On April 23, the Charles F. Dolan School of Business will celebrate a milestone in student entrepreneurship as it hosts the Annual StartUp Showcase in the Regina A. Quick Center for the Arts.
Marking nearly 15 years of Fairfield StartUp, the event will bring together student founders who will pitch their businesses to an investor panel for seed funding.
New for this year’s StartUp Showcase, six teams will compete across two tracks: bootstrap companies and scalable ventures. Bootstrap businesses launch with minimal startup capital—often from a credit card or bank loan—and grow through consumer revenue; they are common in retail, clothing, and food service industries. Scalable ventures, by contrast, are designed for rapid growth and typically seek significant outside investment, as seen in many technology startups.
Three bootstrap teams and three scalable venture teams, representing both undergraduate and graduate students, will pitch their ideas to the judging panel. The showcase will be hosted by Sophia Haber Brock ’26, a communication major in the John Charles Meditz School of Arts & Sciences.
The event marks the culmination of months of entrepreneurial development, bringing each venture to a pivotal moment on stage as students present their ideas in a Shark Tank-style pitch to receive funding for their businesses.
Student ventures this year span a wide range of industries, from hands-on sensory processing tools to web applications that support people living with Alzheimer’s disease.
Meet the 2026 StartUp Teams
Scalable Companies
AlzFocus
Tyler Steimel ’27, Phuc Nguyen, Jack Pisciotta ’26
AlzFocus is an easy-to-use app designed to support individuals with early-onset Alzheimer’s disease and their families. The app includes calendar notifications and facial-recognition technology that accesses previously loaded photos paired with personal memories recorded by the user, helping individuals unlock what may otherwise be forgotten.
Compassly
Albina Gareeva, Taylor Blue Clarke, Ankitha Bojja, Sidharth Pradhan, Nathaniel Wright ’29
Compassly is an AI-driven SaaS platform designed to help international students navigate the process of moving to the United States. The software platform provides a personalized, step-by-step roadmap for tasks such as finding housing, setting up banking, and securing required documentation—providing reliable guidance in a secure, cost-effective tool.
EviSyna
Sidharth Pradhan, Mohammed Aslam Hashmi MS’25, Naqibahmed Kadri
EviSyna is an AI-powered research assistant designed to support evidence-based medicine. The platform helps researchers review large volumes of medical studies by automating data extraction and organization, while maintaining human oversight to ensure accuracy in clinical research and health outcomes focus.
Bootstrap Companies
Leave It To Us
Colby Ciampi ’28, Andrew Hefter ’27
Leave It To Us is a subscription-based service that helps seniors comfortably age in their own homes. The company offers seasonal home checkups, preventive upkeep, and coordinated repairs, providing homeowners with a single trusted point of contact for ongoing home maintenance.
Sensy
Carlo Rivieccio
Sensy is a classroom-friendly tool for young students with sensory processing disorders. Placed on a student’s desk and designed to blend in with everyday school materials, the Sensy allows students to manage sensory needs discreetly while staying engaged in class activities.
The Mosaic
Yari Soto, Paola Soto, Melina Silvestro ’27
"The Mosaic helps businesses connect authentically with multicultural audiences. Through human-led analysis, creative design, marketing services, and multilingual communication, the company works with clients to develop culturally informed campaigns that build trust and strengthen community relationships.
Empowering Student Entrepreneurs
The annual StartUp Showcase has become a launchpad for student entrepreneurs, many of whom have gone on to grow successful businesses.
For more information about the April 23 showcase event, visit Fairfield.edu/startup.
