DFJ Gotham $250k: The Finalists

This morning eleven teams presented from the top universities on the east coast. Each team previously placed first or runner-up at competitions at their respective schools. A previous placement was actually a pre-requisite for application, after which the applicants were sorted and hand-picked by DFJ Gotham.

The first round presentations were essentially rocket pitches; each team had 5 minutes to present. In the final round, each presentation will 10-15 minutes in length, plus a 5 minute Q&A. I made a mistake in my previous post. There will actually be four finalists--Electro-Epi (Brown), Yan Engines (Columbia), Widetronix (Cornell), JetEye (Yale).

Electro-Epi just took the stage. The problem they are trying to solve is electron transfer in solar cells. Currently, solar cells rely on substrates that are incredibly costly and inhibit electron flow. Electro-Epi is going to manufacture and sell substrates with single crystal structures which will cost less and increase current density. They plan to break even in 2Q 2010 and sell for 15-20M in five years. The early exit plan is as a result of the fact that the founders believe that growing vertically may not be easy. Most of the information presented went way over my head, but the judges seemed to be questioning the business model.

Yan Engines is up now. They are trying to change the way engines are built to add more power with less fuel. The new type of engine features the patented D-cycle cylinder, developed by the father of the company president. The D-cycle cylinder Increases fuel efficiency by 30% and power by 80%. What's the market size for engines? Currently, 142 million engines are produced annually, and unlike other proposed engine improvements, the D-cycle cylinder does not require engine manufacturers to invest in any other manufacturing plants or labor training--only five parts of current engines are modified to support D-cycle. One cool closing remark is that if every car in the world used the D-cycle engine, we would need 2.6 MBD (million barrels per day) less than right now, which would dramatically reduce reliance on foreign oil and pressure on oil supply.

Presentations just went on break. I'll be back for the final two later.