The Anderson Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation (ACEI), housed in the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, Haslam College of Business, celebrated its most ambitious competition season yet at its annual awards ceremony, where student and doctoral entrepreneurs from across the UT System competed for a share of a $50,000 Boyd Venture Challenge prize pool, up from $30,000 in previous years. The evening also honored multiple other competition winners from the academic year.
ACEI executive director Breanna Hale said the growth of the Boyd Venture Challenge reflects the spirit of entrepreneurship and innovation growing across Tennessee.
“Expanding the Boyd Venture Challenge with a greater prize pool and opening it to students across the UT System is a testament to the entrepreneurial culture we’re building at UT,” she said. “It marks a significant milestone for the program, broadening access to entrepreneurial resources and recognition for students across Tennessee campuses.”
Boyd Venture Challenge Results
The Boyd Venture Challenge awarded prizes to four finalist teams.
First place went to Arbor AI, founded by Patrick Ragozzine, a JD at the Winston College of Law.
Arbor AI builds intelligent infrastructure to modernize the practice of law and level the playing field for solo and small-firm practitioners. The platform provides the automation technology necessary to drastically reduce overhead, ultimately democratizing access to high-quality legal representation for everyday people.
“Challenging the deeply entrenched traditions of the legal industry requires a certain level of audacity and a willingness to embrace the unknown,” said Ragozzine. “This award proves that betting everything on a bold vision is exactly what it takes to spark real, systemic change.”
New Horizon Precision, a drone-as-a-service company providing licensed aerial application of chemicals, fertilizers and seed across East and Middle Tennessee, won second place. The company specializes in precision spraying and field mapping for terrain-inaccessible farms where traditional ground equipment falls short. Co-founder Spencer Dore, a senior management major from Nashville, accepted the award.
“Winning the Boyd Venture Challenge is a tremendous validation for the farmers we serve because it means the communities of East and Middle Tennessee believe in bringing this technology home,” he said. “This recognition fuels our mission to make precision agriculture accessible to every farm across the region.”
Third place went to Sensory Bridges, founded by UT Chattanooga Gary Rollins College of Business MBA student Megan Cales. Sensory Bridges is a wellness biotech company developing the Brooks Band, a wearable awareness tool that supports voice-volume self-regulation for neurodivergent individuals and the educators, therapists and caregivers who serve them.
“We’re grateful for the recognition from the Boyd Venture Challenge,” Cales said. “The support helps us continue serving the neurodivergent community and the families who walk alongside them, and we appreciate being part of the entrepreneurial community at the University of Tennessee.”
Fourth place was given to Katy Daniels of The Henry BnB, an agritourism destination rooted in Tennessee homesteading traditions, established to preserve a family farm and reconnect visitors to the land. Daniels is a Ph.D. candidate in biosystems engineering.
“Winning the Boyd Venture Challenge is life-changing for both me and The Henry BnB,” she said. “This support helps preserve my family’s farm, accelerate renovations and bring me one step closer to sharing Appalachian heritage and self-sufficiency traditions with guests from around the world.”
Celebrating Additional Competition Winners
The evening also recognized winners across the Graves Business Plan Competition and Vol Court pitch competition, reflecting the breadth of student entrepreneurial activity at the ACEI this year.
Vol Court is a live pitch event where top student ventures present their ideas to judges and the campus community for a chance to earn funding and recognition. The Graves Business Plan Competition prepares student entrepreneurs for this stage by helping them develop business strategies, refine pitches and compete for support to launch their ventures.
During the spring 2026 Graves Business Plan Competition, Rise Alarm, an alarm clock app that requires users to physically tap a bedside pod to silence the alarm, claimed first place in the growth category. The company was founded by Max Gallinek, a sophomore supply chain management major with minors in entrepreneurship and applied artificial intelligence from Charlotte, North Carolina; Dan Fishman, a senior in supply chain management and entrepreneurship minor from Old Bridge, New Jersey; and Collin Tornstrom, a senior marketing major and Knoxville native.
Rise Alarm also earned the $1,000 UT Entrepreneurs Club (UTEC) Prize, awarded to the best pitch by a UTEC member. Daniels’ The Henry BnB took first place in the lifestyle category, marking a strong showing across multiple competitions for the agritourism venture. New Horizon Precision also received the $250 Spark Innovation Award, recognizing its alignment with clean technology.
For the fall 2025 Graves Business Plan Competition, DH Industries LLC, makers of Big Al’s Hot Mustard, won first place in the lifestyle category. DH Industries LLC is owned by Alex Del Vecchio, a junior management major from Lenox, Massachusetts. Gus Alvarez-Succhini, a Ph.D. candidate in learning, design and technology, won the growth category with DataRook, a platform combining professional soccer data with STEM education.
New Horizon Precision claimed first place in the spring Vol Court, while Ben Naugle’s First Glance Knox window cleaning business won the fall competition. Naugle is a junior management major from Knoxville.
Over 50 students presented elevator pitches through Vol Court this academic year, an increase of 39 percent from the previous academic year.
The 2025-2026 academic year competition season marked a milestone for the ACEI, with expanded opportunities and increased funding and participation from students across the UT System. From early-stage pitches to venture-ready startups, the competitions highlighted the growing impact of student entrepreneurship and the university’s commitment to supporting innovation that drives economic growth, strengthens communities and transforms industries.
About the Anderson Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation
The ACEI, housed in the Haslam, is the front door to entrepreneurship at UT. It connects Volunteers with the expertise, resources and collaborators at UT and across the regional ecosystem to advance ideas, tackle bold challenges and turn entrepreneurial ambition into results. At the ACEI, Volunteers are empowered to identify opportunities and take bold action to create value through new ventures.
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Author:
Allison Kelly, Anderson Center director of marketing, akelly9@utk.edu
Contact:
Leah McAmis, senior editor, leah@utk.edu
Contact
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