2025 Winners, Finalists and Mentors

2025 Winners

Congratulations to the 2025 NIA Start-Up Challenge winners!

We are thrilled to celebrate the 2025 NIA Start-Up Challenge winners, who demonstrated outstanding innovation, scientific rigor, and commercial potential. These teams submitted exceptional pitch presentations to compete for $65,000 cash prizes. Each team has shown remarkable dedication to addressing critical unmet needs in aging and have made significant strides in refining their business strategies and advancing their products. Their solutions represent the future of aging research and care, and we are proud to support their journey towards commercialization.

2025 Finalists

The 21 NIA Start-Up Challenge Stage 1 finalists represent a multidisciplinary group of researchers and entrepreneurs who have innovative ideas for science-driven technologies and products that have the potential to advance the fields of aging and age-related diseases. They are engaged in a wide range of research and development to create everything from digital health solutions to devices to therapeutics for aging Americans, including interventions for Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias (AD/ADRD).

Lauren Blake, Ph.D., Co-Founder and Director of Operations; Marcus Soliai, Ph.D., M.S., Co-Founder and Director of Research and Development; Phillip Sears, Data Engineering and AI Intern; Franco Villalobos, Data Engineering and AI Intern

• Alstara/DRAGON Drug Discovery Platform: Leveraging AI and big data to identify the right drug combinations for AD/ADRD faster, cheaper, and with greater confidence

Marie Brodsky, B.S., CEO; Katherine-Aria Close, B.A, B.S., Chief Product Officer; Richard McHorgh, B.S., Lead Engineer

• WISE Connect: AI-powered platform connecting older adults with local services, activities, and resources to reduce social isolation and support aging in place of choice

Lauren Donovan, Ph.D., Research Scientist; Vivianne Tawfik, M.D., Ph.D., Associate Professor

• SenNeuro Therapeutics: Therapeutic company to provide treatment options for pain conditions in aged populations

Kareem Elfoulie, B.S., Co-Founder

• Senior Shield Technologies, Inc.: Dignifying incontinence care with Tenative, a novel incontinence monitoring pad

Jared Fischer, Ph.D., CEO; Florian Goncalves, M.S. Ph.D., Research Engineer 3

• SenC Biologics, LLC: Novel senolytics for the treatment of age-related diseases

Nita Jain, B.S., Founder

• Timeless Biosciences: Precision microbiome-targeted therapies for complex chronic conditions

Kwamane Liddell, J.D., M.H.A., B.S.N., Founder and CEO

• ThriveLink: Telephonic conversational AI that uses machine learning to help patients verbally complete and submit applications for health care services and screenings

Sarah Nouri, M.D., M.P.H., Founder; Bridget McCall, MCRP, CEO and Co-Founder

• Voxa: Digital platform for older adults and their caregivers that uses generative AI and machine learning to optimize symptom management, reduce caregiver burden, and anticipate care needs

Anway Pimpalkar, M.S.E., CEO; Junjun Chen, M.S.E., Chief Technology Officer

• Re-Kinesis: Wearable motion analysis lab integrating e-dermis sensing with AI to monitor lower limb function and augment recovery strategies for patients in physical rehabilitation

Neal K. Shah, CEO

• CareYaya Health Technologies: AI phone companion designed to improve the well-being and cognitive health of seniors through meaningful interactions

Stefano Carl Selorio, CEO

• Carevocacy: Empathetic, multilingual AI-powered chatbot that helps older adults and caregivers navigate digital health tools

Jermiah Tate, M.S., Graduate Research Student; J. Amber Jennings, Ph.D., Associate Professor

• ChromatoCare Innovations: Making early detection of infection simple to improve patient care for all

Harsh Vaidya, Ph.D., M.Sc., CEO

• Fidra Therapeutics Inc.: Multifunctional antibody drug platform to treat Alzheimer’s and other neurodegenerative disorders

Weiguang Wang, Ph.D., Co-Founder & Chief Scientific Officer; Fei Li, M.A., Co-Founder & Business Development Lead

