The Landis Family Fellowship connects individuals with deep technical expertise to the gig economy and resources at mHUB to accelerate hardtech innovation. It goal is create a stronger launchpad to catapult the technologies that will solve society's biggest problems.
Introducing the Fall 2024 Landis Family HardTech Development Fellows at mHUB who began their program in July.
Jenn Hintzsche
Refusing to accept the word "infertile" as her diagnosis, Dr. Jennifer Hintzsche instead utilized her Ph.D. in Bioinformatics to invent a medical device that conceived her daughter. Driven by a deep-seated passion to offer everyone a safe at-home fertility option to try first, Dr. Jenn pioneered the first and only FDA-cleared, sterile, at-home insemination kit, The PherDalⓇ Kit.
Dr. Jenn has a portfolio of over 25 peer-reviewed scientific articles and 700+ citations in prestigious journals like Nature, showcasing her clinical expertise. Dr. Hintzsche became the first individual to receive a Ph.D. in Bioinformatics from Northern Illinois University in 2014. During her postdoctoral tenure at the University of Colorado, she made significant strides in cancer genomics that secured million-dollar grants, papers, and clinical trials. She then brought her expertise to healthcare SaaS as a data analyst and software developer. Within four years, she assumed leadership roles at two rapidly expanding pharmaceutical SaaS companies, helping them exponentially scale revenue past 15M+.
Dr. Jenn was diagnosed with unexplained infertility in 2017. Rather than accepting expensive fertility treatment solutions for an unknown problem, she dove into the scientific literature to find a solution. After 16 months of infertility, Dr. Jenn and her mechanical engineer husband invented and used their now multi-patented medical device, The PherDalⓇ Kit to conceive their daughter in just the second month of use.
PherDal Fertility Science initially launched 200 proof-of-concept kits that sold out in 90 days, resulting in 34 pregnancies. In 2022, a successful crowdfunding equity campaign secured over $630K for FDA clearance testing and further validated the company’s impressive growth potential. In December 2023, PherDal made history as the only sterile at-home fertility kit to be awarded clearance by the FDA and is now available direct-to-consumers for $199 at PherDal.com.
Dr. Jenn has been a SXSW Pitch Finalist, Innovation Labs Pitch Finalist, mHUB HardTech Summit Finalist, FemTech World Award’s Leader of the Year Finalist, Best Innovation Award Winner at the 2024 FemTech & Consumer Health Summit, 4 under 40 Award Winner, and selected to the 23-24 Femovate Cohort. Dr. Jenn has been featured in national news outlets like Forbes, Fox News, Rescripted, Motherly, and Business Insider sharing her infertility story and scientific expertise to empower more change and innovation in women’s health.
Siddique Khateeb
Siddique Khateeb brings more than two decades of diverse industrial experience in R&D, engineering design, technology / product development and commercialization of products from conceptual design to manufacturing readiness. He has designed and developed many novel ideas into market ready products in the field of energy storage systems like batteries, fuel cells, thermal energy storage devices and thermal management materials. He has been granted many patents and published many papers in leading scientific journals. He graduated with M.S. in Chemical Engineering from IIT-Chicago in 2004 and M.S. Management (Innovation & Entrepreneurship) from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in 2010 and numerous professional certificates.
Siddique Khateeb has worked in three successful start-up companies as an early-stage employee alongside founders and senior management where he gained invaluable experiences that laid strong foundation to his innovation and entrepreneurship skills combined with agile problem-solving skills, business acumen and innovation strategies. He has also worked in large corporations for many years that helped him to gain very valuable experiences in technology / product development / commercialization using stage-gate processes, project management, process management and leading multidisciplinary teams.
Siddique Khateeb is very fortunate to become part of Landis Family HardTech fellowship program to grow his entrepreneurial skills, business networking while working at mHUB alongside numerous founders and leverage the start-up ecosystem at mHUB to accelerate his start-up company (CaloryTech Innovation, founded 2021) that is developing novel thermal management materials for various applications in batteries, portable electronic devices, fast computing systems, power electronics etc. He is eagerly looking to contribute to various start-up companies with his expertise and become part of start-up teams to help them solve technology / product development and commercialization challenges.
