Eight students set to showcase companies at Startup Studio Demo Day 

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The Anderson Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation (ACEI), housed in the Haslam College of Business at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville (UTK), is welcoming the community to the Startup Studio Demo Day on September 5. It’ll be an opportunity for the UTK students to practice pitching their business ideas to an audience. 

The Demo Day is the pinnacle event for the ACEI Startup Studio, which is a 12-week summer accelerator program that assists students and recent alumni in transforming their business ideas into viable products or services. 

The program, led by Haseeb Qureshi (HQ), a lecturer in Haslam’s Department of Management and Entrepreneurship and ACEI Teaching Fellow, offered mentoring, interdisciplinary collaboration, and a structured curriculum that guides participants from ideation to market launch.

“In only one year, the program has grown significantly,” HQ said at the beginning of the summer. “Our founders range from sophomores to graduate students, working on everything from high-growth startups to impactful small businesses. Their creativity and drive are inspiring, and I’m proud to showcase the power of entrepreneurship at UT.”

The summer started with 12 student teams exploring a broad range of ideas. However, the Demo Day will only feature seven of those student businesses.

Meet the Startup Studio Showcase companies for Demo Day!

Semilore “Semmy” Abiodun-Adeniyi is a rising senior from Oak Ridge, Tennessee, pursuing a degree in computer science. He founded Tavern Game Technologies to support the tabletop role-playing game community through software solutions for finding, managing, and scheduling in-person games.

Matthew Jones is a master’s student in computer science from Cookeville, Tennessee, and Spencer Dore is a rising senior from Brentwood, Tennessee, studying management and artificial intelligence. Together, they have formed New Horizon Precision, specializing in the precision application of herbicides, pesticides, fungicides, fertilizers, and cover crops—targeting row crops, pastureland, and invasive species like Kudzu.

Venkat Gopu is a master’s student in computer science from Hyderabad, India. He started SoulThread to make therapy more connected and effective by offering clients AI-powered support between sessions, giving therapists tools to reduce administrative work and better track client progress.

Joshua Hyde, a native of Greeneville, Tennessee, is a rising junior in biosystems engineering through the Health Integrated Business and Engineering program. He started cNTP Agritech to create cost-effective, on-site and environmentally cleaner nitrogen fertilizers as a sustainable alternative to the carbon-intensive Haber-Bosch process.

John Kirk, a rising junior from Chattanooga, is pursuing a major in finance with a minor in entrepreneurship. He started Halieus to bring vintage fly-fishing style to a new generation by creating quality apparel that honors the hobby’s history and appeals to anglers who value tradition and character.

Harish Manyam is a student in the Physician Executive MBA program from Chattanooga. He is chair of the Department of Internal Medicine and a professor at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center College of Medicine in Chattanooga. Manyam is developing Omniasis, a sensor technology to enable real-time monitoring of cardiac rehab exercises at home, eliminating the need for patients to travel to a facility multiple times a week.

Zoë Vitale is a recent marketing graduate from New Castle, Pennsylvania. She started MerchAhead to transform the concert merchandise experience by facilitating pre-orders that fans can pick up at venues, eliminating lines, ensuring access to exclusive items, and enhancing the experience with features like augmented reality try-ons and loyalty rewards.

Community members still have time to register to attend the Startup Studio Demo Day on September 5th from 10 am – 12:30 pm at 121 Tech Hub.

Register to attend here.