• Agilgen: Integrating AI with regenerative biology to develop targeted therapeutics for age-related musculoskeletal degeneration

2025 Mentors

Jacqueline M. Baker, M.Ed., Principal Consultant, Scarlet Communications

Dalfoni Banerjee, Principal Consultant and CEO, 3Sixty Pharma Solutions; Founder and CEO, ImmuNovX Biotech

Malaz Boustani, M.D., M.P.H., Richard M. Fairbanks Professor of Aging Research, Indiana University; Founding Director, Indiana University Center for Health Innovation and Implementation; Chief Scientific Officer, Blue Agilis

Cira Cardaci, M.S., Executive Manager, City University of New York Industrial & Applied Research

Darryl Carter, M.D., Venture Advisor, University of Maryland, Baltimore

Heather Carter, Managing Partner, First Money Fund

Brian Chen, Ph.D., Scientist, California Pacific Medical Center Research Institute, University of California, San Francisco

Elaine Chung, M.B.A., CEO and Founder, Beyond the Change

Sheila D. Collins, M.B.A., Venture Fund Partner, Portfolia

Idongesit Essiet-Gibson, Ph.D., M.P.H., M.S., Principal, The Idyeas Group

Jessica Forbes, Ph.D., Scientific Program Manager, National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, NIH

Marcia Fournier, Ph.D., Health Science Administrator, Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, NIH

Mark Francis, M.P.P., Chief Product Officer, Electronic Caregiver, Inc.

Merika Koday, Ph.D., Vice President, Accelerator Life Science Partners

Adriana Krasniansky, M.T.S., Head of Research, Rock Health

Martina Mancini, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Neurology, Adjunct Associate Professor of Biomedical Engineering, and Co-Director of the Balance Disorders Laboratory, Oregon Health & Science University

Lisa Marrone, M.B.A., J.D., Investor, Pivotal Ventures

Bijo Mathew, M.S., M.B.A., Director, University of Texas at San Antonio Technology Commercialization Center

Lydia McClure, Ph.D., CEO, Research Bridge Partners

Nakia Melecio, Psy.D., M.A., Senior Research Faculty, Georgia Institute of Technology

Hongdao Meng, M.D., Ph.D., Professor, University of South Florida

Charles Mobbs, Ph.D., Professor, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai; Founder, Gilga-Med, Inc.

Jessica Moon, Ph.D., Vice President, The Implementation Group

Zainab Toteh Osakwe, Ph.D., M.S.N., Associate Professor, Adelphi University College of Nursing and Public Health

Kiran Pandey, Ph.D., M.S.E., CEO, Arc Proteomics LLC

Ricky Pimentel, Ph.D., Biomechanist, Uplift Labs

Mohammed Quadri, M.D., M.B.A., Vice President of Strategy, Academics, Research, and Innovation, Hackensack Meridian Health

John Reinhart, M.B.A., Co-Founder and Board Member, Thrive Center Inc.

Michelle Rider, M.B.A., Chief Marketing Officer, 2FloVentures

Sheri Rose, M.Ed., CEO, Thrive Center Inc.

Ethan Sarnoski, Ph.D., Senior Program Advisor, National Institute on Aging, NIH

Reka Shinkle, M.B.A., Founder and Owner, Riverene bioStrategies

Sarah Small, M.A., Director of Health Experience Development, Otsuka Precision Health

Andrew Steen, M.B.A., Principal, Liverpool Lane LLC

Katherine Steinberg, M.B.A., M.P.P., Co-Founder and President, Determined Health

Trivia Frazier, Ph.D., M.B.A., Co-Founder, President, and CEO, Obatala Sciences, Inc.

Santosh Vetticaden, M.D., Ph.D., M.B.A., Board Member, NuFund Venture Group

Stephen Von Rump, M.S., CEO and Founder, Aegis Digital Health (DBA SweetSpot)

Molly Wasko, Ph.D., M.B.A., University Professor, University of Alabama at Birmingham

SBIR