INNOVATE 2026 presented by Vinea Capital announces winners

Augusta University’s 2026 INNOVATE Pitch Competition inspired hundreds of creators from across the region to submit their “pitches for a purpose” with the goal of tackling real-life challenges facing the community.

On March 25, a total of 25 teams were selected to present a five-minute pitch to a panel of judges at the Georgia Cyber Center at Augusta University in hopes of being recognized and winning cash prizes to help launch their ideas.

Winners were selected from three categories: undergraduate teams, graduate teams and community entrepreneur teams. For the second year in a row, Augusta-based private equity firm Vinea Capital served as the competition’s headline sponsor and provided the award for a community entrepreneur.

Augusta University President Russell T. Keen said he was impressed by the passion of the participants in the 2026 INNOVATE Pitch Competition.

“Innovation is something that, through the years, has been parallel with imagination,” Keen said. “The idea of what is happening now and what could happen later. What could make something better? What could save a life? What can improve humanity and change the way we do things? What could create access for those who can’t have it?”

“Many people say, ‘No, you can’t do that. It can never be done.’ I’m going to tell you something about Augusta University. We have a motto that it can be done.”

Augusta University President Russell T. Keen

Keen encouraged the students and community members to never give up on their dreams.

“Many people say, ‘No, you can’t do that. It can never be done,’” Keen said. “I’m going to tell you something about Augusta University. We have a motto that it can be done. So, if anything leaves with you today, those who have been awarded and those who were told, ‘Maybe not today,’ just remember to continue to say, ‘It can be done.’”

New to the competition this year, the University System of Georgia is hosting a systemwide Innovation & Entrepreneurship Competition. Each of the 25 USG institutions will select one team of creators to represent their university in the two-day challenge on April 6-7 at Kennesaw State University.

During the USG competition, teams will pitch their original ideas to a panel of judges for a chance to win the USG Innovation & Entrepreneurship Trophy, $25,000 in cash prizes and a mentorship from industry experts.

Competing statewide

Advancing to the state level to represent Augusta University in the USG competition will be a team called Titra Health, led by students Ray Wade and Ibrahim Mohammad.

Wade, a sophomore majoring in neuroscience and part of the Honors Program at Augusta University, said their idea behind Titra Health was to develop a way to better monitor patients’ use of GLP-1s.

“GLP-1s are the newest and biggest medication for treating obesity and diabetes,” Wade said. “It’s currently the fastest-growing drug class in pharmaceutical history. One in eight Americans has already tried a GLP-1, and another one in eight Americans has expressed interest in using a GLP-1. As a result, this market is projected to reach over $230 billion within the next six to seven years.”

“We’re very excited for what can happen at the USG competition. I think we have a very big vision for where we’re going to go. I think this is a great opportunity for us to get some more momentum and get some feedback about our vision.”

Augusta University student Ibrahim Mohammad

However, there is very little oversight in the usage of GLP-1s, Wade said.

“There are currently two ways of getting a GLP-1. The first is through a third-party platform like Weight Watchers, Noom or Ro Health. When you do this, they assign you a care team. However, this care team does not have the full context into your entire medical history,” he said. “The second option is through your primary care physician. They have full context into your medical history, however, they have very limited infrastructure when it comes to monitoring your treatment while on GLP-1s. As a result, over half of GLP-1 patients discontinue their treatment within just one year.”

Mohammad, a second-year cell and molecular biology major, said Titra Health wants to fix that problem.

“Regardless of how patients get their GLP-1 medication, there is a consistent gap in oversight in the patients who are taking the drug and providers who are supposed to be monitoring them,” Mohammad said. “Titra Health changes that. We provide the infrastructure for active GLP-1 management and put it in the hands of their primary care physician.”

The platform uses a personalized companion app that allows patients to track key behavioral information – such as nutrition, side effects, medication timing and dosage, and data from wearable devices.

All of this information is connected back to their care team. The approach is built on flexible estimates and is being developed to meet the requirements for FDA medical device qualification. Titra Health will also help patients navigate the side effects of GLP-1s, Wade said.

“There are three main pain points of why GLP-1 users discontinue their treatment,” he said. “The first is muscle loss. GLP-1s suppress appetite, making it very hard for GLP-1 users to get the correct amount of protein they need. As a result, they’re losing more than just fat. They’re also losing muscle. Titra sets protein goals and tracks every single gram.”

The second reason patients stop using GLP-1s is dehydration, Wade said.

“GLP-1s also suppress thirst signals, making it so GLP-1 users are dehydrated without even knowing it. We set hydration goals and let you know when you’re falling short,” he said. “Finally, there are the side effects. There are normal and abnormal side effects while on GLP-1s. We analyze the side effects based off the amount of drug concentration that’s in your body and we flag your provider if there are abnormal symptoms. The goal of this is that the patient who’s on the treatment for longer stays safer and is constantly uploading their clinical data straight into the Electronic Health Record of the primary care physician.”

