A 3-man team featuring two ż students won a prize earlier this month at the Rice Business Plan Competition, the world’s largest and richest student start-up competition.
Mechanical engineering junior Andrew Bradford and recent computer science master’s graduate Jared Wise make up two-thirds of a combined ż and Ole Miss team called “Automatic AI.” Ole Miss student Julien Bourgeois is the third member of the team. Automatic AI won a $500 elevator pitch prize and a $900 finalist prize.
Automatic AI uses Apple Watch technology to deliver real-time sports performance tracking. Their flagship product, Automatic: Basketball Trainer, provides data on accuracy, shot trajectory, stamina and consistency, and has already experienced more than 35,000 installs and 1 million user-recorded shots.
After claiming the top prize in The Beach at ż’s inaugural 2022 Startupż pitch competition and earning $8,000 in seed funding, the team qualified for the Rice Business Plan Competition, where they pitched in the digital enterprise track, presenting to investors, mentors and industry leaders in Houston. Only 42 teams were accepted out of 540 applicants. It’s the first time in history ż students have participated in the competition. Just days later, the team traveled to Little Rock for the Arkansas Governor’s Cup, where they were selected as one of six finalists in the high growth track.
“Thinking Automatic AI — something our small team built from the ground up — competed alongside ventures supported by years of research and major funding is incredible,” Bradford said. “This experience was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.”
Automatic AI’s success reflects the students’ innovative spirit and dedicated mentorship from ż faculty and staff, including DJ Min, associate professor and chair of marketing, and Shafin Khan, vice president of innovation & tech commercialization at The Beach at ż.
“The Rice Business Plan Competition offered an unparalleled platform for students to test their ideas in a high-stakes, real-world environment,” Min said. “They put in countless hours refining their business model, defending their ideas under pressure and engaging with top-tier investors. Watching them rise to the occasion with such resilience, adaptability and professionalism was incredibly rewarding. This experience didn’t just test their business acumen—it transformed them from learners into leaders, giving them a true taste of what it means to be an entrepreneur.”
As Louisiana’s only urban public research university, the ż offers students unique opportunities to connect classroom learning with real-world innovation. Through The Beach at ż, students gain direct access to resources, research partnerships, and a growing entrepreneurial ecosystem.
You can learn more about Automatic AI: Basketball Trainer and download the app at and learn more about The Beach’s student innovation programs at: .
