From Concept to Center Stage

Duke Innovation & Entrepreneurship hosts the 2026 Startup Showcase

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This is a summary of a story that appeared originally on Duke Innovation & Entrepreneurship. 

Budding Duke student entrepreneurs won more than $110,000 in funding for their big ideas at the recent 2026 Duke Startup Showcase.

The Duke Innovation and Entrepreneurship event was the culmination of a process that started in December when students took part in a rigorous judging and feedback process. Out of 88 applicants for this year’s showcase, 36 student-led ventures presented their work.

Two teams took $30,000 grand prizes. The top undergraduate venture is Helian, an AI-powered quality management system that helps medical device companies navigate the complex world of government regulation.  

The top graduate student venture, which also took a $30,000 grand prize, is Toilemetry. This NIH-funded venture developed a smart toilet system that automates urine output tracking to gather real-time, accurate data to improve patient care and reduce nurse workload. 

The April 9 Startup Showcase brought together the collective innovation ecosystem at Duke – connecting students with alumni mentors and judges, investors and donors.  Alumni volunteers dedicated over 100 hours to evaluating student work and offering advice. 

Read more about these student entrepreneurs on Innovation & Entrepreneurship.