The team invented CauteryGuard, which adds a retractable tip to current electrocautery devices. This change prevents the risk of burns many doctors and patients face from the device’s exposed tip. It also eliminates the chance of fires in operating rooms caused by an exposed tip coming into contact with flammable materials. 

The ACC InVenture Prize awards $30,000 in prizes to undergraduate students whose innovations aim to solve world problems and make our lives easier.

Each of the 15 universities in the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) selected a team of student entrepreneurs for the competition, which is taking place at Georgia Tech. A preliminary round held Thursday evening narrowed the field to five finalists.

The other finalists are from:

Duke University: A student launched Neurun, an app for racing events that provides interactive virtual tours of the course and other features to prepare runners.

Syracuse University: A student developed Fresh U, a media platform to help businesses and brands understand behaviors, patterns and purchasing trends of Generation Z.

University of Virginia: Five students started a biotech company, AgroSpheres, which gives farmers precise control over their harvesting schedule by degrading excess pesticides into a non-toxic derivative.

Virginia Tech: Four students created Kare Powder, a topical, advanced wound care dressing that allows for faster and more effective healing for chronic patients. 

The finale will be held in the Ferst Center for the Arts. Request free tickets here. Georgia Public Broadcasting will air the show live and stream it here.

The tournament is modeled after Georgia Tech’s InVenture Prize, which started in 2009 to leverage the maker culture and encourage students to push their ideas even further.

CauteryGuard won this year’s InVenture Prize. The device’s inventors are: Jack Corelli, Hunter Hatcher, Devin Li and Dev Mandavia.