Soft, Stent-Like Device for Blood Pressure Control Professor Katia Bertoldi, William and Ami Kuan Danoff Professor of Applied Mechanics, Harvard SEAS Project Overview Problem: High blood pressure affects nearly half of US adults. Medication to reduce high blood pressure must be taken daily and almost 20% of people with hypertension cannot be successfully treated with these medicines. Proposed Solution: Researchers in the lab of Professor Katia Bertoldi are developing a soft

Optical Interconnects for Scalable Quantum Processing Professor Kiyoul Yang Assistant Professor of Electrical Engineering, Harvard SEAS Professor Mikhail Lukin Joshua and Beth Friedman University Professor Co-Director of the Quantum Science and Engineering Initiative, Harvard Physics Department Project Overview The problem: Supercomputers, clusters of individual computers networked together, are used to process large amounts of data with applications in weather prediction, cr

Integrated Chip-Scale Optical Switch and Amplifier Professor Kiyoul Yang Assistant Professor of Electrical Engineering, Harvard SEAS Project Overview Problem: The demand for data centers is expected to soar with the adoption of increasingly sophisticated AI tools. Data centers use large amounts of electricity and are estimated to account for between 6 and 12% of total US electricity use by 2028. Silicon photonics are being adopted in higher-end data centers to both decrease

DryScreen: Dehumidification for carbon-conscious comfort in a warming world Prof. Joanna Aizenberg Amy Smith Berylson Professor of Materials Science and Professor of Chemistry and Chemical Biology at Harvard University School of Engineering and Applied Sciences Asst. Prof. Jonathan Grinham Assistant Professor of Architecture Harvard University Graduate School of Design Project Overview The DryScreen system developed by an interdisciplinary team from SEAS and GSD aims to reduc

Wearable Adaptive Vibrotactile Bracelet (WAVelet) for Spasticity Alleviation Prof. Shriya Srinivasan Assistant Professor of Bioengineering, SEAS Project Overview This GRID accelerator project will mature our wearable mechanostimulation system from benchtop prototype to translation-ready device, incorporating critical parameter optimization and user connectivity components necessary for large-scale clinical trials in patients with spasticity. Spasticity causes involuntary musc

Integrated Methane Inversion (IMI): A software tool to monitor methane emissions using satellite observations Prof. Daniel Jacob Vasco McCoy Family Professor of Atmospheric Chemistry and Environmental Engineering, SEAS Project Overview There is growing demand from climate policy stakeholders to use satellite observations of greenhouse gases to quantify emissions. Our Atmospheric Chemistry Modeling Group (ACMG) at Harvard is widely recognized as the world leader in the develo

Restoring ambulation post-stroke: ankle exoskeleton to regain the ability and freedom to walk Dr. Santiago Canete Riaza Researcher Project Overview Over $56B is spent to treat stroke in the US annually and more than five million Americans live with impaired mobility post-stroke. Such impairment significantly affects both physical and mental wellbeing, impeding the recovery of quality-of-life and driving a downward spiral of other health consequences such as higher risk/exacer

Ushering in the next generation of high-speed, low power consumption integrated circuits: lithium tantalate photonics Dr. Keith Powell Researcher Project Overview Integrated photonics is a nascent technology that integrates complex optical circuits and systems at chip scale. Much like how integrated electronics revolutionized the electronics industry over the last 60+ years, photonic circuits enable the next leap in circuity. Dr Keith Powell and the Loncar lab are developing

Engineering asymmetric polysaccharide-coated liposomes and lipid nanoparticles for drug delivery Prof. David A. Weitz Professor of Applied Physics, School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, Harvard University Project Overview The COVID-19 pandemic demonstrated the importance of drug delivery. There, an mRNA was encapsulated inside a lipid-based container to protect it from degradation within the human body to engineer an efficient vaccine against COVID-19. However, vaccines

OvaVision: transforming the fertility industry with AI-driven solutions Dr. Helen Yang Researcher Project Overview OvaVision is transforming the fertility industry with AI-driven solutions. With a PhD in Biophysics from Harvard University, Helen’s interdisciplinary research spans clinical IVF, physics, biology, and computer science. Her diverse expertise drives innovative approaches to reproductive health, integrating cutting-edge technology with deep scientific knowledge. ​

AI-driven flexible bioelectronics therapeutics Prof. Jia Liu Assistant Professor of Bioengineering, Department, Division, Center and/or Laboratory: Harvard SEAS Project Overview This project aims to develop an innovative approach to integrating modern electronics and AI with healthcare through the development of AI-driven flexible bioelectronics therapeutics. The project addresses the mismatch between traditional rigid electronics and the soft, dynamic nature of the human bod

Artificial intelligence driven breathalyzers for disease detection Prof. Joanna Aizenberg Amy Smith Berylson Professor of Materials Science and Professor of Chemistry & Chemical Biology Project Overview Getting reliable information for disease detection is a major challenge for existing diagnostic technologies, typically requiring invasive and time-consuming tests involving bodily fluids such as blood and urine. Over the past 5-10 years, molecules in the breath have been iden

