On the right path: Innovation Pathways & Partnerships returned to FSU for second installment

By Staff Report, posted Oct 9, 2025 on BizFayetteville.com

Fayetteville State University’s (FSU) second Innovation Pathways & Partnerships event took place at the Rudolph Jones Student Center on Friday, Oct. 3, to help innovators connect those engaged in new product development with resources available locally, regionally and state wide.

With a full schedule for the day, attendees were able to take advantage of knowledge and insight from industry leaders. With panels that touched on topics that included current demand trends in the military, fundraising and going from concept to commercialization, there was plenty of information to share with up and coming business owners.

The inaugural Innovation Pathways & Partnerships event took place earlier this year in April.

Businesses in attendance also had the chance to pitch their concepts in a pitch competition to further their support system by connecting with FSU’s resources, industry experts and more.

Winners of the first pitch competition were given the chance to provide updates on their companies and research with support from FSU.

The first-place prize for last spring’s pitch competition was awarded to Chris Bentley, CEO of InfraTechDC, who designed systems that cool chips in high-performance computing environments with much greater efficiency than current methods. He received $1,500 as seed money to help move their innovation forward. Bentley initiated a collaboration with FSU science faculty to improve the efficiency of the InfraTechDC device through proprietary nanomaterials developed in the university labs. FSU faculty involved in this collaboration include Dr. Daniel Autrey, Dr. Shubo Han, Dr. Bhoj Gautam, and Dr. Jairo Castillo-Chara.

“The funding that we received as part of the first pitch competition was actually applied to minimum viable experiments on copper. So in order to get these nano materials, you can't just powder them on, right? Because if you're running fluid over them they’ve got to stick to the copper. So we've got various bonding and adhesion tests going on right now,” shared Bentley.

Second place at the first pitch competition went to Fayetteville-based Geranium Geospatial Solutions (GGS). They received a $1,000 second prize to help advance their innovation specializing in full-motion video analysis through drone technology. Along with working with Asheville-based Calective, a drone manufacturer specializing in resilient RF communications technology, they are also working to create new AI-enabled drones leveraging technology to be provided by FSU faculty member Dr. Sambit Bhattacharya.

“The research and development question that our company sought to task after was, ‘Would we be able to feasibly build a modular, inexpensive, UAS platform that could be used in both civilian and law enforcement, military application?’ Along with our sister company, together we're able to manufacture and develop this drone.” shared GGS Founder and CEO Austin Joseph. “We're currently in the testing phase of it. With the partnership with Fayetteville State, we've had access to faculty resources, using the campus for field testing on our platform and within the coming months, we plan on getting our internship up and running, so we'll have students from Fayetteville State helping out on the project itself.”

He also shared that GGS is working to develop a curriculum with the University.

“That could be used for CPR programs for military that are former intelligence professionals and are interested in the UAS field and want to seek a degree path within that. So we're working with the guidelines for that right now as well. So, a lot of great things have happened with this pitch,” shared Joseph.

This year, seven teams presented their ideas before a panel of judges, each offering a glimpse of North Carolina’s growing innovation network.

Fluent Insurance claimed first place, led by Aria Freeman, an FSU junior double majoring in accounting and banking and finance. Freeman developed an AI-powered renters' insurance platform tailored for Gen Z. She was joined on stage by Meshai Ives Maissonet, a fellow junior majoring in business, as they introduced Bo, a chatbot designed to simplify complex insurance jargon into a five-minute conversation. For their innovative approach, the team took home the $1,500 top prize.

For the second pitch competition, Fluent Insurance claimed first place, led by Aria Freeman (pictured left), an FSU junior double majoring in accounting and banking and finance. Active Defender earned second place with a pitch from CEO Jim Boyte (pictured right).
Photo provided by: FSU.

“A lot of students don’t even know they need renters insurance until something goes wrong,” said Freeman. “Our goal is to make it simple, fast and accessible. To turn insurance into something students can actually understand.”

Active Defender earned second place with a pitch from CEO Jim Boyte. The company’s AI-powered platform analyzes speech patterns to spot early signs of agitation or aggression, aiming to prevent violence before it happens. This proactive safety solution is already being piloted in schools, hospitals and other public spaces. For his innovative work, Boyte took home the $1,000 runner-up prize.

Other teams showcased a range of ideas emerging across the region:

Ethan Kessler and Tyler Renken, both students at Campbell University, earned strong praise for their FitKit, a modular hand-therapy device designed to help occupational therapists and patients rebuild mobility using real-world tools.
Francisco Portillo with AFC Industries, presented PyroTech, a flame-retardant textile tested at NC State and used in NATO uniforms, which is resistant to temperatures of up to 1,800 degrees Fahrenheit without the use of the chemical perfluoro octane sulfonate (PFOS) or toxic fumes.
Marianeth Crockett of Kaleo Group introduced Knexis, a nanotech wearable designed for missing-person recovery and defense operations.
Austin Kinlaw, an FSU student, unveiled Caverna, a visual creativity platform that helps users “innovate their imagination” through design thinking and user experience tools.
Derrice Hamlin, an FSU student, pitched Hamlin Houston Vending, which offers AI-assisted vending machines featuring healthy food options for industrial workplaces.

After the winners were announced, Alison Beatty, NCInnovation’s hub director for Fayetteville State University, unveiled a new Pipeline Development Fund, offering up to $25,000 for rapid prototyping and university-industry collaborations, adding that “every partnership formed here today has a chance to become something real.”

“We want to celebrate those prototypes at the next Innovation Pathways event and show how ideas from Fayetteville are shaping North Carolina’s innovation landscape,” she added.

The next Innovation Pathways & Partnerships forum is set for Spring 2026, where organizers plan to showcase prototypes born from this fall’s collaboration.

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