Asian American and Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander Innovation and Entrepreneurship 2022, part two: Innovating for real-world solutions

Hoala Greevy has been in the email industry since his first job out of college at Critical Path in San Francisco in 1999. Prior to founding Paubox, Greevy started Hawaii's first software as a service (SaaS) company, Pau Spam, in 2002. Greevy holds two patents related to email security and graduated from Portland State University with a B.S. in geography and social sciences.

An avid kayak fisherman, Greevy has caught three blue marlin from his ocean kayak Scupper Pro. He also holds the International Game Fish Association (IGFA) world record for the finescale triggerfish.

Dilip Goswami is an engineer turned entrepreneur, and he has built his career on solving massive real-world problems with deep technological solutions. In 2014, he left his studies at Stanford to found Molekule — using photoelectrochemical oxidation technology to destroy the widest range of pollutants in the air, including viruses and chemicals. Over five years as CEO, he took this technology from lab bench to the market, raised hundreds of millions in funding, and built a company serving hundreds of thousands of customers around the world. While he continues his work at Molekule, he also looks at new challenges as a startup advisor and angel investor.

Cathleen Hutchins is a Primary Patent Examiner and the Assistant Regional Outreach Coordinator for the USPTO’s Silicon Valley Regional Office. Hutchins examines patent applications in the wellbore technology area and assists with community outreach for the USPTO. Outreach efforts include programs for inventors, entrepreneurs, K-12 science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) activities, and other communities in the western region, including Alaska, Arizona, California, Hawaii, Nevada, Oregon, and Washington. Prior to joining the USPTO, Hutchins was a manufacturing engineer for United Technology Corporation working on aerospace applications. Hutchins holds a Bachelor of Science in industrial engineering from Marquette University and a Master of Science in mechanical engineering from Texas A&M University.

Olin Lagon is a serial social entrepreneur, innovator, and community organizer, currently focused on clean energy and science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) education. He has founded multiple companies and nonprofits. He holds multiple patents, and his designs have been adopted by Global 1000 companies across five different industries. His inventions have also been used in several institutions, such as the Olympics and the Massachusetts of Technology (MIT). As one example, he invented and launched the first commercial crowdfunding service, which scaled to channel $100 million to fund causes worldwide. One nonprofit he co-founded is Purple Maiʻa, focused on Hawaiian-grounded STEM programs in education, entrepreneurship, and workforce development. He has spoken at conferences worldwide, including as a keynote speaker at Microsoftʻs annual developer conference (creating energy storage using machine learning and existing household appliances). His community service includes the U.S. Navy, the Peace Corps, and numerous nonprofits. In 2020, along with some friends, he designed and hand built ventilators when Hawai'i had an insufficient supply. Lagon is a past Petra Fellow (Center for Community Change) and East West Center Fellow (general engineering and Asian industrialization). He is a native Hawaiian and practices indigenous farming on weekends. He and his wife Alison have two boys, both students at Kamehameha Schools.

Bao-Thuy Nguyen started her career at the USPTO in 1996. She graduated from Johns Hopkins University with a Master of Science in biotechnology and the University of Maryland at College Park with a Bachelor of Science in microbiology. She was a Patent Examiner in Art Unit 1641, Diagnostic and Specific Binding Assays and Related Devices, for 16 years before becoming a Supervisory Parent Examiner in 2012.

Rakesh Srivastava has an incredibly rich and diverse background. Originally from India, he received his undergraduate degree at National Institute of Rehabilitation Training and Research in India. In 1997, he moved to the United States, attended the University of Nebraska at Kearney for graduate school, completed his residency, and soon after became an American Board-Certified Prosthetist and Orthotist.

Srivastava is now part of a research team at the University of Nebraska at Omaha on a program called Cyborg Beast, where the team members are developing an affordable and innovative prosthetic hand that has been created utilizing new forward-thinking 3D printing technology. Srivastava is also profoundly involved with prominent non-profit organizations based in India and within the United States, where he uses his education, talent, time and generosity to assist those who are less fortunate and may not otherwise have access to the care they need. Srivastava is deeply respected and admired by his clients, colleagues, and peers, who praise him for his professionalism, expertise, and quality work.

Srivastava started an additive manufacturing company, SHABRI, LLC, in 2019, a Center for the Manufacturing of Medical Grade Low-Cost 3D-Printed Prosthetic and Assistive Devices. SHABRI is the manufacturing subsidiary arm of Innovative Prosthetics & Orthotics — a company that designs and manufactures low-cost medical devices and treatment options for patients with limb, spinal, and other injuries.

Srivastava was recognized by the Small Business Administration (SBA) as Nebraska Small Business Person of the Year in 2020. He is also a fellow at the Academy for Orthotics & Prosthetics Association.

Mylen Yamamoto Tansingco is the Founder and Creator of Cropsticks®. Cropsticks® started as an idea on an airplane and can now be found in 500+ restaurants, hotels, and retailers across the world like Disney, Hakkasan, Roy’s, Panda Restaurant Group, Four Seasons, Sysco, Cost Plus, World Market, and more. The sustainable chopsticks with a built-in rest first appeared on season eight of ABC's hit show Shark Tank and have garnered attention from celebrity chefs, Fortune 500 companies, and influencers with millions of followers. The company is a Certified B Corporation, the highest standard for certification of environmental and social practices.

Yamamoto Tansingco is also highly respected Talent Manager and Producer of Clique-Now, which manages the careers of top digital Asian American talent. She has closed and managed deals with brands like Nike, AT&T, Google, TikTok, and Toyota. In addition, she has helped her clients build merchandise lines, develop TV shows, and book appearances all over the world. Clique-now was listed as one of Business Insider’s Top 25 YouTube talent managers in 2020.

Despite her busy schedule, Yamamoto Tansingco’s first love has always been teaching. She currently teaches Leadership Communication Strategies at UCLA Extension and is a TikTok Creative Learning Partner. Previously, she served as a Clinical Professor at Loyola Marymount University teaching entrepreneurship. Yamamoto Tansingco also conducts education workshops for corporations like McDonald's and YouTube. She holds an M.A. in Communication from California State University, Los Angeles.

In her free time, she supports causes like #HateIsAVirus and mentors aspiring entrepreneurs.

In 2020, Yamamoto Tansingco won the Small Business Administration’s (SBA) Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award.

Dr. Hyunwoo Yuk is currently Co-Founder and CTO of SanaHeal, a Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and Mayo Clinic spinoff startup focusing on innovative medical devices for tissue repair and healing. He received his M.S. and Ph.D. from MIT in 2016 and 2021, and his B.S. from the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology in 2014, all in Mechanical Engineering. Prior to co-founding SanaHeal, Yuk worked as a research scientist in MIT from 2021 to 2022. His research focuses on the broad topic of soft materials, including bioadhesives, hydrogels for bioelectronics, and 3D printing of functional soft materials with an emphasis on biomedical applications and translational medical devices. He has authored more than 40 peer-reviewed papers with over 25 lead or corresponding authored papers in prestigious journals, including Nature, Nature Materials, Nature Biomedical Engineering, and Science Translational Medicine. His research has been cited over 6,500 times and highlighted in various media outlets, including World Economic Forum, WIRED, Forbes, and WIPO Magazine. Yuk is a named co-inventor on 17 patents, including four issued by the USPTO. He is a recipient of the Materials Research Society Graduate Student Award, has been named to the Forbes 30 Under 30, and is a Collegiate Inventors Competition graduate winner.