On April 12, 2024, Wharton Cypher Accelerator, a collaboration powered by the Stevens Center for Innovation in Finance, hosted Demo and Innovation Day at the Penn Club of New York, featuring presentations by the emerging companies in the Dominion Cohort, panel discussions, and keynote speakers.
“Wharton Cypher provides a unique opportunity for students to engage in cross-disciplinary teamwork focused on the identification and acceleration of leading startups in cutting-edge technologies. Our student managers dynamically leverage their leadership skills, enhance and amplify their subject matter expertise and Wharton learnings, and work directly with global industry leaders through agile and comprehensive examination of early-stage companies. Wharton Cypher is a collaborative, transformative learning experience.”
– Executive Director Sarah Hammer
Demo Day was kicked off by an introduction from David Musto, director of the Stevens Center, and Cypher Accelerator Executive Director Sarah Hammer.
The first Dominion Cohort company to demonstrate their product was Eoliann: a group that helps institutions and businesses predict the likelihood and impact of climate risks by leveraging satellite data and cutting-edge proprietary ML algorithms.
The next company to present was pre.dev, who utilizes leading AI technology to help project managers plan, build, deliver, and maintain the software they need to take their business to the next level.
In between demonstrations, Cypher Accelerator student managers Shiva Menta, Ryan de Lopez, and Khush Gupta gave a presentation on large language model research, in which they evaluate regional bank liquidity risk with machine learning. Their presentation was introduced by Cypher Accelerator Executive Director Sarah Hammer.
Thomas K. Lee, executive director and chief investment officer, New York State Legislature, the New York State Teachers’ Retirement System (NYSTRS) offered a powerful keynote speech on the importance of leadership.
Joseph Jasperse, senior research manager of Cypher Accelerator and student at Penn’s Carey Law School, gave an enlightening presentation on financial regulatory research.
Here, Nikhil Illa, MD, presents PocketScribe: a company that uses AI solutions to transform medical note-taking and reduce burnout in the healthcare field.
Below, Avanthika Ramesh, founder of MediMint conducts a demonstration. MediMint is a patient-centric medical image sharing platform leveraging blockchain.
Giga, an initiative launched by UNICEF (United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund) and ITU (International Telecommunication Union), focuses on connecting every school to the internet and providing information, opportunity, and choice to young people. Cypher Accelerator works with Giga’s corporate and non-profit partners to map schools’ Internet access in real time, create models for innovative financing, and support governments contracting for connectivity.
Naroa Zurutuza, applied AI and information poverty lead at UNICEF Office of Innovation presented on Project Giga at the United Nations during Demo Day.
Executive Director Sarah Hammer moderated a fireside chat with Jonathan Ashtor, global co-head of intellectual property & technology transactions and a partner in the corporate department at Paul Weiss.
Each presentation during Demo Day was introduced by a Cypher Accelerator student manager. Here, Cypher Accelerator Senior Marketing Manager Valeria Germanova introduces a presentation.
To close the day’s events, the audience mingled and networked while enjoying a special performance by the Wharton Cypher Band, featuring the vocal stylings of Cameron Ito and Divyesh Nagarajan.
Learn more about Wharton Cypher Accelerator.
Get to know the companies in the Dominion Cohort.
Follow Cypher Accelerator and Finance at Wharton on LinkedIn.