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UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS URBANA-CHAMPAIGN

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    AgTech EnterpriseWorks News Recognition & Awards

    ForgeBee Wins 2026 Edwin Moore Family Agriculture Innovation Award

    CHAMPAIGN, Ill. (March 11, 2026) – ForgeBee, a startup developing automated systems for honey bee production, received the 10th annual Edwin Moore Family Agriculture Innovation Award in a ceremony at the 2026 AgTech Innovation Summit. The prize, generously funded by a family of University of Illinois alumni rewards EnterpriseWorks entrepreneurs focusing on agricultural innovations. Members of the Moore family, whose patriarch farmed in Northern Illinois, presented the $5,000 cash prize to ForgeBee during the Summit. Founded in 2024 by world renowned bee expert Gene Robinson, a U. of I. faculty member and his former graduate student Adam Hamilton, ForgeBee addresses the need for better pollination systems to support food security. “ForgeBee is an opportunity to greatly expand the possibilities of pollination and beekeeping in the United States and around the world,” said Hamilton, who recently was named ForgeBee’s CEO. Instead of renting or buying entire bee colonies, ForgeBee’s technology allows farmers to use a smaller section of a colony. This approach costs less and requires fewer resources than existing methods. “That’s what we do at Illinois. We regularly disrupt industries,” said Robinson. “There’s a long tradition of that here, emanating from the University and through Research Park and EnterpriseWorks. We are a part of that culture, and so we embody that and take that as a goal.” ForgeBee plans to use the prize money to purchase its own honey bees and support a colony in the Research Park for research purposes. The Edwin Moore Family Agriculture Innovation Award’s goal is to encourage startup companies engaged in the development of new innovative technologies that may lead to increased productivity and/or efficiency in farming or to create new agricultural opportunities, including new processes, new crops and new food production systems. Previous Edwin Moore Agriculture Innovation Award winners include: Boston Bioprocess, 2025 Hypercell Technologies, 2024 HarvestIQ (formerly Farmers Risk), 2023 FrostDefense Envirotech, 2022 Epivara, 2021 Habiterre (formerly Aspiring Universe), 2020 TellTail, 2019 EarthSense, 2018 Soil Diagnostics, 2017 About the Edwin Moore Family Agriculture Innovation Award The Edwin Moore Agriculture Innovation Fund was established in 2016 with a generous gift to EnterpriseWorks, the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign’s technology incubator. The award honors the legacy of Edwin E. Moore (1924), who graduated from the University of Illinois College of Agriculture and began farming in Will County. Throughout his agricultural career, he and his wife, Iva, used innovative farming practices for both crop production and livestock management. Two of their four children became farmers, Edwin and Thomas (1953, College of Agriculture), and continued the use of innovative farm practices. Subsequent generations of Edwin Moore’s family have continued to pursue farming and ag related careers capturing the same innovative spirit. About Research Park at the University of Illinois Research Park at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is a technology hub for startup companies, corporate research and development operations. Within Research Park there are 120 companies employing students and full-time technology professionals. More information is available at researchpark.illinois.edu.

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    AgTech Summit EnterpriseWorks News Recognition & Awards Research Park

