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There is now a CONTENT FREEZE for Mercury while we switch to a new platform. It began on Friday, March 10 at 6pm and will end on Wednesday, March 15 at noon. No new content can be created during this time, but all material in the system as of the beginning of the freeze will be migrated to the new platform, including users and groups. Functionally the new site is identical to the old one. webteam@gatech.edu
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Atlanta, GA | Posted: February 11, 2022
Ashley Ritchie
Summary Sentence:
The EyeGage founder talks about her startup, her experience with Startup Launch, and the progress she's made since completing the program.
Full Summary:
The EyeGage founder talks about her startup, her experience with Startup Launch, and the progress she's made since completing the program.
EyeGage
LaVonda BrownCREATE-X alumna LaVonda Brown talks about her startup EyeGage, her experience with Startup Launch, and the progress she's made since completing the program.
I am a triple yellow jacket. I received my MS in ECE in 2012, PhD in ECE in 2015, and MBA in 2020. Over the past decade, I have developed eye-analysis software for healthcare and education that has been published, patented, and licensed for commercial use.
EyeGage allows workplaces and individuals to stay ahead of accidents with confidence by quickly and accurately screening for substances prior to operating life-threatening equipment. The EyeGage solution saves time, money, and lives, while inherently reducing the negative impacts of substance abuse on families and communities.
The EyeGage technology runs on a mobile device that first takes a picture and video of the eyes, classifies features such as the pupil and iris, and then applies AI-based techniques to identify any drugs and alcohol in one’s system. EyeGage can be used to detect classes of substances such as alcohol, amphetamines, benzodiazepines, opioids, and marijuana because our eyes look and behave differently when under the influence of these substances.
I was led to the drug screening domain after living with a loved-one with a drinking problem. This situation allowed me to recognize the visible changes in the eye as the level of intoxication increased. My research at the time used computer vision to analyze eyes at an Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center, so it was second nature to come home and notice his inebriated eyes.
Summer 2020 – the experience accelerated our business to the next level. We learned a wealth of knowledge that we continue to put into action today.
Access to the Startup coaches was the best part – they have a breath of knowledge ranging from business to tech.
Deciding which legal entity was best for EyeGage and determining equity splits.
Since completing Startup Launch, we have raised $300K, released a mobile app, and become FDA-approved to conduct human-subject research for data collection.
I took the CREATE-X course offered in the MBA program taught by CREATE-X Coach Karthik Ramachandran.
Our main focus is to gather data for our proprietary dataset of eyes.
