NASA iTech Finalists Announced, 10 Companies to Present at Competition Forum

Updated June 19, 2019: Please note location change to Mountain View, California

NASA iTech challenges entrepreneurs to think outside the box and consider applications for their innovations in space. A range of technology ideas, from new mixed reality headsets to deployable antennas, could support future exploration missions to the Moon and Mars.

NASA has selected 10 competition finalists to present their ideas July 10-11 at the NASA iTech forum in Mountain View, California. Chief technologists from various NASA centers, other federal agencies and industry will listen to the presentations and meet with participants. NASA judges will then choose three winners of the 2019 NASA iTech Cycle I competition.

“NASA iTech provides the opportunity for companies to engage with NASA center chief technologists, investors, and industry leaders so they can continue to make an impact on Earth and in space,” said Kira Blackwell the NASA iTech program executive for the Space Technology Mission Directorate (STMD). “These interactions between NASA, industry and entrepreneurs are valuable for the entire community.”

Among the finalists are medical, data, material and other technologies. The top 10 2019 NASA iTech Cycle I finalists (in alphabetical order) are:

1. Aris MD, Wilmington, Delaware
   Three-dimensional medical scans
    
2. Baker Street Scientific, Rome, Georgia
   Big data technology that extracts relevant information for more informed decision-making
    
3. Cluster Imaging, Inc., Sunnyvale, California
   A technology that adds depth to images for accurate image recognition
    
4. CREAL3D, Saint-Sulpice, Switzerland
   Next-generation display of virtual and mixed reality headsets and smart glasses that creates hologram-like images
    
5. Enduralock, LLC, Lenexa, Kansas
   A new fastener that permanently locks with high vibration resistance, while providing reversibility and reusability
    
6. GoRout, Rochester, Minnesota
   Wearable helmet display system that shows football play diagrams
    
7. LOOMIA Technologies, Inc., New York, New York
   Light and flexible space structures
    
8. Momentus, Inc., Santa Clara, California
   Spacecraft that use water as fuel to move satellites between different orbits.
    
9. Oxford Space Systems, Harwell, United Kingdom
   Light-weight deployable antennas for space
    
10. WISER Systems, Inc., Raleigh, North Carolina
    Instantaneous location and tracking in a variety of environments

The three winning teams will be selected and recognized during a non-monetary awards ceremony at the culmination of the forum. They will receive continued mentorship to help further develop the technologies for the commercial market.

Registration for the 2019 NASA iTech Cycle I Forum is open. The event will also be broadcast on livestream.com/nasaitech. Media interested in covering the forum should contact Clare Skelly by July 3 to preregister.

An initiative by NASA’s Space Technology Mission Directorate, NASA iTech aims to find innovative ideas that have the potential to overcome critical technology hurdles facing future exploration of the Moon and Mars, even though many were originally meant to solve important problems here on Earth.

For information about NASA iTech, visit:

https://www.nasa.gov/directorates/spacetech/itech

Clare Skelly
Headquarters, Washington 
202-358-4273
clare.a.skelly@nasa.gov

Harla Sherwood 
National Institute of Aerospace, Hampton, Va. 
757-636-6300
sherwood@nianet.org