Medical devices that are a low-cost alternative to corneal transplants won the Johnson School's Venture Challenge competition, held April 16.

First-prize winner Bombyx Technologies uses a technique derived from silk production to make contact lens-like devices that promote corneal regeneration after eye injuries, eliminating the need for expensive and invasive corneal transplant surgeries.

The Venture Challenge, now in its eighth year, is a contest for business plans submitted by Cornell students, faculty, staff or alumni. The competition is administered by BR Ventures, the Johnson School's student-run, early stage venture capital fund. Prize winners were announced at the Entrepreneurship@Cornell celebration banquet the evening of April 16.

Bombyx won $10,000 from BR Ventures and 20 hours of free legal services through Cornell's Entrepreneurship Legal Services program. The prize was supplemented with matching funds from the Cornell Center for Technology, Enterprise and Commercialization (CCTEC), because Bombyx had filed for intellectual property protection through CCTEC.

Second prize of $2,500 went to Sound Reading Solutions, a company that sells innovative literacy programs for children and adults. Third prize of $1,000 went to iFyber, LLC, which customizes fabrics by treating them with nanoparticles for use in military, medical and technical settings.

The winners were chosen from five finalists who tried to impress a tough judging panel of professionals during final pitches April 16. The judges were: Ralph Terkowitz, general partner at ABS Capital; Dan Simpkins, founder, chairman and CEO of Hillcrest Labs; David Rickerby, partner at Choate, Hall & Stewart; Leonard Sanders, portfolio manager and research analyst at Kalmar Investments; and Andy Jones, general partner at Boulder Ventures.

For the first time in the competition's eight years, the finalists faced the added pressure of a larger audience, as the pitching session was open to the public, although only the judges were permitted to address the participants.

The other two finalists were Biodynamic Systems, which makes software to improve the way algae is grown for use in biofuels, and e.c.o. Inc., whose products include the "Green Box," a pizza box made from recycled material that breaks down into serving plates and a handy storage container.

Almost none of the five finalists managed to actually make it through their prepared presentations, because the judges were relentless in their questioning and impromptu advice. For example, they challenged Biodynamic Systems to justify why they planned to sell software that customers would need to renew annually, as opposed to charging them one time.

Biodynamic Systems presenter Deepak Aswani, MBA '09, said the experience of a challenging pitch to skeptical venture capitalists was an invaluable one.

"I think it's partly because my team and I are very serious about this," Aswani said. "We realize we need to face these types of challenges to really build a solid plan and find what the weak points in our reasoning are."

Following the public pitches, each team also had individual, closed-door sessions with the judging panel for further scrutiny and advice on making their business plans better.