InnoVision Awards announces 2025 Finalists

InnoVision Awards announces 2025 finalists honoring innovation in South Carolina

The InnoVision Awards Board of Directors is proud to announce the finalists for the 2025 InnoVision Awards. The annual InnoVision Awards recognize individuals, businesses, and organizations that are driving impactful innovations developed in South Carolina within the past 18 months.

Since its founding in 1999, InnoVision has been the premier recognition program for innovation and technology in the state. The Awards are a mark of distinction for those who exemplify excellence in innovation across industries and regions—spanning from the Upstate to the Lowcountry.

This year’s finalists represent a diverse array of sectors and organizational sizes, reflecting the depth and strength of South Carolina’s innovation economy. Applications were reviewed by an impartial panel of out-of-state judges, and three finalists were selected in each of six competitive categories.

The 2025 InnoVision Award Finalists were formally announced at the exclusive Meet the Finalists reception on August 25, sponsored by the South Carolina Research Authority at the City Club of Greenville. SCRA fuels the state’s innovation economy by providing grants and advisement to technology-based startups that are creating higher-paying jobs in South Carolina. Award finalists will be honored and winners announced at the 28th Annual InnoVision Awards Celebration on November 13, 2025, at the Palmetto Club in Columbia, South Carolina.

The 2025 Finalists in the six competitive award categories are:

Community Service – for innovations that improve life in South Carolina communities:

• The student-led Robotics Program at the South Carolina Governor’s School for Science & Mathematics (GSSM) has combined technical achievement with more than 460 hours of outreach and mentoring to expand STEM access and inspire students across South Carolina, building a stronger and more inclusive future one robot at a time.
• Shared City is a Charleston-based nonprofit equipping nonprofits, volunteers, and donors to practice more effective, relational charity through training, shared frameworks, and collaboration to transform the isolated efforts of many into a deeper lasting community impact together.
• SynergyMill FabLab, a nonprofit founded to expand public access to tools and technology, empowers creativity, collaboration, and entrepreneurship by helping makers turn ideas into innovation across the Upstate.

Education – for breakthrough methods creating new educational opportunities, experiences.

• Figment Learning Labs, this flagship initiative of Mount Pleasant’s Palmetto Innovative Education, is transforming health professions training with immersive, AI-powered simulations that provide emotionally responsive virtual patients—offering scalable, cost-effective, and realistic clinical education to support student confidence, interprofessional collaboration, and healthcare access in all communities.
• Founded in Columbia by Christopher Williams, STEM U is transforming K–12 STEM education through scalable, immersive EPIC Learning Spaces that bring hands-on, high-tech, and career-connected learning to underserved and rural communities, resulting in increased student mastery, engagement, and opportunity.
• Developed by USC College of Nursing faculty to address a classroom need, CardioEducator is an innovative, cost-effective 3D-printed teaching tool that helps nursing students visualize congenital heart defects.

Small Business – for innovation by businesses with <10 employees and <$5M in revenue.

• Greenville South Carolina small business Blue Ridge Surgical Innovations developed the OrthoTract™ System—a modular under-limb retractor enhancing safety, visibility, and efficiency in hand and wrist surgeries—and continues to collaborate with surgeons to create patient-focused surgical tools.
• Ripple Two LLC is a is a Charleston based cutting-edge communications and situational awareness technology company that develops advanced, zero-signature and resilient systems for military and civilian use, redefining communications and improving the safety of first responders and defense operations in high-risk environments.
• SkilRedi is an AI-powered, immersive learning platform born at Clemson University and a proud SCRA member company that delivers personalized, industry-aligned training to build a future-ready, high-tech workforce—bridging education and employment across sectors like advanced manufacturing, clean energy, and robotics.

Sustainability – for innovative approaches to environmental stewardship.

