Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI)’s i3 Lab recently hosted GOAT TANK 2026, our annual undergraduate pitch competition celebrating bold ideas, technical innovation, and student-led entrepreneurship.
With 12 finalists advancing to the final round, this year’s competition showcased the depth of talent and ambition within WPI’s startup community. Founders pitched in front of industry leaders, demonstrating not only innovative solutions — but real traction and impact.
A huge thank you to our judges for their time, insight, and thoughtful feedback:
Lisa A. Schiappa – Project Manager - Digital Solutions at COMPOTECH, INC.
Pete Mohan – Global Location Strategy at Oracle
Sandhya Balasubramanian – Assistant Dean at WPI Business School
After an impressive evening of pitches, four teams emerged as this year’s winners:
🏆 1st Place ($1,500) – BrailleBox by Jelaleddin Gylychmuhammedov RBE 27', Minh Ha CS 27', Octavio Bittar ECE 27'.
A connected Braille learning ecosystem combining a tactile device with teacher software to personalize literacy education for visually impaired students.
🥈 2nd Place ($1,000) – Antigaius by William Sobral RBE 27'
Antigaius is a domestic manufacturer of custom drone motors that delivers high-performance, U.S.-made motors in under two weeks, providing faster, cost-competitive alternatives to slow and expensive overseas suppliers.
🥉 3rd Place ($500) – TrActor by
TrActor is a low-cost wearable Ultra-Wide Band (UWB) tracking system that digitally records actors’ movements, providing a live stage map to improve collaboration, streamline workflows, and replace traditional paper notes for production teams.
🏅 4th Place ($250) – Proxima by Ege Ozdemir RBE 28', Efe Cete 29'.
Proxima is an integrated energy platform that leases scalable sodium-ion battery storage to roadside establishments
GOAT TANK continues to serve as a launchpad for undergraduate founders ready to build, test, and scale impactful ventures. Events like this reflect the strength of WPI’s entrepreneurial ecosystem and the growing momentum of student innovation on campus.
We are deeply grateful to our judges, mentors, organizers, and student volunteers who made this event possible — and to every founder who stepped onto the stage.
In her closing remarks, the Endowed Beswick Chair Professor of Innovation & Entrepreneurship at Worcester Polytechnic Institute Rosanna Garcia, reflected on the significance of the evening:
“What we witnessed tonight is exactly what defines WPI — technical rigor paired with entrepreneurial courage. These students are not just building projects; they are building ventures that can create real impact.”
As Director of the i3 Lab, Ardian Preci underscored the broader impact behind GOAT TANK:
“GOAT TANK is more than a pitch competition. It reflects the intentional work happening every day inside the i3 Lab — the mentorship, venture development, and ecosystem building that are strengthening entrepreneurship at WPI.
The quality and sophistication of the ideas we saw tonight are a direct result of that foundation. What’s happening here is not accidental; it’s a sign of a growing and increasingly ambitious innovation ecosystem at WPI.”
🚀 Congratulations to all finalists and winners. We look forward to seeing where these ventures go next.
#WPI #GOATTANK #Entrepreneurship #Innovation #StudentStartups #i3Lab
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