device to capture hyaluronan from body fluids such as blood serum, urine, cerebrospinal fluid and lymphatic fluid. “Hyaluronan (HA) levels significantly change in these body fluids during cancer progression,” Ozdemir said, adding that there are several detection tests and biosensors to measure HA levels in cancer. “While there is significant interest in measuring this interesting biological molecule, almost no method exists to purify HA from the body fluids for accurate detection for diagnostic purposes.”

Hyaluropsy aims to fill the gap through unique products that could enable fast, non-invasive point-of-care HA isolation from body fluids.

“I am grateful for the entrepreneurial ecosystem we have at South Dakota Mines,” Ozdemir said. “Giant Vision allowed us to present our technology, receive real-world feedback from seasoned business leaders in South Dakota, and gave us new frontiers to achieve our company. I look forward to new opportunities.”

South Dakota Mines extends its sincere gratitude to the South Dakota Chamber of Commerce and Industry for its dedication to fostering South Dakota small businesses and for the exceptional organization of the Governor’s Giant Vision Competition.