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UW Tech Exploration Lab Student Projects Highlight Innovation, Emerging Technologies
At a recent open house for the University of Wisconsin–Madison’s Tech Exploration Lab at the Wisconsin Institute for Discovery (WID) a partnership between the Wisconsin School of Business bold ideas and community impact come to life through the Tech Exploration Lab. Kevin Ponto and Jon Eckhardt, brought deep expertise in design thinking and entrepreneurship to support students in turning innovative ideas into real-world solutions. One project, Ember AI, developed by computer science students Kathan Reddy and Shobhin Basu, created an algorithm using computer vision, a type of AI, to identify and track stray embers. Reddy says working with co-director Kevin Ponto helped them fast-track development: “Every time we talked to Kevin, we instantly made like two weeks’ worth of progress.” Alzheimer’s app creator Aarya Deshpande credits Eckhardt for helping him connect with senior dementia researchers to refine the app, which combines health tools with memory preservation features such as photos of family members and details of their relationship to the user. Deshpande says he considers the app to be “interdisciplinary,” with both a “health side and a research side.” Through his own research, Deshpande created the initial prototype for the app and connected Eckhardt who encouraged him and putt him in touch with four UW–Madison senior dementia scientists who offered guidance and feedback.
UW Researchers Developing App to Easily Assess Home for Accessibility Improvements
Wisconsin Institute for Discovery researcher Kevin Ponto was featured on Channel3000 to discuss the development of an app designed to easily assess homes for accessibility improvements. Along with Professor Jung-Hye Shin, chair of UW’s Design Studies Department, they developed the Augmented Reality Home Assessment Tool, or ARHAT. The app aims to make it easier to identify accessibility enhancements using mobile devices.
Wisconsin Science Festival Rolls Out 2025 Feature: “Rock and Roll”
The 15th annual Wisconsin Science Festival, set to take place October 16–26, 2025, has announced its theme: Rock and Roll. “It’s a play on words—not just about sound and music, but also the geology that shapes Wisconsin, the physics of motion, and the creative energy that drives discovery,” says Sam Mulrooney, Director of the Wisconsin Science Festival. Host registration is now open for those interested in submitting an event for this year’s festival.
App under development at UW could make it easier, more affordable to ‘age in place’
Researchers are using augmented reality to help make homes safer for older adults through a tool called ARHAT—the Augmented Reality Home Assessment Tool. ARHAT guides users through a process to measure key features of a living space and suggests accessibility improvements. By streamlining what can be a clunky and expensive process, the tool supports a more affordable, community-based approach to home safety. The project is led by Jung-hye Shin and Kevin Ponto from the Department of Design Studies and the Wisconsin Institute for Discovery, alongside occupational therapist and kinesiology professor Beth Fields.