• Advent Innovations is a Columbia born agricultural engineering company that combines advanced sensors, AI, and robotics to deliver real-time, data-driven solutions, like its DigiNode-FieldRich platform that help farmers optimize inputs, boost yields, and practice sustainable, climate-smart agriculture.
• Performance Enhanced Delivery is a Moore, South Carolina-based agricultural company offering hemp-based solutions that combine plant nutrition and pest control—featuring innovative, rain-resistant coating technologies designed for sustainable, real-world use.
• Sustain Cities Network , a 2025 InnoVision Awards Sustainability finalist, is an innovative platform that verifies and connects sustainable local small businesses—empowering consumers, cities, and corporations to shop their values and strengthen regenerative green economies with the unique ability to feel hyperlocal while being nationally connected.

Technology Integration – for creative use of existing technology to generate new value.

• Columbia digital health company PulManage is transforming respiratory care by delivering remote respiratory monitoring through AI-enabled spirometry, real-time credentialed respiratory therapist coaching, and integrated analytics which improves clinical trial efficiency, reduces costs, improves patient adherence and expands access to care for underserved populations.
• Querri is a Mount Pleasant based AI-powered data platform that uses a team of specialized agents to turn messy, siloed data into clean, analysis-ready insights from a single plain-language prompt—making advanced analytics fast, accurate, and accessible for non-technical teams.
• Shaw Circle is a Charleston-based hedge fund developing next-generation quantitative trading and quantum computing applications to help establish South Carolina as a center for financial and technological innovation.

Technology Development – for novel technologies that overcame development challenges.

• CuffWay is an innovative medical device startup from Elgin developing a real-time, automated system that synchronizes endotracheal tube cuff pressure with active patient data which will reduce intubation-related injuries, improve patient outcomes, and set a new standard in airway safety.
• Drobot is a Greenville hardware startup founded by Stijn Van de Velde, Ankit Verma, and Joseph Etris. Drobot is developing AI-powered, on-demand collaborative mobile robots that navigate dynamic environments, respond to human prompts, and help small and mid-sized manufacturers boost productivity by automating repetitive fetch-and-carry tasks without replacing human workers.
• OncoBLAZE is a Charleston-based biomedical startup developing precision targeted chemotherapy through heat-activated, nanoparticles with real-time imaging which target and eliminate residual cancer cells after surgery, aiming to prevent recurrence and improve patient outcomes.

In addition to the six competitive categories, two special recognitions will be presented at the annual celebration: a Young Innovator Award which honors programs that inspire youth across South Carolina to explore STEM and innovation; and the Dr. Charles Townes Individual Achievement Award: the organization’s highest honor, recognizing individuals whose lifelong contributions have had a transformative impact on technology and their communities.

The 2025 InnoVision Awards celebration will be held at the Palmetto Club in Columbia on November 13^th.

About InnoVision Awards

Founded in 1999, InnoVision Awards is a grassroots, volunteer-led nonprofit organization dedicated to advancing innovation and technology across South Carolina. Through its statewide events and the prestigious annual InnoVision Awards, the organization recognizes and celebrates outstanding leadership, innovation and technological excellence achievements by businesses, individuals, and organizations driving innovation in the region. 2025 InnoVision Sponsors include Contec, SC Council on Competitiveness, The University of South Carolina McNair Institute for Entrepreneurism and Free Enterprise, Kim, Lahey & Killough Law Firm, the South Carolina Research Authority, Cantey Technologies, Worthwhile, iCapital Solutions, Harvest 21, The Hultquist Firm, Velux, Comporium, The Tech Founders of York County, ChemAu, Founderville.vc, American Technology Venture Lab, Robinson Ventures and the South Carolina Governor’s School for Science + Mathematics.

About SCRA

Chartered in 1983 by the State of South Carolina as a public, nonprofit corporation, South Carolina Research Authority fuels the state’s innovation economy through the impact of its comprehensive services to technology-based startups, academia, and industry. SCRA provides funding and support to accelerate the growth of academic startups; high-quality lab and administrative workspaces; facilitation and funding for partnerships between and among industry, startups, and academic institutions; assistance and funding for the relocation of technology-based companies to South Carolina; and coaching and funding for startups that may also receive investments from its affiliate, SC Launch Inc.