Artificial intelligence startups focused on exam security, financial oversight, medical regulations and business decision-making each secured $100,000 investments during Cornell Tech’s annual Startup Awards competition this week in New York City.
Nearly 600 students, investors, tech executives and university leaders gathered May 14 at the Cornell Tech campus as 11 finalist teams pitched startup concepts tackling issues ranging from AI safety and healthcare to satellite risk management and legal automation.
The four winning startups — Aiseptor, Custos, Kindred and Lola — will each receive post-academic investments valued at $100,000, along with studio space and mentorship designed to help scale the companies into viable businesses.
Cornell Tech officials said the annual competition serves as the capstone of the school’s Startup Studio program, where graduate students develop and refine business ideas during their final semester.
Among the winners was Aiseptor, a company designed to stop AI-assisted cheating during exams by blocking unauthorized tools directly on users’ devices instead of attempting to detect cheating afterward.
Custos developed a platform intended to help companies safely delegate financial transactions to AI agents while maintaining oversight through programmable spending controls and audit trails.
Kindred created an AI-powered system that organizes and structures complex medical device regulations into searchable compliance checklists, while Lola uses AI to automate routine corporate approvals and decisions based on prior contracts, policies and institutional practices.
Two additional startups — CoagHealth and MedComm — were selected as runners-up and will receive mentorship and office space through Cornell Tech’s Runway program.
Greg Morrisett said the competition reflects how AI is reshaping startup development across industries.
“Our students aren’t just building with these tools; they’re rethinking how entire industries work,” said Josh Hartmann, Cornell Tech’s chief practice officer and leader of the Studio program.
The winners were announced by Andrew Ross Sorkin, a Cornell alumnus and member of the Cornell Tech council.
Since the launch of the Startup Awards program, Cornell Tech says more than 128 startups have emerged from its programs, collectively reaching valuations exceeding $1.3 billion and raising more than $500 million in venture capital funding.
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