Elevate Ventures competition

Davis Arick (BSChE 2018), Co-founder and CEO, and You-Yeon Won, professor of chemical engineering in the Davidson School of Chemical Engineering, received funding on behalf of their startup, Spirrow Therapeutics, at the competition. Arick co-founded Spirrow (then Spiro Therapeutics) in 2018 with a former student of Won's, Hyun Chang (Kyle) Kim, a Purdue ChemE PhD.

Davis Arick (left) and You-Yeon Won (right)

Spirrow is developing a novel nanopolymer surfactant that supplements lung inflation and blood oxygenation in Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS). The treatment for this life-threatening lung condition mimics the behavior of natural surfactant in lungs for inflation and oxygenation.

The Purdue-affiliated startup winners are:

* Spirrow – help for patients with acute respiratory distress syndrome survive by restoring lung function with a nanopolymer surfactant that can be administered through the trachea as a fast-acting liquid or preemptive aerosol.

* Rabbit Tractors – autonomous farming equipment sized to better match the needs of modern agriculture.

* Gen3Bio – extract fats, sugars and proteins to produce specialty chemicals from microalgae.

* BestQuote – virtual sales technology for home improvement contractors.

* Endless Eyewear – a designer eyewear subscription program.