    C16 Biosciences Wins 2026 Startup World Cup: Agriculture and Food Regional 

    CHAMPAIGN, Ill. (March 17, 2026) — A panel of investors named C16 Biosciences the winner of the Startup World Cup: Agriculture and Food Regional on March 10, advancing the company to the Startup World Cup Grand Finale in San Francisco where it will compete for a $1 million investment. The regional, held at the  11th Annual AgTech Summit in Champaign, was hosted by the University of Illinois Research Park in partnership with  Serra Ventures, Startup World Cup, and Pegasus Tech Ventures. Now in its second year, the competition drew 10 startups from across the country to compete. C16 Co-Founder and Chief Operating Officer David Heller represented the company during the pitch competition. “We’re really excited about this,” he told Illinois Public Media. “It shows that one, we’re at a stage that’s inspiring some confidence in folks in the industry and two, that we’ve built something pretty exciting.” Founded in 2017, C16 Biosciences develops microbial alternatives to palm oil through fermentation and biotechnology, targeting a growing vulnerability in agricultural supply chains. Palm oil is found in nearly 50% of products on supermarket shelves, yet 90% of global production comes from just two countries, leaving food manufacturers and consumer goods companies exposed to significant supply and price risk. Conventional palm oil production is also one of the leading drivers of tropical deforestation. C16 addresses that problem by producing fats and oils at industrial scale without extracting them from plants or animals, supplying its Palmless product line across the beauty, personal care, food, and home care sectors. C16 Biosciences is a member of the Illinois Fermentation and Agriculture Biomanufacturing (iFAB) consortium and the Access to Capital and Entrepreneurship Council, and has engaged with the Integrated Bioprocessing Research Laboratory (IBRL) for pilot scale development. Judges included: ### About the AgTech Summit The AgTech Innovation Summit brings together leaders in agricultural technology, entrepreneurship, investment, and academia to address pressing agricultural challenges and explore emerging solutions. This interactive conference hosted by the University of Illinois Research Park features dynamic panel discussions, keynote presentations, and valuable networking opportunities. To learn more about the AgTech Innovation Summit, visit the  Research Park website. About the Startup World Cup The Startup World Cup is a global series of startup competitions and conferences powered by Pegasus Tech Ventures. With over 100 regional events across 60+ countries, the competition culminates in a Grand Finale in Silicon Valley, where the top startups from each region will compete for a $1 million investment prize. For a complete list of regional events, visit the Startup World Cup website. About Pegasus Tech Ventures Pegasus Tech Ventures is a leading global venture capital firm based in Silicon Valley, with over $2 billion in assets under management. Pegasus supports emerging technology companies worldwide by providing both intellectual and financial capital. They also offer a unique Venture Capital-as-a-Service (VCaaS) model for large corporations looking to partner with cutting-edge startups. Learn more at Pegasus Tech Ventures.

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    AgTech Summit EnterpriseWorks News Recognition & Awards Research Park Startup

    Finalists Announced for Startup World Cup: Agriculture And Food Regional Pitch Competition

    CHAMPAIGN, Ill. (March 4, 2026) — In partnership with Pegasus Tech Ventures and Serra Ventures, the University of Illinois Research Park is excited to announce the 10 startups selected as finalists for the Startup World Cup: Agriculture and Food Regional pitch competition. The second annual event will take place during the AgTech Innovation Summit on March 10 in Champaign, where the 10 finalists will present their business ideas and models to a judging panel of investors and industry experts. The winner will move on to the Startup World Cup Finale in November, where it will compete against other regional winners for a $1 million investment. The following startups have been selected to compete at the Startup World Cup Agriculture and Food Regional: American Prime Sustainable Solutions – From space to field, American Prime turns satellite and AI intelligence into real-time agricultural decisions, powering autonomous action, scalable operations and measurable outcomes across every acre. C16 Biosciences – Produces fermentation-derived oils that outperform traditional commodities on stability and sustainability while supplying global brands at commercial scale. DMR INTERNATIONAL INC. – Provides a drop-in antimicrobial pellet solution that upgrades stormwater and wastewater treatment performance without new infrastructure or hazardous chemicals. Explain Ag – Builds science-based enterprise software that embeds predictive agronomic intelligence into customer systems to drive scalable sales growth and durable competitive advantage. Farmland Stock Exchange – Connects retiring landowners with tenant farmers to solve farmland succession and access challenges, leveraging deep Illinois roots and strategic farmer-investors to secure first-mover advantage and trusted deal flow. GigaCrop, Inc. – Engineers enhanced photosynthesis seed traits that bypass biological yield limits to double crop productivity and improve drought resilience across major crops. LegacyAcres – Digitizes farm succession planning with expert-built logic and strategic distribution partnerships that help farm families transition ownership with clarity and confidence. Soil1 LLC – Delivers sub-$1, instant soil health testing that empowers farmers to make real-time regenerative and carbon-smart decisions without relying on costly lab analysis. SpecVision – Turns equipment photos into verified specifications in minutes, delivering 75% lower assessment costs while building the industry’s first compounding equipment data layer. TerraForce, Inc. – Deploys farm-scale robotic fruit harvesters that match human labor costs while delivering faster, safer and compliance-free picking and packing. About the AgTech Summit The AgTech Innovation Summit brings together leaders in industry, entrepreneurs, investors and academics to address pressing agricultural challenges and explore emerging solutions. Programmed and hosted by University of Illinois Research Park, 2026 marks the 11th edition of this annual event. AgTech is one of the fastest growing industry clusters in the Research Park and the broader Champaign-Urbana region. To learn more about the AgTech Summit, visit the event homepage. About the Startup World Cup The Startup World Cup is a global series of startup competitions and conferences powered by Pegasus Tech Ventures. With over 100 regional events across 60+ countries, the competition culminates in a Grand Finale in Silicon Valley on November 6, 20256 where the top startups from each region will compete for a $1 million investment prize. For a complete list of regional events, visit the Startup World Cup website. About Pegasus Tech Ventures Pegasus Tech Ventures is a leading global venture capital firm based in Silicon Valley, with over $2 billion in assets under management. Pegasus supports emerging technology companies worldwide by providing both intellectual and financial capital. They also offer a unique Venture Capital-as-a-Service (VCaaS) model for large corporations looking to partner with cutting-edge startups. Learn more at the Pegasus Tech Ventures website.  

