U of Michigan start-up wins last weekend’s Heartland Challenge
The start-up took home $45,000 from three different prize packages.
Intero Biosystems, a student start-up from the University of Michigan that makes miniature human intestines for more predictive preclinical drug testing, was the overall champion at the 2025 Heartland Challenge.
Intero earned $40,000 by winning first place at the competition, which was held last weekend at the Ledger in downtown Bentonville, AR. Additionally, the start-up won $3,000 from an Investor Roundtable prize sponsored by Cadron Capital, and captured $2,000 by winning the Most Investable Company Award, which was evaluated by Master of Science in Finance students at the Sam M. Walton College of Business.
Inferno has developed the first stem cell-derived human “mini gut” that replicates cell types, spatial structure and function of the human intestine, according to the startup. The team includes Madeline Eiken, Don Sobell, and Charlie Childs. Their advisor is Anne Perigo.
“Our mission is to revolutionize the way that drugs go to market,” Eiken said. “Ninety percent of drugs will ultimately fail clinical trials. This is devastating for patients and it’s also very expensive for pharma companies who make huge investments of time and money to take a single drug to market.”
The company says its product, GastroScreen, is ideal for drug testing, disease modeling, and functional tests of organ function, allowing customers to mitigate risk and identify safer, more effective compounds before testing on humans.
Designed to simulate the process of raising venture capital for a high-growth enterprise, the Heartland Challenge is the first global student start-up competition in Arkansas and has awarded nearly $600,000 in prize money since it was first held virtually in spring 2020. This year’s competition featured 12 semifinalists representing 11 universities and a prize pool of nearly $100,000.
MabLab, from Harvard and Columbia universities, finished second, taking home $20,000. Xatoms, from the University of Toronto and Western University, placed third, winning $10,000. Humimic Biosystems, from the U of A, finished fourth, winning $5,000. DioTeX Diagnostics, from Johns Hopkins University, finished fifth and won $1,000.
The competition was hosted by the Walton College and overseen by the Office of Entrepreneurship and Innovation, with generous primary support from the Walton Family Charitable Support Foundation.
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