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2016 CHALLENGE

2016 BREAKTHROUGH INNOVATION CHALLENGE

MAHALO TO ALL OF OUR PARTICIPANTS!
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Shark Tank sponsor, coaches, judges and competitors gather for a photo before the Judges’ Choice winner is announced.

A team of University of Hawai‘i mechanical engineering students took home the top prize—the Judge’s Choice Award—in the PACE Shark Tank competition for their innovative Nimbus idea. Nimbus is an atmospheric water generator system that filters and captures naturally occurring water vapor and condenses it into usable water in one step without power. In total, the team, made up of Ryan Chun, Ame Arakaki, Blayton Padasdao, and Eric Ucol, was awarded $1,000.

In addition to the Nimbus team, four competitors successfully baited the sharks and were awarded $500 each. The Final Event was held on Friday, November 18 in the Innovation Lab.

Congratulations to all of the competitors and mahalo to our title sponsor, Accuity LLP, as well as our many coaches and judges who made this event possible.

More photos from the Final Event can be found HERE.

Shark Tank Finalists:

  • CyberCANOE Destiny – A hybrid-reality environment that provides 20/20 visual acuity in a 13-foot wide, 320-degree cylindrical structure comprised of tiled passive stereo-capable OLED displays.

  • Ecoponics – An enhanced aquaponic process that bio-converts food waste into micro-nutrients that nourish and grow organic crops while conserving 90–95 percent of the resources consumed in traditional farming methods.

  • Hot Plate Minder – A device that cuts power to a hot plate or range to prevent hundreds of thousands of fires each year due to unattended cooking.

  • Interchangeable – A high-quality gardening pruner that blends quality and comfort into one horticultural hand tool by allowing users to change the handles at will.

  • Nimbus – An atmospheric water generator system that filters and captures naturally occurring water vapor and condenses it into usable water in one step without power.

  • Press On – A sustainable semi-autonomous coffee vending machine that produces the highest quality of freshly roasted, ground and brewed coffee.

TITLE SPONSOR
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PARTNERS
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ABOUT UH BREAKTHROUGH INNOVATION CHALLENGE

Now in its 9th year, the UH Breakthrough Innovation Challenge is an entrepreneurial competition that exposes UH students in all disciplines to entrepreneurial and innovative ways of thinking; provides a platform for participants to showcase their ingenious ideas to offer more efficient, stronger, better, and novel products or services; and brings recognition and attention to outstanding entrepreneurs at UH.
The Challenge matches competitors with business mentors and teaches students to research market opportunities, seek customer validation, and determine the commercial potential of their idea. The Challenge is sponsored by Accuity LLP and organized by the Pacific Asian Center for Entrepreneurship in partnership with the UH College of Engineering, the College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resources, the William S. Richardson School of Law, and the UH Office of the Vice President for Research and Innovation. For more information, visit pace.shidler.hawaii.edu/bic

Founded in 2000 at the Shidler College of Business, the Pacific Asian Center for Entrepreneurship (PACE) is the home for a set of experiential entrepreneurship programs at the University of Hawaii (UH). The Center’s 20+ programs offer mentorship, training and resources to all UH students and faculty, and are designed to encourage entrepreneurial thinking across disciplines and inspire entrepreneurs to move their ideas from conceptualization to commercialization. For more information, visit pace.shidler.hawaii.edu.
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University of Hawaiʻi
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uhm logo@2x
University of Hawaiʻi
An Equal Employment Opportunity Institution.
© 2025 Shidler College of Business. All rights reserved.
Website by Blue Logic Labs
2404 Maile Way, Room E-402, Honolulu, HI 96822
Intranet • Credits