Both Mohammad and Wade said they are honored to be chosen to represent Augusta University at USG’s Innovation & Entrepreneurship Competition in April.

“It’s a big responsibility, so we’re very excited for what can happen at the USG competition,” Mohammad said. “I think we have a very big vision for where we’re going to go. I think this is a great opportunity for us to get some more momentum and get some feedback about our vision.”

Seven years strong

AU’s Director of Academic Entrepreneurship Lynsey Steinberg, who is also a co-founder of INNOVATE, said the competition is one of her favorite days of the year.

“This event started in 2019, inspired by a 15-year-old girl named Emma who was in our Girls Who Code program,” Steinberg said. “Emma had a colostomy bag and her parents talked about the drastic impact that this had on her life. Their once-vivacious young girl was going through high school and facing all of these challenges. And we took a step back and said, ‘What in the world would it take to solve problems like Emma’s?’ We offered her a solution. And we realized that with the brainpower we have here at the university and with interdisciplinary collaboration, we absolutely can solve problems and challenges like this in our community. Now, INNOVATE has been providing solutions for seven years.”

Steinberg said the competition received more than 1,114 touchpoints of engagement with faculty, students, staff and community partners over the past few years.

“Each year it just continues to grow, and the ideas become more and more remarkable,” she said. “This year, we brought in external mentors or internal stakeholders who are working with our student teams. I think that has been such a remarkable domino effect to see the quality of the ideas and the relationships that are being built with some of our community partners.”

“We realized that with the brainpower we have here at the university and with interdisciplinary collaboration, we absolutely can solve problems and challenges like this in our community. Now, INNOVATE has been providing solutions for seven years.”

Lynsey Steinberg, director of Academic Entrepreneurship and co-founder of INNOVATE

Titra Health was mentored by David Pope, PharmD, who currently serves as the chief pharmacy officer at Xifin, the nation’s leader in pharmacy and lab medical billing and clinical documentation technology. Pope is also the founder of Creo, an investment firm focused on emerging-market startups.

“I can speak the world about David Pope,” Steinberg said. “He is an external entrepreneur who developed a pharmaceutical software that is now nationally one of the largest, if not the most well-known. He has been a tremendous mentor to our student teams.”

Steinberg, who is serving as Augusta University’s representative for the USG competition, said she cannot wait to see the pitches from across the state in April.

“It’s been wonderful to get to see the best practices and the ideas that have come out of other institutions,” she said. “We get to see what they’re doing and how they’re doing it. So, we are collaborating with our sister institutions, working together, all for the benefit of student success.”

“I think that has been such a remarkable domino effect to see the quality of the ideas and the relationships that are being built with some of our community partners.”

Lynsey Steinberg, director of Academic Entrepreneurship and co-founder of INNOVATE

Steinberg also thanked the INNOVATE judges – Allan Soto, founder and managing partner of Vinea Capital; Troy Akers, DO, the chief medical officer of Eisenhower Army Medical Center; and Stacey Lewis, the recruiting manager for Aurubis – for participating in the competition.

And Steinberg is already preparing for next year’s event.

“If anybody is interested in joining some of these efforts, it’s only going to get bigger,” she said, smiling. “We’re going to start looking at partnering with industry challenges and we are going to be growing an entrepreneur and engineer-in-residence initiative.”

The following are all the winners of the 2026 INNOVATE Pitch Competition:

• Augusta University USG Pitch Competition Nominated team:
  Titra Health
  Students: Ray Wade and Ibrahim Mohammad
  Mentor: David Pope
• Undergraduate winners:
• First Place – HALO Heavenly Scents
  Students: Emily Nicholson and Raina Bearden
  Mentor: Roger Duke
• Second Place – Titra Health
  Students: Ray Wade and Ibrahim Mohammad
  Mentor: David Pope
• Third Place – Gait Straight
  Student: Sarah Ngugi
  Mentor: Colleen Hergott and Lori Bolgla
• Audience Choice Award – Local Innovation Exchange
  Student: Somadina Okwara
  Mentor: Katie Lewis
• Graduate winners:
• First Place – Caesarean Section Model
  Student: Alena Pfeifer
  Mentor: Amanda Behr, PhD
• Second Place – HIM Hormone Interstitial Monitor
  Student: Kirstyn Denney
  Mentor: Almira Vazdarjanova, PhD
• Third Place – Shoulder Injection Trainer
  Student: Noah Brown
  Mentor: Amanda Behr, PhD
• Audience Choice – Ladan Kian
  Student: Ladan Kian
  Mentor: Mohamad Sanei, PhD, and Dariusz Kowalski, PhD
• Vinea Capital Community Entrepreneur
• First Place – ReflexaDX – Diego Antonio Fernandez Fuentes   
• Second Place – AUGSoCal – Rickey Jones
  Mentor: Shaun Andrews, Accelerate Augusta
• Third Place – Bodfather – Karlton Meadows
  Mentor: Shaun Andrews, Accelerate Augusta