2025 Giant Vision Winners

PIERRE, SOUTH DAKOTA, February 27, 2025 — As host of the Governor’s Giant Competition, South Dakota Chamber of Commerce & Industry President David Owen announced the winners of the 2025 business and student business competitions.

After a preliminary judging process that reduced the field of applicants to those selected as qualifiers for 2025, the competition concluded with final judging activities Wednesday, February 26, at the Pierre Ramkota Hotel and Conference Center. The awards were presented during the GOED Conference luncheon program, held in conjunction with Giant Vision. Winners of the two competitions were announced and presented checks by South Dakota Chamber President David Owen, with Lt. Governor Tony Venhuizen and Giant Vision Committee member Mel Ustad, SD EPSCoR, congratulating the honorees.

2025 marks the twenty-first year of the Giant Vision open competition. The following winners were selected as this year’s startup standouts.

OPEN COMPETITION:

First-place winner of the open competition, Tugba Ozdemir, PhD, of Inova Skin with Lt. Governor Tony Venhuizen during the check presentation.

This year’s first-place $20,000 winner was InovaSkin | An anti-aging product developed with a proprietary peptide that attracts and binds the body’s natural Hyaluronic Acid within the skin, based on research into new peptides with the potential to impact the skincare market. Tugba Ozdemir, PhD, Rapid City

 As the first-place winner in the open competition, InovaSkin also received a special marketing package provided by KELOLAND Media Group.

In second place, winning $10,000, was Airborne Dynamic Systems | Specializes in the design, development, and manufacturing of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) tailored for infrastructure inspections and defense. The UAVs are fully American made to support industries that require the highest data sensitivity. Zackery Holloway & Carson Daly, Rapid City

 In third place, winning $5,000, was String Tree| A curated auction platform selling musical instruments that blends storytelling, live auctions, and community-driven engagement through carefully selected inventory, fair transaction fees, and secure processes. Targeted for music collectors, enthusiasts, and dealers. Peter Burghardt, Sioux Falls

In fourth place, winning $3,000, was Minds Matter | Offers preventative and restorative neurocognitive therapy. Using QEEG brain mapping along with lifestyle and cognitive assessments, develops a plan for improved brain health and educates clients on how to prevent dementia before symptoms emerge. Tiffany Hoeft, Aberdeen

In fifth place, receiving $2,000, was Catalystium | Software application designed to improve workplace productivity by addressing the challenges of executive dysfunction (often associated with ADHD and fatigue) through adaptive, AI-driven productivity tools. Mina Raver, Custer

In sixth place, receiving $1,000 was Dakota Motion Labs | Clinical movement assessments with a markerless motion capture (MMC) system that integrates wide-angle cameras and a human pose estimation algorithm which enables broader clinical adoption and improves rehabilitation outcomes. Ryan Rykhus and Lisa MacFadden, Sioux Falls

 Sponsors of the Giant Vision Open Competition are South Dakota Governor Larry Rhoden’s Office of Economic Development; Black Hills Energy; Christiansen Land & Cattle Ltd.; Dacotah Bank; First PREMIER Bank/PREMIER Bankcard; KELOLAND Media Group; MidAmerican Energy; NorthWestern Energy; NSF I-Corps Hub Great Plains Region, Valley Queen Cheese; and Wheeler Manufacturing.

The Giant Vision Competition is a program of the South Dakota Chamber of Commerce and Industry, located in Pierre. SD Chamber President David Owen stated, “This year the Giant Vision Entrepreneur Competition was held during the legislative session.  We had an excellent group of competitors and believe this event has once again helped potential business leaders and job creators take a step toward having their projects become a reality.  We want to thank the Governor’s Office of Economic Development for supporting this competition”.

STUDENT COMPETITION:

Pictured left-to-right: First-place winners of the student competition, Abhinav Chandel and Khushboo Jain with Lt. Governor Tony Venhuizen.

2025 was the nineteenth year of the college student competition. Entries were received from across South Dakota. Following a thorough review of the original applications, five finalists were selected to compete and the winners of the Competition are:

Taking first place in the student competition, winning $5,000, was EarthMaze | A platform to access farm data, reports, models on agricultural practices’ carbon sequestration potential, and high-resolution satellite imagery analysis of land transformations which will enhance monitoring and management of carbon sequestration in agriculture and agroforestry. Khushboo Jain and Abhinav Chandel, University of South Dakota

In second place, winning $4,000, was DPUF | Product which uses a unique, digital fingerprint pattern, which helps prevent intellectual property violations by securing against counterfeit or tampered products. Gopala Krishna Murthy Kalapala, Zishen Yang, and Chaoyang Jiang, University of South Dakota

In third place, winning $3,000, was Yuth | AI-driven mental health support in schools via personalized interventions based on individual needs, early detection through AI insights, and educator empowerment with data-driven dashboards. Diana Haile, Northern State University

In fourth place, winning $2,000, was OptiSig | An optical filter for cameras and mobile devices that authenticates images through light-matter interactions, creating a hidden signature to prove authenticity and deter tampering through cryptographic verification for biometric photo logins via an app. Arik Ahmed, South Dakota School of Mines and Technology

 In fifth place, winning $1,000, was AC Financials | Financial literacy program which promotes independence for young adults through sustainable financial practices taught via personalized coaching and an advisory graduation program. Abram Collaguazo, South Dakota State University

 Giant Vision Student Competition Sponsors: South Dakota Governor Larry Rhoden’s Office of Economic Development, Citi and South Dakota EPSCoR (Established Program to Stimulate Competitive Research).

The Governor’s Giant Vision Business and Student Competitions were established to help citizens realize that South Dakota is the best place to start a successful business. The program was designed as an opportunity for entrepreneurs to compete for seed money and a chance to achieve their dream. This South Dakota Chamber of Commerce & Industry program was founded and continues to be chaired by Brad Wheeler, Vice President of Wheeler Manufacturing in Lemmon. Additional program information is available at https://bit.ly/3MQSO8x.