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    AgTech Summit EnterpriseWorks Graduates Media Mentions News

    New Podcast Episode: Frenzy Ag

    CHAMPAIGN, Ill. (Feb. 17, 2026) — Founders of Frenzy Ag, Ken Paige and Chris Harbourt, joined the Innovations at Research Park podcast to speak about their innovative agricultural tech company. This episode, hosted by Tanmay Shah, explores the origins and mission of Frenzy Ag. Discussing Frenzy Ag’s core product, Harbourt highlighted the large commercial potential of crop growth in the United States. “When we think about all of agriculture in the U.S., for example, there’s about 300 million acres of crops that are tilled and planted every year, and 90 million of those are soybeans…so about two-thirds of the land in the U.S. that is in agriculture production is either in soybean that year or will be in soybean the following year,” Harbourt said. When asked how EnterpriseWorks and Research Park have benefitted Frenzy Ag, Paige discussed the community they’ve built. “We have a lab in EnterpriseWorks, and we have a full-time chemist who works in that lab. They’ve kind of been central and key to a lot of what we’re currently doing,” Paige said. To hear the full conversation about Frenzy Ag, as well as Paige and Harbourt’s advice for other agricultural tech entrepreneurs, tune in to the Innovations at Research Park podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or your preferred podcast network. The Innovations at Research Park podcast highlights Champaign’s thriving entrepreneurial and corporate innovation culture. It is hosted by Tanmay Shah, a University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign alumnus.  Is there something you want to know about Research Park? Do you have an idea for a guest for the show or a story we should pursue? Contact Laura Bleill at lwbleill@illinois.edu.

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    EnterpriseWorks News Recognition & Awards Research Park

    EarthSense Competes in Startup World Cup Grand Finale

    CHAMPAIGN, Ill. (Oct. 21, 2025) — EarthSense, an EnterpriseWorks graduate based at the University of Illinois Research Park, competed in the Startup World Cup semifinals in San Francisco on Oct. 17, 2025. Founded in 2016 by CEO Chinmay Soman and CTO Girish Chowdhary, EarthSense develops autonomous robots and artificial intelligence technology for agriculture. The company’s flagship products use machine vision and machine learning to collect crop health data and convert it into actionable insights for farmers, agronomists and crop breeders. Soman represented EarthSense at the competition after guiding the company through the Agriculture and Food Regional round held at the 10th Annual AgTech Summit earlier this year. Competing startups pitched their companies to a panel of investors for the chance to win the competition’s $1 million grand prize. The Startup World Cup is a global series of startup competitions and conferences organized by Pegasus Tech Ventures. The competition spans more than 100 regional events across 60-plus countries, with the field ultimately narrowing to a Grand Finale held in San Francisco on Oct. 22, 2025.

