Innovation Fest pitch winner touts unexpected treat: growing his animal health startup in Kansas
August 13, 2025 | Nikki Overfelt Chifalu
Emmanuel Bijaoui’s first time in Kansas — for Tuesday’s Innovation Festival and onboarding for the incoming Plug and Play Topeka cohort — has left the Treat Therapeutics founder with a lasting impression of the region’s entrepreneurial ecosystem, he shared.
Craig Mason, founder of Kansas City-based Myndset, chats with the co-founders of Pet Portal AI during the BioKansas Startup Pitch Competition at Innovation Festival; photo by Nikki Overfelt Chifalu, Startland News
“We always talk about the Animal Health Corridor,” he said after winning the festival’s BioKansas Startup Pitch Competition at the Overland Park Convention Center, “and being here and seeing it on the ground — all the big companies that are around — you really feel that this is the place to be for animal health.”
New York-based Treat Therapeutics — a pet clinical trial platform helping to accelerate research and development for pets by working directly with real, home-based dogs and cats — took home the top prize in the competition, a free year of membership to BioKansas and consulting from Wichita-based Arc Technologies Group.
“I’m really happy to win this here,” Bijaoui continued. “And I’m super excited to come back to Kansas and hopefully grow aspects of business here, as well.”
The Innovation Festival — presented by BioKansas — is a one-day scientific conference that brings together a vast array of students, professionals, life science experts, and many more, according to the organization. The conference showcases and explores the opportunities, challenges, resources, and innovations that exist in the Kansas and broader Midwest bioscience ecosystem.
Three Kansas City-based startups participated in the pitch competition: Myndset (Craig Mason), Portrayals XR (Tricia Keightley), and Wellphoria AI (Jon Crawford).
ICYMI: Fund Me, KC: Portrayals XR crowdfunds next step in building its immersive healing space
Tricia Keightley pitches her startup, Portrayals XR, during the BioKansas Startup Pitch Competition at Innovation Festival; photo by Nikki Overfelt Chifalu, Startland News
Amie Norton with Manhattan-based CustomNano — which is unlocking the potential of nano eggshells to combat pests in stored products — was named the second-place finisher. This was the first pitch competition for Norton, who is conducting research at Kansas State University and was encouraged by her mentors at the school’s Center for Entrepreneurship Accelerator program to join the event. She’s hoping to make connections through the conference who can help her commercialize her product, Norton said.
“It was a good feeling,” she said of earning second from the judges, “because people really cared about my ideas. It really was a great experience just to get out there and pitch an idea.”
Vetabolics — another Plug and Play Topeka startup that offers a non-invasive, urine-based test utilizing patented machine learning technology for the early detection of specific cancers in dogs — took home third place.
Pitch competitors and event organizers for the BioKansas Startup Pitch Competition at Innovation Festival; photo by Nikki Overfelt Chifalu, Startland News
Jon Crawford pitches his Kansas City startup, Wellphoria, during the BioKansas Startup Pitch Competition at Innovation Festival; photo by Nikki Overfelt Chifalu, Startland News
Pitch competition participants included:
- Arterra Pet, Jonathan Willbanks, Austin, Texas — Arterra has developed a strong researched-backed supplement for pet health and longevity.
- Branvine, David Park, Gardena, California — Branvine is a pet supplement company offering a range of targeted — often vegan — power and liquid health formulas for dogs and cats with the mission of extending pet lifespan.
- CustomNano, Amie Norton, Manhattan — CustomNano is unlocking the potential of nano eggshells: a game changing approach to combat stored product pests.
- Hoomanely, Sai Supriya, Palo Alto, California — Hoomanely is redefining pet longevity and enhancing their lifespan by building the world’s best “pet-first” ecosystem of interconnected smart devices and right-conscious products that are engineered to peak and sustain a pet’s well-being and prosperity.
- Myndset, Craig Mason, Kansas City — Myndset helps build mental strength like you train your body.
- Pet Portal AI, Ryan Gruzen and Harold Lee, Tarzana, California — Pet Portal is using AI to analyze all pet information and provide insights for pet parent’s informed decision making.
- Portrayals XR, Tricia Keightley, Kansas City — Portrayals is an inner child healing virtual reality experience.
- Treat Therapeutics, Emmanuel Bijaoui, New York — Treat is a pet clinical trial platform helping to accelerate research and development for pets by working directly with real, home-based dogs and cats.
- Vetabolics, Del Allison, Huntington Beach, California — Vetabolics offers a non-invasive, urine-based test utilizing patented machine learning technology for the early detection of specific cancers in dogs.
- Wellphoria AI, Jon Crawford, Kansas City — Wellphoria is an app that get to know you deeply — so you can sleep better, focus longer, and be more like you.
[divide]
This story is made possible by Network Kansas.
Network Kansas promotes an entrepreneurial environment by connecting entrepreneurs and small business owners with the expertise, education and economic resources they need to succeed.
Featured Business
2025 Startups to Watch
stats here
Related Posts on Startland News
Kansas City seeks leaders for Smart City board
The City of Kansas City, Mo., is now seeking nominations to lead the city’s smart city efforts. City leaders hope to attract citizens with experience in smart city technologies to help advise the City of Fountain’s coming Cisco Smart City project, in addition to its other smart city efforts. The newly authorized “Smart City Advisory…
RECAP: 1 Million Cups focuses on time with Mixtape, Flowh
There was a theme at today’s 1 Million Cups KC, and it was time. Two startups presented their businesses, both at different stages, and both in different industries, but both dealing with time — how we remember it and how we manage it. Mixtape founder Joel Johnson was first to present his firm, which created…
Lean Lab eyes $25K in national pitch contest
The Lean Lab, a Kansas City-based education innovation incubator, is hoping to strike gold in a national pitch competition in California. The organization on Wednesday will be pitching its model in the Teach For America Social Innovation Awards, an annual competition in which the Lean Lab hopes to snag a $25,000 prize. Lean Lab is the…
6 ways to be a startup community hero (for non-entrepreneurs)
Melissa Roberts, marketing director of the Enterprise Center of Johnson County, shares how those interested in helping the startup community can effectively engage entrepreneurs. In my work at an entrepreneurial service non-profit in Kansas City, I get to meet many passionate, community-minded people each day. Often, those people have no connection to our startup community, other than…