AI-powered CAD design unlocks new potential in robotics, equipment, and more Prof. Jennifer A. Lewis Hansjorg Wyss Professor of Biologically Inspired Engineering John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences Project Overview Researchers in Jennifer Lewis’s lab are developing a new paradigm for CAD projects that reveals optimal versions of human-specified designs. In this method, the user inputs high-level design concepts and specifies device functionality, and AI

Navigation assistant for people with impaired vision or blindness Prof. Patrick Slade Assistant Professor of Bioengineering (Harvard Ability Lab) Project Overview We have developed a navigation system that overcomes all of these navigation challenges by combining novel computer vision techniques, sensor fusion, and personalized feedback to the user, requiring only a smartphone. We have provided extensive research testing to validate the mobility benefits and surveyed 99 poten

Photophoretically levitating a communicating payload Prof. Joost Vlassak Abbott and James Lawrence Professor of Materials Engineering, Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences Ben Schafer PhD Student, Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences Project Overview The mesosphere is an inaccessible region of the atmosphere (50-100 km altitudes) that is too high for conventional aircraft to generate lift, yet too low for satellites

A soft lightweight wearable to deliver timed electrical stimulation to the ankle for improving everyday poststroke walking combined with a remote monitoring platform Conor Walsh, PhD (Harvard SEAS) project PI with other members of the lab contributing to the project Mark Etzelmueller Research fellow at the Harvard Move Lab. Project Lead and has strong interest in moving the technology towards translation. Dabin Choe (G5-Harvard) a PhD student who will lead data collection a

An auditable, trustworthy DeFi exchange that protects traders from market manipulation schemes Matheus V. X. Ferreira Postdoctoral Fellow in Computer Science School of Engineering and Applied Sciences Prof. David C. Parkes George F. Colony Professor of Computer Science School of Engineering and Applied Sciences Project Overview Blockchain trading on decentralized exchanges currently allows miners to manipulate transaction orders to generate risk-free profits. David Parkes’ la

Compact audio drivers that deliver strong bass response for headphones Prof. Robert J. Wood Harry Lewis and Marlyn McGrath Professor of Engineering and Applied Sciences, John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences Project Overview Wireless headphone customers continually demand better sound quality, more powerful noise cancellation, a more comfortable fit, and longer battery life. Existing electromagnetic drivers, however, have already been optimized to their p

An easy-to-use tool for fans to create personalized sports videos Prof. Hanspeter Pfister An Wang Professor of Computer Science, John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences Project Overview Current high-quality video editing tools are expensive and difficult to use, which limits the content individual fans can create. The team in Hanspeter Pfister’s laboratory is developing an easy-to-use video editing tool for creating and editing engaging sports videos. Augme

Antimicrobial Susceptibility Testing (AST) system for rapid, targeted treatment of pathogenic bacteria Prof. Joost J. Vlassak Abbott and James Lawrence Professor of Materials Engineering John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences Juanjuan Zheng, PhD Postdoctoral Fellow in Materials Science and Mechanical Engineering Project Overview Pathogenic bacteria are increasingly acquiring antibiotic resistance and new forms of resistance are continuously emerging; upwar

Safe, cost-effective hydrogen storage to enable the green hydrogen economy Prof. Michael J. Aziz Tracy Sykes Professor of Materials & Energy Technologies Project Overview Green hydrogen is a versatile energy carrier that can help reduce our dependence on fossil fuels and increase energy security by providing a reliable source of renewable energy. Transition to a green hydrogen economy requires not only hydrogen generation, but crucially it requires innovation in safe, cost-ef

Bacteria Strains to Improve Carbon Capture and Storage Researchers: Pamela Silver and Michael Springe Project Overview Carbon dioxide (CO2) is the most common greenhouse gas responsible for climate change. CO2 also lingers longer than other greenhouse gases, which means it must be removed from the atmosphere to stop warming temperatures. The rock cycle is Earth’s natural way of capturing CO2 through rock weathering, which permanently locks CO2 into the oceans. However, weathe

Electrified hydrogen peroxide production and advanced green oxidation Researcher: Michael Aziz Project Overview Hydrogen peroxide is a key industrial chemical used widely in manufacturing products ranging from paper to textiles. Making hydrogen peroxide currently requires fossil fuels and expensive catalysts, contributing to climate change. The process of creating the chemical also produces hazardous byproducts. ​ A research team led by Michael Aziz, Gene and Tracy Sykes Prof

Photonic materials for sustainable packaging Researcher: Vinothan N. Manoharan Project Overview Most plastic packaging is not recyclable and adds to waste pollution. But plastic is doing much more to harm the planet than sitting in landfills for decades and polluting our oceans. Creating plastics requires fossil fuels, emitting large amounts of carbon into the atmosphere. Thanks to dyes and additives, many of the plastics in use today are un-recyclable. ​ A research team led