Meet the 2024 Student Innovation Award winners
Each year, the Student Innovation Awards celebrate student-led projects that create positive impact through commercialising research, driving innovation and delivering positive social outcomes to the community.
A headset for treating concussions, machine learning to predict appointment no-shows, and an interactive game to break down cultural barriers are just some of the ideas students developed as part of the 2024 Student Innovation Awards.
Among this year's winners were TrackerBox, which uses electrooculography and neural networks to implement minimally-invasive eye-tracking, InnerSteps, an app that crafts personalised stories for children suffering from mental health issues, and KOSH, which aims to make pregnancy nutrition easy.
In addition to the winners receiving prizes, this year all finalists were awarded $1000 to take their ideas to the next level.
Student Innovation Award winners
Matt Gordon (left) and Jesse Waller (right) with InnerSteps.
InnerSteps
Award for Social Impact: delivering positive impact to people and community
"It was such an incredible experience to present InnerSteps at the Student Innovation Awards last week. With so many inspiring and talented competitors, we were so honoured to win the Best Social Impact Startup award at the ceremony. InnerSteps is a mobile app which creates highly personalised, evidence-based stories to support children with their mental health. Using our technology we can break down complex mental health topics and explain them in a way that a five year old can understand and engage with, giving both children and parents the language and tools to spark conversations."
Shalu Chaudhary with KOSH.
KOSH
INCUBATE Award for Best Student Startup – Early-stage
"KOSH has a vision of making pregnancy healthier, and while these awards feel surreal, the bigger win is the validation of our vision. They show that the problem I’m solving with KOSH resonates with people and for me, that belief is the real gold."
Yanchang Wu, Charlie Warren, and Mitchell Spanner (left to right) with TrackerBox.
TrackerBox
Most Innovative Student Project that solves a real-world problem
"We’re delighted and grateful to have won, but also to have been allowed and encouraged to push our interests in the classroom. As a result, we have a project that could take on a life outside of the classroom, and that’s a fantastically satisfying privilege.”
2024 winning projects
For student founders turning their idea into a business.
Prize: $5000 and mentorship with INCUBATE. This may be in the form of entry into an INCUBATE program or a meeting with an Entrepreneur in Residence.
Kosh – Shalu Chaudhary
Pregnancy is a magical journey, and it doesn’t have to be hard or scary. At Kosh, we are turning pregnancy into the most delightful adventure of your life.
It’s a one-stop platform for everything you need during motherhood. While family and friends are irreplaceable, we strive to be your closest ally.
Nutritional advice, therapies, medical consultations, real-time monitoring, and specialized pre and postnatal physical and mental well-being tools—all tailored just for you.
Plus, a community of amazing mums-to-be and new mums, supporting each other throughout.
From the first bump to your baby’s first steps and beyond, we’re here for you!
For students making a positive social impact through their startup, research or innovative project.
Prize: $5000 and mentorship. This may be in the form of entry into an INCUBATE program or a series of meetings with an industry expert.
Inner Steps – Matt Gordon & Jesse Waller
One in ten children aged 3–12 suffer from mental health issues, but over half receive no support. That’s almost 100 million children struggling silently. Existing solutions are either inaccessible, too expensive, or not engaging for young minds. InnerSteps is here to change that.
We’ve built an AI powered app that crafts personalised, captivating stories infused with clinical strategies.
Imagine a story where your child is the hero, facing challenges tailored to their world, surrounded by the things they love most. By incorporating their interests and struggles, we craft a powerful tool for sparking conversations, normalising struggles and providing industry-leading strategies.
To recognise the exceptional work undertaken by University of Sydney students through curricular programs.
Prize: $5000.
Winner
TrackerBox: Continuous Horizontal Eye-Tracking with SpikerBox – Jake Laherty, Charlie Warren, Jack Anderson, Mitchell Spanner, Chengxuan Jiang, Yanchang Wu
Using electrooculography and neural networks to implement minimally-invasive eye-tracking.