Jill Knobeloch
Jill grew up in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado and has been living in Chicago since 2015. She is a digital designer focused on user experience design (UX/UI) for software and mobile apps through her independent studio GrapeSeed Designs.
Jill’s fascination with human behavioral psychology catalyzes with her background in graphics, web, and digital marketing design to create seamless human-tech interactions. Her curiosity and knack for spotting patterns — in humans, processes, and technology — result in quality, in-depth user roadmaps and digital products.
Through her work, Jill collaborates directly with software engineers to bring your concepts to life. She can execute with other independent contractors or integrate directly with your team. When she’s not behind the screen or product testing, Jill can often be found on the ice refereeing a hockey game or tinkering in mHUB’s prototype shop.
Prachi Kumar
Driven by an unyielding passion for engineering and a remarkable innovation ability, Prachi Kumar has emerged as a leading force across various technological landscapes. With a career that spans two decades with Fortune 100 companies and cutting-edge startups, Kumar's journey is a testament to her commitment to excellence and groundbreaking innovation.
Prachi's career is a rich tapestry woven with diverse experiences and notable achievements. From an aspiring engineer to an acclaimed executive leader, she is nothing short of remarkable. Currently, she serves as the Founder and CEO of Prizm Solution, a woman-owned startup pioneering in engineering services, manufacturing, product development, and prototyping for product-market fit exploration. Her specialty is in bringing connected devices to life that include cloud, mobile apps, edge/cloud AI, firmware development, and hardware development for businesses, consumers, or patients.
Before venturing into entrepreneurship, Kumar held prestigious positions at several Fortune 100 companies. At Asurion, she led technology and enterprise architecture teams, steering the company's IT operations toward greater efficiency via automation. While at Philips as a Fellow, she drove digital transformation for the Personal Health business, integrating SaaS and IoT technologies into consumer health products. As Chief Technology Officer at SharkNinja, Kumar launched and mass-manufactured connected small kitchen appliances and household robotic vacuum cleaners, revitalizing the business unit and achieving substantial growth.
Her earlier roles laid a solid foundation for her illustrious career. At Newell Brands, as Senior Vice President of Engineering, Kumar led the development of connected smart home products and forged strategic partnerships that drove significant business growth. Her work at Danaher, Nokia, and Motorola Solutions further highlights her proficiency in industrial manufacturing, telecommunications, and global engineering solutions.
An inventor with 16 patents and a staunch advocate for continuous improvement, Kumar's influence extends beyond her corporate roles. Her educational background, including an MBA, a Master’s in Computer Science, and a Bachelor’s in Electrical Engineering, complements her extensive technical expertise and leadership skills.
Prachi Kumar’s journey is defined by her passions. As she continues to lead and innovate, Kumar remains a beacon of inspiration for the engineering community and beyond. In joining this community, she looks forward to the shared joy of bringing ideas to life.
Denise James
Denise R. James is an experienced automotive robotic machine learning leader with over 20 years of experience managing automotive data science teams and projects. She is highly skilled in powertrain automotive embedded electronics, machine learning, statistics, optimization, and programming. Denise has a proven track record of delivering data-driven solutions that drive business growth and enhance customer satisfaction.
Krystal Wilson
Krystal Wilson is a seasoned industrial engineer with a robust background in continuous improvement and cost optimization. With a proven track record of implementing efficient processes and driving significant cost savings, Krystal excels at identifying opportunities for enhancement and executing strategic initiatives to enhance productivity and profitability.
Her expertise lies in leveraging analytical skills and engineering principles to streamline operations, reduce waste, and enhance overall organizational performance.
Krystal is passionate about staying at the forefront of industry trends and continuously expanding her knowledge. She actively seeks out new learning opportunities and enjoys applying innovative solutions to complex challenges.
Contact mHUB to learn how you can engage with these hardtech development fellows.
Are you an entrepreneur, product development specialist, or engineering contractor looking to freelance in the gig economy? Learn more about the mHUB HardTech Development Fellowship program or how you can become a hardtech consultant.
