News

Meet Blue Skull Group, LLC — Lindsay Chetkof, Saagar Arya, Anna Brusoe, and Amanda Li — four undergraduate Duke University Pratt School of Engineering students who turned a classroom problem into a commercialization-ready medical device.

From 3D printed braces used by the NFL to a gel that can help regrow bones, all kinds of innovations are coming out of a Duke incubator called the BRiDGE. A former cigarette factory in downtown Durham has become a hub of innovation. Inside the historic Chesterfield building you’ll find the BRiDGE, a Duke incubator that supports startups. The incubator is part of the Pratt School of Engineering’s Christensen Family Center for Innovation. It currently supports 13 startups.

Duke Clark Scholars Kaddy Ren and Kashvi Srinivasan have been awarded the Maclin Community Connection Grant at Duke University to expand their student-led initiative, Duke Duke Goose, which fosters creativity and community through campus-wide fiber arts activities.

The Christensen Center is offering EGR 190 - Business Leadership for Engineers this Summer Session I (in-person). This seminar is designed specifically for Pratt engineering undergraduate students who want to strengthen the skills that differentiate top engineers in industry: judgment, ethical decision-making, communication, resilience, mentoring, innovation, and executive presence.

AviaGames, an award-winning mobile games developer, is working with Duke University’s Pratt School of Engineering and its Product Lab on a new research initiative focused on the potential for mobile skill-based games to impact cognitive engagement and healthy aging.

Congratulations to Duke senior undergraduate student Nick Nease and his team — Kellan Hepditch, Jake Sapp, and Ben Verlander — on advancing to the regional finals of the Stanford Global Sustainability Challenge! Selected from 350 global applicants, their team earned a spot among the top ventures competing in the North America and South America region. This recognition reflects months of thoughtful iteration, deep research, and bold problem-solving focused on accelerating scalable climate solutions.

Duke undergraduate sophomore Neha Jatla recently placed second in the Deloitte Duke Case Competition alongside her teammates Sudiksha Battineni, Sophia Dionello Hinshaw, and Noa Bremen. Neha shared that the EGR 283 Introduction to Product management course played a critical role in preparing her team for success.

Have a startup idea? Or just curious about entrepreneurship? The A. James Clark Scholars Program at Duke presents an interactive Startup Workshop designed to help you refine your ideas, get real feedback, and connect with fellow builders.

Have a software idea you want to bring to life quickly? Interested in learning how AI-powered products are built in the real world? The Duke Christensen Center's Product Lab is offering a NEW summer course EGR 590 - AI Driven Product for Builders.

Are you a Duke student working on a startup, building a technology, or exploring an idea you want to keep moving forward? The Christensen Center is hosting Founders Fridays, a monthly, open mentoring session for student founders during the Spring 2026 semester.

Duke University has received $11 million from the A. James & Alice B. Clark Foundation, a private family foundation based in Washington, D.C., that focuses on educating engineers for the most pressing challenges of today. The award brings the foundation’s total support for the program to more than $30 million.

The January 2026 Christensen Family Center for Innovation (CFCI) newsletter celebrates the recent accomplishments of Duke Product Lab teams, highlighting final project demos from Fall 2025 that produced innovative solutions ranging from mobile apps and AI tools to hardware prototypes; and highlights recent student innovators’ stories.