A health tech startup improving how community health workers (CHW) document client visits took the $2,000 first place prize in the second annual Innovate 808 competition, hosted by the Pacific Asian Center for Entrepreneurship (PACE) in the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa’s Shidler College of Business. The startup was one of 12 interdisciplinary teams made up of UH Mānoa students that competed in the two-week challenge.
The competition was co-hosted by Pear Suite, a software platform led by a Shidler and PACE alumnus, that empowers community-based organizations to address the social drivers of health. It highlighted PACE’s mission to bridge academic learning with practical, work-based problem-solving.
“Innovate 808 shows how powerful interdisciplinary learning can be when we connect students to real community partners,” PACE Executive Director Sandra Fujiyama said. “The ideas generated this year show that innovation truly thrives in collaboration.”
Interdisciplinary collaboration
The students in this year’s challenge represented 10 UH Mānoa colleges and schools. The result was a dynamic combination of technical, social and entrepreneurial ideas to support Hawaiʻi’s community health workforce.
The winning team, Pear Lens, created a photo-based note capture and conversion tool that allows CHW to document client interactions more efficiently while maintaining data privacy. The team came together as four solo applicants met for the first time during the competition: Justin Paul Alejo (business), Jennifer Kawata (public administration), Biplav Paudel (business) and Ivy Vo (business).
“The competition brought together a diverse team of complete strangers to solve a complex challenge, but we quickly found our rhythm and collaborated seamlessly to propose a simple yet powerful idea,” Kawata said.
Kawehi Kea-Scott, a Pear Suite judge who used to work as a CHW, commended the team for “meeting CHWs where they are” by respecting existing workflows while introducing low-friction technology. “The fact that these students built a fully functioning prototype in just two weeks is remarkable,” Kea-Scott said.
Initially the competition was planned as a winner-takes-all prize structure, but the judges were so impressed by the presentations that three runner-up prizes were added. Each student from the following three teams won $350.
- Jayden Ronel Villanueva, Shannon Tai and Jaylyn-Kate Balon developed a tiered education and certification pathway with AI-generated feedback and mentoring for aspiring CHWs.
- Tate Goodman, Mau Tsujimura, Micah Tajiri and Lenox Covington created a machine-learning workflow tool that helps CHWs select the most effective resources for their clients.
- Logan Lee, Tristan Ta and Yeunggyun Kwon designed a referral platform that connects CHWs and clients based on shared experience and training, fostering stronger engagement.
Takeda invited the winning teams to present their solutions to his executive team and encouraged all participants to consider internships and employment at Pear Suite, as he shared that Pear Suite will be continuing its nationwide expansion after he recently raised $7.6 million in funding.
“Just try it, go out there and find problems to solve,” Takeda said. “Being able to test ideas, try new things and see what the feedback is from your customers is a great way to learn and grow.”
Teams were also mentored by Jeff Hui, PACE‘s entrepreneur in residence, who advised students to “take advantage of these real world experiences. These are the opportunities that open doors to new career paths and set you apart when you are interviewing for a job.”