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    EnterpriseWorks Events News Research Park

    New Podcast Episode: David Ruzic

    CHAMPAIGN, Ill. (Oct. 2, 2025) – In the latest Innovations @ Research Park episode, host Tanmay Shah interviews Dr. David Ruzic on his path from professor to founder and how Research Park helped turn his academic research into a company. Dr. Ruzic is professor emeritus in the Department of Nuclear, Plasma, and Radiological Engineering at the University of Illinois, founder of Research Park company Starfire Industries, and Director of the Illinois Plasma Institute.  “If you think science can’t be exciting, you haven’t met David Ruzic,” the podcast notes. His reputation for lighting up classrooms with his engaging teaching style and ability pushes the boundaries of plasma physics to make science accessible and engaging. The Innovations @ Research Park podcast highlights Champaign’s thriving entrepreneurial and corporate innovation culture. It is hosted by Tanmay Shah, a University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign alumnus. Subscribe to The Innovations @ Research Park to catch up on the latest innovations and news on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or your preferred podcast network. Is there something you want to know about Research Park? Do you have an idea for a guest for the show or a story we should pursue? Do you want to provide other feedback? Contact Laura Bleill (lwbleill@illinois.edu).

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    EnterpriseWorks Events News Research Park

    Pixo Relocates Headquarters to Research Park, Embraces Hybrid Future

    CHAMPAIGN, Ill. (Sept. 4, 2025) – Custom software and web development firm Pixo has officially moved its headquarters to the first floor of the Atkins Building, Suite 106, within the University of Illinois Research Park technology hub. This strategic move positions Pixo in a vibrant innovation ecosystem, while reinforcing its commitment to a flexible, hybrid work model. Melinda Miller, CEO and co-owner of Pixo, expressed enthusiasm for the new location. “Our new office home is right in the midst of so much exciting technological innovation,” Miller said. “We look forward to connecting with the vibrant community here, tapping into that energy, and building new relationships with our neighbors at Research Park.” Founded in 1998 as “On the Job Consulting,” the woman-owned tech consultancy previously operated from second-story offices on Urbana’s West Main Street. Like many businesses, Pixo adapted to remote work during the COVID-19 pandemic. Recognizing the success and versatility of a hybrid approach for its diverse team of developers, designers, and strategists, the company decided to adopt this model permanently. While Pixo continues to have a strong presence in Central Illinois, its team members are now distributed throughout the United States, serving clients coast-to-coast. “Despite being a mostly remote agency, maintaining a physical presence in Champaign-Urbana is incredibly important to us,” Miller emphasized. “We have deep roots here and a rich history tied to the University of Illinois, the agricultural economy, and the broader community.”  “As a ‘people-first’ company, we also wanted to preserve the ability to gather in person—both with clients and with each other,” Miller added. “We’re excited to leverage Research Park’s excellent amenities, including beautiful and well-equipped spaces for client meetings, social gatherings, and team celebrations.” “Research Park and Pixo have a long history of partnership across domains–from working together on website projects, to working together on agtech cluster building,” said Laura Weisskopf Bleill, Director of External Engagement and Communications at Research Park. “We are thrilled to see the team locate a footprint in our on-campus tech hub, where small businesses, startups, and corporate innovation thrives together as one ecosystem.” About Pixo: Pixo is a custom software and web development firm specializing in creating innovative digital solutions. Founded in 1998, the woman-owned consultancy serves clients across the United States, providing expertise in areas including digital accessibility, artificial intelligence, content strategy, and web/software development. Pixo is committed to a people-first approach, fostering a collaborative environment for its distributed team and strong relationships with its clients and community. For more information, visit pixotech.com. Contact: info@pixotech.com  217-344-0444 pixotech.com Pixo’s office: Atkins Building, Research Park 1800 S. Oak St. Suite 106 Champaign, IL 61820

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    EnterpriseWorks Media Mentions News Recognition & Awards

    HabiTerre Founder Kaiyu Guan Honored for Excellence in Agricultural Research Innovation

    CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – Kaiyu Guan, founder of EnterpriseWork startup, HabiTerre and scientist in the College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences, has been named the recipient of the 2025 national agInnovation award for Excellence in Agricultural Research Innovation. The award was given in recognition of Guan’s contributions to agroecosystem science, particularly his efforts to improve food security and environmental sustainability. Guan, who was also recognized with the North Central regional award earlier this year, serves as Chief Scientist of NASA Acres and is the founding director of the Agroecosystem Sustainability Center at Illinois. Through his efforts to advance modern agriculture by leading interdisciplinary teams, he has collected over $40 million in research funding, published more than 180 scholarly articles, and received multiple national awards. Guan maintains affiliations with several research institutes at Illinois, including the Carl R. Woese Institute for Genomic Biology, the Institute for Sustainability, Energy, and Environment, the National Center for Supercomputing Applications, the Center for Digital Agriculture, and the Siebel School of Computing and Data Science. The agInnovation organization represents the national network of State Agricultural Experiment Stations, established under the Hatch Act of 1887. It supports multistate collaborations aimed at addressing critical challenges in agriculture, food systems, and natural resource management. Guan will be honored at a September ceremony alongside ACES Dean Germán Bollero, who will receive the 2025 agInnovation Excellence in Leadership Award. Research in the College of ACES is supported in part by Hatch funding from USDA’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture.

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    EnterpriseWorks News Recognition & Awards

    Photon Queue CEO Selected for Lab-Embedded Entrepreneurship Program

    CHAMPAIGN, Ill., (July 14, 2025) – /U.S. Department of Energy/ — Nathan Arnold, CEO of EnterpriseWorks startup Photon Queue, has been selected for the ninth cohort of the U.S. Department of Energy’s Lab-Embedded Entrepreneurship Program, a highly competitive initiative designed to support early-stage energy startups on their path toward commercialization. Arnold is one of just 27 entrepreneurs nationwide chosen for the fellowship. He will join the Chain Reaction Innovations program at Argonne National Laboratory in Lemont, Illinois, where he will work with a network of mentors and experts to develop transformative energy technologies. “This two-year fellowship will give us access to world-class facilities, mentorship from entrepreneurs and researchers and will help us accelerate our products to market,” said Photon Queue on LinkedIn. “We are beyond excited to grow our presence in the Chicago quantum ecosystem and push the boundaries of efficient photon storage through this program.” Photon Queue’s selection into LEEP marks the latest step in its efforts to scale its quantum memory hardware for industry adoption, a journey rooted in its home at the University of Illinois Research Park. The startup recently celebrated its one-year anniversary, having launched through the Duality Quantum Accelerator, secured its first two sales and pitched to West Coast venture capitalists during the Quantum Startup Pitch Competition and San Francisco’s Deep Tech Week. Past fellows have developed breakthrough technologies that became the foundation of thriving businesses. Since the program’s inception in 2015, 182 LEEP startups have attracted $4.2 billion in follow-on funding and created more than 3,800 jobs, according to a press release from the DOE. Participants perform critical research and development to hone their startup technologies with the goal of advancing those technologies from lab to market. The program also supports fellows by providing training in business development, networking opportunities and access to the resources and expertise of the U.S. national laboratories. “The LEEP Program epitomizes DOE’s commitment to empowering American inventors and entrepreneurs to improve the affordability, reliability, and security of our energy system,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Lou Hrkman. “I look forward to seeing this new round of fellows make its mark on American energy and manufacturing.” About Photon Queue Photon Queue is a hardware company developing quantum memories and the first quantum startup from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. The company aims to become the premier supplier of photonic quantum memories for the emerging quantum communication, networking, and computing sectors. Quantum memories comprise many of the required components for these sectors and will command a significant fraction of this market size, but the currently available quantum memory technologies lack many performance metrics. The quantum memory technology at Photon Queue has been pioneered by the research group of Prof. Paul Kwiat over the past two decades. It outperforms all competing technologies in head-to-head comparisons for several critical quantum applications. The company aims to accelerate the realization of important quantum applications by providing high-performance quantum memories. About EnterpriseWorks at University of Illinois Research Park EnterpriseWorks is the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign’s technology incubator. Its mission is to launch, support, and advance successful science-based startups that are commercializing disruptive technologies. EnterpriseWorks is located at University of Illinois Research Park, an innovation hub for technology commercialization with a unique environment that cultivates startups and increases capabilities for established. Located on campus, Research Park has more than 120 companies and growing, employing over 2,100 people in high-technology careers. 

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