| Phoenix-Aid, an Oshkosh-based firm that has developed a patented nano-composite dressing for chronic wounds such as diabetic foot ulcers is the grand prize winner of the 22nd annual Wisconsin Governor’s Business Plan Contest. |
| Phoenix-Aid’s dressing can serve underserved markets worldwide by accelerating healing, reducing complications and halving costs compared to existing standard-of-care wound dressings. It is undergoing an animal study in the United States and has been approved for human clinical trials in India, targeting diabetic foot ulcers. |
| Chief executive officer Ashwinraj Karthikeyan presented for Phoenix-Aid, which was among 13 “Diligent (Baker’s) Dozen” finalists to present Wednesday to judges and others during the annual Wisconsin Entrepreneurs’ Conference. |
| Independent judges recruited by the Tech Council heard pitches from 12 other finalists in four categories: Advanced Manufacturing, Business Services, Information Technology and Life Sciences. Other category winners were: |
| Advanced Manufacturing: Galasys, Janesville. Galasys has developed a manufacturing technology to convert a costly and environmentally harmful dairy byproduct into tagatose, a natural, low-calorie sweetener. This provides a sustainable solution for dairy waste disposal while addressing food industry gaps. Unlike current alternatives, tagatose is a healthy sweetener that tastes and functions like sugar, allowing food companies to create reduced-sugar products. Presenter: Jarryd Featherman. |
| Business Services: Equability, Madison. Equability is a service that makes existing clothes easier to wear by adapting them to match people’s sense of style as well as lifestyle. This includes individuals with disabilities by replacing traditional fasteners with magnets, Velcro or snaps. Presenter: Hilary Pham. |
| Information Technology: Strudel, Madison. Strudel automates the most challenging part of customer support in business-to-business software companies: resolving complex issues that consume 40% of engineering resources. The company’s proprietary AI agent analyzes production data, code and logs to deliver clear incident summaries, pinpoint root causes and suggest solutions in minutes. It helps to boost revenue, reduce customer churn, and allows software engineers focus on innovation rather than troubleshooting. Presenter: Kristin Isaac. |
| Thirteen contestants emerged from three rounds of judging in the contest organized through the Wisconsin Technology Council, which produces the contest in conjunction with its partners and sponsors. The contest began in late January; more than 4,800 entries have been received since the contest began in 2004. |
| Finalists also submitted a 15-minute video pitch deck for judges to score for the 22nd annual Wisconsin Entrepreneurs’ Conference. Second- and third-place category winners were: |
| Advanced Manufacturing: Ferro MX, Jiajie Sui, Madison; Saturn Agrisense, Joseph Andrews, Madison, |
| Business Services: SideShift, Nick Lawton, Madison; Vessey, Brandon Johnson, Janesville. |
| Information Technology: Induction Technologies, Madison, Samuel Enerson; Swallowease, Waunakee, Sara Gustafson |
| Life Sciences: Sea Change Silicides, Whitewater, Steven Girard; Synpha Biosciences, Madison, Phil Huss; CellTrack, Madison, Victor Santoro Fernandes. |
| The winner for the “Bright New Idea” award was Sea Change Silicides, Whitewater. |
| The contest is produced by the Tech Council, which is the non-profit and non-partisan science and technology adviser to the governor and the Legislature. Each plan described the core product or service, defined the customer base, estimated the size of the market, identified competition, described the management team and provided key financial data. |
| Sponsors are contributing cash, office space, legal assistance, accounting, information technology consulting, marketing, event space and more. About $2.9 million in cash and in-kind prizes have been awarded since the inception of the contest in 2004. The Wisconsin Economic Development Corp. is a major sponsor. |
| In addition to WEDC, lead sponsors of the 2025 contest thus far include Michael Best; Novii CPA; Phil Ouellette, EOS Implementer; Pieper Properties; Quarles & Brady; SCORE Wisconsin; Spencer X Smith; University Research Park; Ward4. Associate sponsors include Applied Management; Cap Times; Starting Block Madison; Wisconsin Technology Council; Additional sponsors are ATC; FocalPoint Consulting; Forward BIOLABS; Madison Gas & Electric; Makin’ Hey!; MKE Startup News; Murphy Desmond; Neider & Boucher; Palladium CPA; SustainableHR PEO; UW-Madison Office of University Relations; UW-Milwaukee and Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation. |
| To learn more about the contest, visit govsbizplancontest.com. |
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