Oboro Labs and Knowlify Receive ‘Panelists’ Choice’ Awards at GatorPitch
The event returned to Miami to present the latest cohort of University of Florida startups
Knowlify receives the Student Startup “Panelists’ Choice” award at GatorPitch Miami on May 8.
Miami, FL – Six University of Florida startups pitched their business plan to more than 100 attendees from Miami’s investor and entrepreneurial community at UF Innovate’s second GatorPitch Miami event on May 8.
This year’s spring pitch competition featured three student-led startups and three established companies. The six finalists, who received tailored mentorship from Mana Tech’s Etienne Gillard, an international entrepreneur, investor, and mentor, are pushing the boundaries of healthcare, manufacturing, business, and AI.
“GatorPitch is where the University of Florida brings down its best and brightest to pitch in front of Miami investors,” said Melissa Kuchma, assistant director of corporate engagement and tech licensing at UF Innovate, which co-hosts the event with international startup hub Mana Tech.
The panel of experts—DeepWork Capital‘s TJ Fleming, Backswing Ventures‘ Kyle Asman, and eMerge America‘s TJ Villamil—awarded student company Knowlify and established company Oboro Labs, Inc. the “Panelists’ Choice” awards.
Knowlify uses AI to convert natural language, PDFs, and textbooks into dynamic, Khan Academy-style lecture videos in seconds. Licensed by institutions via API, the technology extracts key concepts and generates videos with voiceovers, visualizations, and animations. With just the click of a button, Knowlify enhances comprehension and engagement, making education more effective, accessible, and entertaining at scale.
Oboro Labs receives the “Panelists’ Choice” award at GatorPitch Miami on May 8.
Oboro Labs, Inc., is a catalyst and cyclic polymer manufacturing company based on University of Florida technology. Imagine drug therapies with fewer side effects, water bottles without toxic nanoplastics or additives, or vehicles made more energy efficient because surfaces have less friction.
Currently, industries use linear polymers in their products, which at the molecular level have chain ends. These chain ends break down, which is why nanoparticles pollute water bottles, or the oil in our cars must be changed periodically.
Oboro Labs delivers polymers with no chain ends, resulting in lower surface friction, higher melt temperatures, conductivity, and leaching prevention. As the only company globally capable of producing cyclic polyolefins at scale, this revolutionary technology could change the way international manufacturers produce and deliver some of the products used worldwide, benefiting the environment and humankind.
In addition to Knowlify and Oboro Labs, Inc., the presenters included student-led companies AKIO and Vetra and established companies Moxie-HANDSFreeNurse and Rahm Sensor Development.
- AKIO is a platform using artificial intelligence to identify and treat speech and language disorders. Through its immersive video game, children play with a customizable digital “best friend,” choosing who provides care without sacrificing the quality.
- Vetra is building the future of targeted search and contextual windows for large language models (LLMs). By tackling the complexities of patent search—a domain rich in nuanced, technical language—the company is developing a robust framework adaptable to other text-intensive industries such as defense, healthcare, and academic research.
- Moxie-HANDSFreeNurse uses voice-to-text and AI to enable hands-free electronic health record (EHR) interaction anytime and anywhere. It is vendor-agnostic, hardware-free, and designed around nurses’ workflow. Moxie is not a patch. It is a reinvention that brings nurses back to the bedside, delivering quality patient care.
- Rahm Sensor Development, Inc. is an advanced technology company specializing in AI-powered, non-contact sensor systems for vital sign monitoring, fall detection, and safety alerts. Rahm’s solutions integrate radar, thermal, and computer vision technologies into compact, cloud-enabled, and offline-capable platforms.
Miami is a key startup hub, with the city’s dynamic business environment drawing top talent and investors worldwide. In the first half of 2024, South Florida alone attracted $1.37 billion in investments. It also claims 65% of Florida’s total venture capital dollars.
“More capital has moved here than any other city in the country,” said TJ Villamil, the president of business development for eMerge Americas, the premier global tech event held annually in Miami, shaping the future of tech and innovation.. “[It] is not only a city of the present, but a city of the future.”
Miami continues to be a top choice for UF Innovate’s GatorPitch events. Bilzin Sumberg; 35 Mules, powered by Florida Power & Light; and DeepWork Capital sponsored this spring edition of GatorPitch Miami.
“UF is very important; we need more of UF’s presence in Miami. And [GatorPitch] is one part of this initiative to build that bridge between Gainesville and Miami,” said Etienne Gillard, Mana Tech’s Head of Ventures.
UF Innovate will host a fall edition of GatorPitch Miami with Mana Tech on Thursday, November 6.
About UF Innovate:
UF Innovate supports an innovation ecosystem at UF that moves research discoveries from
the laboratory to the market, fostering a resilient economy and making the world a better
place. Based at one of the nation’s leading research institutions, UF Innovate comprises four
organizations: Tech Licensing, Ventures, Pathways, and Accelerate, which includes two
business incubators, the Hub and Sid Martin Biotech. Organized under the UF Research
umbrella, this quartet forms a comprehensive commercialization system that brings
together six critical elements: facilities, capital management, training, talent, intellectual
property, and technology-transfer expertise. Visit https://innovate.research.ufl.edu/about/
About Mana Tech:
Mana Tech is part of billionaire Moishe Mana’s project to turn Downtown Miami into the startup hub of the Americas. We provide the programs, events, workspace, and funding to support this. Previously Mana revitalized Wynwood in Miami and has already acquired 80 properties in Downtown. Learn more at https://www.manatech.com/
By Andrea Dautant, Marketing and Communications Manager, UF Innovate